A Day in Montreux

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A Travel and Photography Journal

One of the most beautiful walks along Lake Gevena is from Chillon Castle to Montreux. If you are a Freddie Mercury fan, there are some things for you to see here!

17 October 2023
Category: Switzerland

Spend a Day in Montreux!

What is Montreux known for?

Mostly, it is a resort town with a lovely, wide, tree-lined promenade along the lake. It only takes 30 minutes to walk to the medieval Chillon Castle. Along the way, there are public swimming areas and marinas for boat rentals. The walk is punctuated with public art, with statues every 20 yards or so. The most famous, and certainly most visited, is that of Freddie Mercury, a well-known former resident.

Montreux is also the origin of one of Switzerland’s most popular scenic train routes: the Goldenpass Express to Interlaken. We spent a few days in Lausanne, so this was a quick trip for us, but it is only 1 hour by train from Geneva.

Travel Notes

What to See

Chillon Castle

If you have time, take a ferry to the Château de Chillon port, if you don’t, the train or the bus is much quicker!

READ MORE: Using the Swiss SBB Transportation App

The medieval castle is beautifully situated on Lake Geneva and is a popular tourist destination. You can spend a lot of time here looking at all 46 rooms! The place is enormous. My focus was views and breezes, so I only skimmed the informational placards and skipped the audio tour. However, history lovers will enjoy a more in-depth guided experience. Admission was included with the Swiss Flex Pass.

READ MORE: How Does the Swiss Flex Pass Work?

Walk Along the Lake

It takes about 40 minutes to walk from Château Chillon to Montreux which is beautiful, but there is the option to take a tourist trolley. Personally, I do not enjoy tourist trolleys; I prefer walking and taking pictures. The lake was on my left, and on my right were beautiful homes and gardens, some of which had private docks and swimming areas. It was a scorching day; so many locals were in the water. As usual, I took a lot of pictures! There were tons of statues along the water. As I neared Montreux, the path became increasingly crowded with tourists.

Freddie Mercury

For those of you who missed Bohemian Rhapsody, Freddie Mercury was the lead singer of Queen, who died of HIV/AIDS in 1991. He recorded his final album in Montreux at Mountain Studios, which is now part of the Casino Barrière complex. There is an enormous statue of the singer next to the lake, where you can wait in line for a selfie. There are also several tour options to learn about Freddie’s time in Switzerland.

Jazz Festival

Are you a music buff? For two weeks every July, the city hosts the Montreux Jazz Festival. It began in 1967 and has included many of the all-time greats: B.B. King, Etta James, Santana, Van Morrison, Chuck Berry, and the list goes on.