Trip to Vevey from Montreux

30 July 2018

According to Swiss travel websites, Vevey is one of the “Pearls of the Swiss Riviera”. It made sense to spend some time in Vevey during our stay in Montreux.

Like Montreux, Vevey is a lakeside town located on the shores of Lake Geneva with breath-taking views of the Alpine panorama. Although smaller than Montreux, Vevey is a modern, regional centre which is headquarters to Nestlé, the international Food and Beverage Group.

There are a few ways to travel to Vevey from Montreux using public transports, i.e. boat, bus or train. The slowest and most expensive way would be to travel by ferry boat and combine a trip to Vevey with a sightseeing cruise on Lake Geneva. The cheapest and fastest way is by either the bus or train.

Travelling by public transport in the canton of Vaud is based on zonal system which can be quite confusing for visitors.

Fortunately, we had downloaded the SBB mobile app on our mobile phone. With that, we just need to enter our origin (e.g. Montreux) and destination (e.g. Vevey) and the app will show us the correct tickets to buy online using a pre-registered account with credit card details.

Tickets have to be purchased before boarding. Using the SBB app, there was no need to hunt for a ticket machine.

All types of public transport, i.e. train, Metro or bus, except the lake boats, are included in the price of the zones we have paid for within the period of validity. 

We chose to go by train. The main reason was that we were at the Montreux train station to make use of the SBB’s luggage forwarding service to send stuff that we do not need for our last two days in Switzerland to Zurich Airport, to be picked up just before our flight out from there. That way, we could travel light on our last day in Switzerland and we had plans to do some sightseeing in Lucerne on our way to the airport.

Although travelling by train from Montreux to Vevey was quick, it took about 10 minutes to walk from the Vevey train station, through the town, to the lake. 

Marina at Vevey.

The rustic area of Vevey.

We arrived at Vevey at about 6 PM. Shops and museums were already closed. However, there are still a few hours of daylight in summer for sightseeing. We had also packed towels and a change of clothes in our daypack as we planned to have a dip in Lake Geneva if we could find a good swimming spot in Vevey.

Kids are swimming in the small circular pool or fountain at the Jardin du Rivage in Vevey.

We saw many people, and even their dogs, swimming near the Vevey-Marché ferry terminal. There was a flight of wide steps leading into the clear water of Lake Geneva. The steps were flanked by sculptures of sea nymphs riding sea-horses, one at each end.

A pair of sculptures of sea nymphs riding sea-horses at the swimming area. Another one could be found in the center of the fountain on the square.

The steps right on the water’s edge were covered with algae and was very slippery. We had to enter the lake cautiously. My son and I went for a swim while my wife sat on the steps watching.

Swimming in Lake Geneva, near the Vevey-Marché ferry terminal.

This was my first time swimming in a Swiss lake. The bottom of the lake was mostly covered with gravel, although there were places with submerged rocks. Tiny fish nibbled our toes if we stood completely still.

By this time of day, the water near the shore had warmed sufficiently to a nice comfortable temperature. Switzerland and the rest of Europe seemed to be suffering from a heat wave again. The dip in the lake on the warm summer day was so nice and refreshing.

We had to watch out for the lake boats going in and out from the ferry terminal.

 

CGN Ferries berthing at the Vevey-Marché ferry terminal.

We did not see any changing facilities at the Jardin du Rivage, unlike the park at Lutry. We towelled and sunned ourselves on the steps and walked in our semi-wet clothes along the promenade.

One of Vevey’s most famous sights along the promenade is the giant fork protruding from the lake.

The Fork of Vevey is an 8-metre-tall, stainless steel fork on the shore of Lake Geneva.

There are plastic seats mounted on the rocks that invite us to take photos with the fork.

The Fork of Vevey is part of the Alimentarium, a food and nutrition museum with exhibition on food and Nestlé's history. We had no plan to visit the Alimentarium. Otherwise, we would have planned to visit Vevey during its opening hours.

A monument dedicated to Charlie Chaplin statue is also located by the promenade, in front of the Alimentarium. Charlie Chaplin spent the last twenty five years of his life at Vevey. His former country home in Vevey is now converted to a museum called the Chaplin’s World, with interactive displays, memorabilia & a cafe.

Hello Charlie, we meet again.

It was a bit strange to encounter Charlie Chaplin again. My wife and I stayed at the Saigon Morin Hotel while visiting Hue in 2017. Our room happens to be next to Suite 111, which was where Charlie and his wife stayed in while he toured Southeast Asia during their honeymoon in 1936.

Interesting red stickman seen on the terrace of a resident’s house by the lake in Vevey.

Vevey also boasts of a flower-lined promenade that stretches almost all the way to Montreux.

Flower-lined promenade at Vevey.

After our visit to Vevey, we returned to Montreux by the VMCV public bus #201. The #201 bus route was next to the lakeshore. At 8 PM in the evening, the frequency of this bus was every 20 minutes, instead of the usual 10 minutes. Although the journey took about 30 minutes, the bus stop at Montreux was right outside our apartment.  The bus was a very convenient way to travel back from Vevey to Montreux.