Handpicked experience · Geneva
Geneva, Switzerland
A comedian locked out of America who settled above this lake, a stolen coffin recovered from a maize field, and a casino fire that became a guitar riff.
A drive along Lake Geneva with the vineyard terraces above the road
A guided visit to the lakeside castle at Chillon
Admission to Chaplin's World, house and grounds
Free time on the Montreux promenade for a walk or a coffee
A mix of guided visits and time left to yourself
Eight hours from Geneva along the north shore of the lake in winter, with a guided visit to Château de Chillon, admission to Chaplin's World in the hills above Vevey, and free time on the Montreux promenade.
A coach follows the lake and the vineyard terraces, stopping at the castle with a guide and then climbing to Chaplin's house, where you go round on your own. Montreux itself is unstructured time, and nothing needs paying at either door.
In 1952 he sailed for London for a film premiere and, while he was mid-Atlantic, the United States revoked his re-entry permit. He was the most famous man in the world and he could not go home. He settled instead in a manor house above this lake, lived there for the last twenty-five years of his life, and returned to America exactly once, in 1972, to collect an award. The house you walk through is that house.
He died on Christmas Day 1977 and was buried in the village cemetery. Two months later the coffin was dug up and taken by two mechanics who demanded money from his widow. She refused, saying he would have found it ridiculous. Police traced them through phone boxes eleven weeks later and the coffin was recovered from a maize field a mile away. He was reburied under two metres of concrete.
On the Montreux lakefront in December 1971, a flare fired into the ceiling during a concert burned the casino to the ground. A band watching from across the water wrote about the smoke drifting over the lake, and the result is one of the most recognisable guitar riffs ever recorded. The rebuilt casino is on the same spot, and the recording studio that once operated inside it is now a small museum.
Vladimir Nabokov moved into the Montreux Palace in 1961 and stayed until his death in 1977, occupying a suite rather than a house because he considered himself in permanent transit. He wrote several books there and chased butterflies on the slopes above the town, and there is a statue of him sitting outside.
The shore has a microclimate mild enough for palms and cypresses, which is why the nineteenth century called it the Swiss Riviera. In winter the promenade belongs to locals, the castle is nearly empty, and the mountains opposite are white to the waterline — the same view that filled the hotels a hundred and fifty years ago, without the queue.
The castle is stone and cold underfoot, so dress for standing still indoors as well as walking outside. Lunch is not included and Montreux is where to take it. Cancellation is free up to a day ahead.
Open it to pick a date and work out the price.
What the fare covers, and what to budget for separately.
The practical detail, and the answers people actually ask for.
Return coach travel from Geneva along the lake, a guided visit to Château de Chillon, admission to Chaplin's World, and free time on the Montreux promenade. Both admissions are covered.
Because in 1952, while he was sailing to London for a premiere, the United States revoked his re-entry permit. He settled above this lake instead and lived there for his last twenty-five years, returning to America only once, in 1972.
Yes — the manor is the home he lived in until his death in 1977, with a purpose-built studio section added alongside it.
Two months after his burial in 1977, two men dug up the coffin and demanded money from his widow, who refused. Police traced them eleven weeks later and the coffin was found in a maize field nearby; he was reburied under two metres of concrete.
The lakefront casino burned down in December 1971 when a flare was fired into the ceiling during a concert. A band watching from across the water wrote about the smoke, producing one of the best-known guitar riffs ever recorded.
Vladimir Nabokov, who moved into the Montreux Palace hotel in 1961 and stayed in a suite until his death in 1977, writing several books there and collecting butterflies on the slopes above.
It is the quiet season. The shore is mild enough for palms, the castle is nearly empty, and the mountains opposite are white down to the waterline.