Montreux / Lausanne or Vevey

I enjoy Laussane alot. The area along lake geneva is beautiful, also the Olympic Museum is there. You can pick up a paddlewheel ferry to reach Chateau Chrillon for a lovely visit and boat ride. Re lodging i stayed at the family hostel in Laussane a 2min walk from train station . They have private rooms with views of the Lake. It was my first hostel stay , i was very pleased with my stay, view, very clean, and the rate was amazing for switzerland.

Vevey is my favorite place along Lake Geneva! Much quieter than the other towns you mention but just as lovely. I like Lausanne but the hills are too much for me. We spent a day there and that was enough!

Anita, your are an accomplished athlete. What do you mean, the hills of Lausanne are too much for you?

We loved Vevey too...much smaller. Your kids would enjoy the beach. We did not stay in Vevey, it was a day trip from Thun. The Olympic Museum in Lausanne was nice.

Vevey is a wonderful place to stay - very beautiful, relaxed and low key. I highly recommend it.

I would switch to Vevey or Lausanne, even without the Jazz Festival I would do it. (My favorite thing about Montreaux is that it's the departure point for Rochers de Naye).. Lausanne's hills are not a problem if you take their super clean and quiet tram from Ouchy (lakeside, where I used to live) and the center of the city (Flon or higher in the old town). Vevey is a smaller, more intimate experience. Ferries run between the two, and up and down the lake, and I highly recommend taking them.

Ashy,

Of all the places you mentioned, the best choice (IMO) is Lausanne. It's a good home base location with good transportation networks, so you'll be able to take easy day trips to Château de Chillon, Montreux or Vevey. If you decide to visit the Chateau, I'd suggest using the historic old steam paddlewheelers from Ouchy in one direction, and then return by train.

As others have mentioned, Lausanne is built on the side of a hill, which runs from Ouchy up to the main part of town. If you'd rather not walk, there's a Metro running from Ouchy that makes the trip much easier. As I recall, my hotel provided a free Metro pass with the cost of the room (but my memory is a bit foggy on that point).

As with anywhere else in Switzerland, it's expensive so budget accordingly.

I normally recommend Vevey when visiting the area, but during the Jazz, you are right that it is very expensive and very crowded during those two weeks. If you are wanting a quieter stay during this time but still want to be able to take a short train to see the sights, consider Morges or even closer to Geneva. I just checked two different dates during this time and Morges is 1/3 the cost of Montreux and Geneva almost 1/2.

Lola those hills are steep! I like a good workout but not all day when I'm on vaca! :) I'll get up early to row but when I'm done, I'm done!

I just returned from that area. I stayed in Lausanne- hotel des Voyages - a very convenient location, 10 minutes to the train station despite the need to take 1 metro stop to get there. Lausanne was nice, however if you are looking for a relaxing lake promenade and a smaller town, stay in Vevey. I actually wished I stayed there- it makes you feel like you are on vacation. Montreaux is nice but Vevey is just as good. They are all on the same train line with easy connections to Geneve and the airport.

We stayed in Lausanne up in the heart of Town at the Ibis Lausanne Center because they had parking.We took the paddlewheeller to Montreux on a day trip, great way to see the towns along the lakeside and we returned by train.We Took the Tram down the the Hill to Ochey which is the waterfront where all of the great archiecture is.We thought Lausanne was a good location for transportation,boat or train.
Mike

Hi Ashy! I agree with others that Lausanne is a beautiful place to stay. That said, I would definitely go to Montreux during the Jazz festival if you have the opportunity! My wife and I were there last July, and we had a wonderful time listening to music and eating on the grass in Parc Vernex, which offers free concerts during the festival right along the lake.