Villeneuve town and waterfront (near Montreux)
Villeneuve town, a four minute train ride from Montreux (the trains come frequently), is a pleasant place to stay in a hotel if the hotels in Montreux are ridiculously expensive. It is like a sleepier version of Montreux, also in the Swiss Riviera, with a lovely waterfront path on Lake Geneva. Many retirees stay here. The view when you get off the train, of the towering mountains above you, is out of this world, and reminds you that you are right by the Alps! The train ride to Villeneuve, directly on sparkling Lake Geneva, is gorgeous.
There isn't much to do in Villeneuve but the best thing is the long walking path along the lake, dotted with modern art sculptures, benches, and flower pots. You can walk all the way to the public pool in the north, with good views of the lake and snow-topped mountains across the water- at this point the path becomes less scenic, along train tracks.
You can walk along the lake to Parc de l'Ouchettaz and the marina in the south, where people sit on the lawn, and photographers watch paragliders descend from the mountain.
The main town strip, Grand Rue, just a few streets back from the waterfront, is not very grand, but does have a few cute buildings, on mostly deserted streets. Boulangerie Durgnat is unfriendly and has old, stale chocolate croissants, but their bread rolls are not bad. There aren't any alluring restaurants on Grand Rue, but on the waterfront, Restaurant Oasis has nice seating with views, friendly staff, and good food.
There is summer live music in Villeneuve, at Jardin de la Perle. It is usually Saturday 7-10:30pm, June to early September.
One benefit to staying in Villeneuve is that it's nice to be out of the bustle of Montreux, and sometimes you need a few quiet days on your vacation. Coming straight from France, we found the people in this French-speaking part of Switzerland to be quite strange. I thought the people would be similar to the French, stylish and friendly, but they couldn't be more different. They stare at you like you have three heads! The scenery is stunning here, but I wouldn't come for the people.
Being on the northern side of Lake Geneva, Villeneuve and Montreux get more sunshine than the southern French side of the lake, so people come here to go to the beach, Plage de Villeneuve, and swim in the lake on summer days. It truly is the Swiss Riviera!
Villeneuve is a short train ride to Chillon Castle, an amazing place to visit, between Montreux and Villeneuve. You must time the train well since it doesn't always stop at Chillon Castle. You can take a bus, but it is an extremely bumpy ride and actually dislodged an ear crystal, giving me vertigo for the rest of the trip. The ferry is an awesome option to get to Chillon- it is a super fun ride and the views are amazing of the castle as you near it. It costs 7 euros to ride to the castle. You can also take the ferry to Montreux and I recommend it. Use the SBB Mobile app to find the time of the next train or ferry departure.
Vevey town is another fun place to visit from Villeneuve, by train. It is past Montreux. It has a food museum on the water in an elegant mansion with a garden full of herbs and vegetables. If you want to skip the museum, you can look at the garden for free. Here you can see a fork sculpture in the lake! Vevey has an amazing walking path along the water and a cute town with cafes and pretty architecture. It is a more youthful town than Villeneuve, with families and young single people enjoying the cafes. It would be a good place to stay too, if you want to avoid the high prices in Montreux.
Your hotel will give you a free discount card called Montreux Riviera Card that gives you free train and bus rides, 30% off ferry rides, and half off prices on the museums!
An adorable mansion with shutters like candy canes, at 6 Quai Grande'Rive.
The walking path has wonderful views of the mountains.
The colorful waterfront area in Villeneuve.
The town of Villeneuve, as seen from the ferry.
The walking path along the emerald-green water, as seen from the ferry.
View of the island in the lake, from Hotel du Port.
The beautiful waterfront.
View of Villeneuve and its gorgeous green water, from the ferry.
Cute shutters on a gelato shop on Grande Rue.
Eatery on Grande Rue, one of the back streets, which are not as nice as the waterfront.
Sitting on benches by the waterfront.
Cafes along the waterfront promenade.
Flowers on the waterfront promenade.
The ferry dock and mountains high above.
The ferry dock and endless lake.
Sweet views from the ferry dock.
A silvery pine tree, colorful flower beds, and the waterfront promenade.
Moving sculpture on the waterfront.
The ferry dock and the wonderful outline of mountains.
Willow tree along the water.
A cute bird in the water.
The waterfront is magical.
Fountain on the waterfront, with flowers galore.
A bench with stunning mountain views.
A family strolls along the waterfront.
The mountains rising high above Parc de l'Ouchettaz.
The snowy mountain peaks you see from the town.
A swan glides by.
The walkway on the waterfront is so scenic.
Sunshine on the walkway, and cute trees.
A wooden sculpture of a wise face.
Oasis is a good restaurant.
Amazing jagged mountain tops you see from the train station in Villeneuve.
Building across from the train station, with arched windows.
Flowers near the train station.
Red and yellow flowers in a planter near the train station.
Island in the lake, as seen from the promenade.
I love these trees on the promenade.
A balcony of Hotel du Port, and the waterfront.
Statue along the waterfront.
Flowers on the waterfront path.
Sitting on benches at the waterfront.
Wooden statue, and high mountains behind, at the waterfront.
The wonderful waterfront.
Fountain near Villenueve Temple, a protestant church.
The steeple of Villenueve Temple, a protestant church.
Villenueve Temple's stone exterior and buildings with shutters behind it.
Flowers at Villenueve Temple, a protestant church.
Purple flower in the town.
High mountains with snow, as seen in summer, at the train station.
Stone building and mountains, near the train station.
Statues at the waterfront.
View from Hotel du Port in Villeneuve at night.
Oasis Restaurant at night, and the little island offshore.
The little island in Lake Geneva, at sunset.
The walkway in golden light.
The water in the evening, with sailboats.
Hotel du Port.
The main waterfront area is around Oasis Restaurant, at Rue du Quai 6, 1844 Villeneuve, Switzerland. The train station is just a short walk from the waterfront.
Use the SBB Mobile app to find the time of the next train or ferry departures.
Last Updated: Mon, 12 Aug 2024 21:48:08 GMT
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