Chillon Castle
Emeli Sandé, The Chemical Brothers and even Tony Bennett duetting with Lady Gaga. The most popular acts sell out quickly and accommodation needs to be booked months in advance. Those who want a taste of the
The castle stands on the southern shores of Lake Geneva, backed by the dramatic Dents du Midi mountains. Its boxy, medieval walls built from caramel-coloured stone were the work of the same stonemason who built Caernarfon Castle in Wales – testament to the relationship between the ruling Savoie family and Britain. (A niece married Henry III; it’s why we have The Savoy hotel today.) Inside, my favourite element isn’t the dungeon, the banqueting halls with vast fireplaces or the 14th-century frescoed chapel. I love the secret passageways that lead out of some of the bedrooms, built ostensibly so that aristocratic sleepers could make their escape when the castle came under attack. They lead only to the next room though, which has raised theories that they were used for more recreational night-time adventures.
l ALL THAT JAZZ Chillon claims to be Switzerland’s most-visited heritage site, but it’s by no means the Montreux area’s only attraction. This pretty town on the Swiss side of Lake Geneva
sits in its own micro-climate, often degrees hotter than other spots on the lake. As part of French Switzerland, there’s a real riviera feel to the place – all glamour, sunshine and lakeside cafes. Picturesque paddle steamers provide a suitably relaxing method of hopping around between the towns that line up along the shore. Yet statues dotted around town – look out for Freddie Mercury, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles and Carlos Santana among others – are testament to the fact all is not quite what it seems. Polite and chic for most of the year, Montreux comes alive during its annual jazz festival. With more than 200,000 attendees, it’s second in size only to the Montreal International Jazz Festival. Founded in 1967, it started
off welcoming all the jazz greats from Nina Simone to Miles Davis, but these days the remit is much wider. In 2014, there were performances by Lykke Li, Chris Rea and Ed Sheeran, while this year (the festival starts tomorrow and runs until July 18), crowds are set to be wowed by acts including
66 •
travelweekly.co.uk — 2 July 2015
festival year-round need only head over to Fairmont Le Montreux Palace. Jazz festival founder Claude Nobs had strong ties with the hotel, and during the event, some of the smaller acts play in the hotel’s Montreux Jazz Café. The rest of the year it’s a restaurant packed with memorabilia, from Freddie Mercury’s kimono to countless photos of Nobs with his famous friends. Recommend clients try Quincy Jones chicken, made with a marinade specified by the star. The adjoining Funky Claude’s Bar hosts live music every night except Sundays to a packed crowd of locals and tourists. The signature cocktail is a heady brew of rum, absinthe and fruit.
l GRAPE ESCAPES Hard liquor may be the order of the day at Funky Claude’s, but the region is more famous for its wine. The Lavaux Vineyard Terraces are a Unesco World Heritage Site, which prevents the 30km stretch along the lake shore to Montreux’s north from being developed. The vines are planted in steep terraces that drop down to the
shore, and these structures date from the 11th century. Today, there are more than 300 wineries in this area, their small size limiting production and heightening quality. At the family-owned Domaine du Daley, winemaker Fred shows us around the cellars, from the latest high-tech equipment to the venerable wooden ‘vases’ – huge casks standing twice my height that hold up to 8,000 litres of the local chasselas wine. This delicious, light white isn’t the only type produced in the area. They make 18, both red and white, from well-known single-
grape wines using viognier, chardonnay and sauvignon blanc to blends using gamay
with grenache or syrah. The sun blazes down on the terrace and we sip our way through a selection of white, rosé and red. Tastings start at about £12 for a tasting of two wines. Group size for a cellar tour and tasting must be at least four people. Visiting cellar doors shouldn’t be missed – the historic buildings and gorgeous views over the vines to the lake make the perfect accompaniment to a tasting. For rail enthusiasts, there’s a seasonal
TOP TIP
Try local dish perch fillet
meunière at Café de las Poste, a restaurant in Lutry near the Lavaux vineyards
PICTURES:
SWISS-IMAGE.CH /ANDY METTLER; HANS PETER SIFFERT; RENATO BAGATTINI; PHILIPPGIEGEL; MARCUS GYGER
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84