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Visiting Lavaux Vineyards while lodging in Montreau, beginning of September

Without going on an expensive wine tour what would people suggest with one day, Tuesday to visit and taste the wine of the region. Best towns and winery? Do I have to make a reservation for wine tasting? I'm trying to pick 3 or 4 towns to visit. Walk, train or boat?

Posted by
3387 posts

There are only a couple of "coops" where various wineries have pooled their resources to open tasting rooms that keep regular hours. For wineries in this region you must make an appointment by phone. Hopefully you speak French because we found that many of the vintners in this area don't speak English well since they don't generally export their wine out of the country. There are only one or two who keep open hours and even those cannot be relied upon to actually be open when they say they are. The two coops I know of are just off the E62 near Leytron and in Sion on the east side of town at the base of the road that goes up to Nendaz. Other than that, I haven't seen open tasting rooms in the area although someone here on this forum may know of others.
The Lavaux Vineyards wrap around the northeast end of Lake Geneva past Vevey, Laussanne, and Montreux. The vines continue on south towards Martigny and stretch eastward through Valais all the way up to the town of Sierre. They are vast and extensive. The vineyards around the lake are planted on steep, stone terraces that are not very accessible for walking from Montreux. There is a walking trail, if you can fine it, that is discussed in the Fodor's guide to Switzerland but I didn't have time to walk it last summer when we were there.
Fendant is the unique, regional wine of the area and it can be purchased in most restaurants and markets where wine is sold. Definitely try it if you are there because it is quite different and very good!
The vineyards around Lake Geneva are very beautiful but I prefer the ones through Valais...they look like quilts going up the sides of the valley and there are ancient fortresses among them, some that even have vines planted in the ruins. From Leytron up to Sion is the most beautiful stretch and the vineyards are much easier to walk in here...lots of trails that are more easily accessible than the ones around the lake.

Posted by
114 posts

Thank you Anita for all the great info. We will not have a car, doing trains, boats etc only. R.S. recommends a walk through the vineyards maybe we will do that and do our tasting in other places, especially if English is not spoken.

I am planning another day visiting cheese and chocolate ares of Broc and Gruyeres. If you have or other travelers have any suggestions on what they liked the best.

Posted by
3387 posts

Gruyere is great! The "cheese factory" is a little touristy, well, a lot touristy, but there is a nice tour narrated by a "dairy cow" and you can see how they make and cure the cheese. Good on-site restaurant too.

The medieval village of Gruyere is well-worth seeing too. Nice old town with winding streets and a small, well-preserved chateau you can visit.

Maybe you can have your hotel help you find a taxi driver who can take you up to one of the trails in the vineyards? I'm sure a local would know better than anyone where the best walks are!

Posted by
8 posts

In Broc its the Callier Chocolate Factory (a divison of Nestle) although the tour is a bit touristy, at the end you have a wonderful, unlimited assortment of their incredible chocolates to sample (nothing like choc in the US or even the rest of Europe really). Don't let the Nestle name turn you off, Callier is a preium chocolate worth the visit.

Posted by
328 posts

I had cobbled together some notes on doing a walk through the vineyards for my last trip to Switzerland. Unfortunately, we ran out of time to go for an actual hike through the vineyards, we did stop for a short 15-minute walk up into the vineyards at sunset on our last night just to satisfy my curiosity, though. All it did was leave me wanting more. I'll copy some of my notes here, just in case they might help you ... just remember these are mixture of notes I copied and pasted from the internet and other sources for my personal use, so they jump around a lot:

Lavaux Vineyard Terraces: The Swiss Wine Route – St. Saphorin to Lutry
This trail zigzags across the prestigious Lavaux terraced vineyards, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
A wineyard trail overhanging the lake and crossing picturesque villages is signposted between St. Saphorin and Lutry. St. Saphorin features a church dating back to the 15th century. The Vinorama and Glérolle Castle in Rivaz invite visitors to a detour. Signposts all along these paths explain the mysteries of vines and wine. Monuments such as Tour Marsens in Epesses and the medieval village in Lutry bear witness to the region's past.
Welcoming wine cellars in the village centers let visitors discover the regional wines. A vast choice of hotels and restaurants is available.
Right at the start of this tour, the medieval St. Saphorin with its narrow alleys and characteristic winegrowers' houses from the 16th to 19th centuries is worth a visit. The town's original church steeple still adorns many wine labels today. It is said that the Auberge de l'Onde, an establishment that can look back at a centuries-old tradition of hospitality, and where local delicacies are served on three floors, is worth sinning for.

 To carelessly pass by wine cellars andtraditional pubs would be a crime. After all, those who want to experience the scenery with all the senses should also taste it. And after a glass of Chasselas the dynamic uphills and downhills of the trail to Lutry are twice as much fun. On some days of the week the "Lavaux Express" is ready to comfortably transport tired hikers through the World Heritage Region, as is the "Lavaux-Panoramic" train, which takes hikers thorugh the same region.

For hiking, follow the logo indicated on the yellow signposts. Take a printout of our web map on your hike for safety's sake.

The hike from St. Saphorin to Lutry is 11km, 3h15m, long.

I also found a very detailed map on myswitzerland.com that showed exactly where the walk started in St. Saphorin and ended in Lutry. As I recall, it was quite accessible to public transportation.

I hope this helps even a little bit.

Enjoy your trip, I can't wait until I get a chance to go back and explore this area more thoroughly.

Posted by
114 posts

Thanks for all the great advice. Picking and choosing is hard with only one full day to explore the vineyards. St Saphorin to Lutry sounds best. Always so much to see and so little time.