We would like to spend a weekend visiting castles and vineyards in the western part of Switzerland (Neuchatel, Vaud).

Does anyone have suggestions for must-see places, itenararies and possibly castle-hotels or restaurants? We are planning to go by car so that we can also visit smaller towns.

We have already been looking on the internet, but it seems there are so many castles that we are not quite sure where to start, and what would be doable in one weekend.

There certainly are lots of caves and castles around to visit, but I agree that it's not always easy to find useful information online; it's generally better to get personal recommendations

Just this week I purchased the book The Surprising Wines of Switzerland, and it contains quite a lot of helpful information that might be of assistance to you as well. I picked it up at Payot; I think Orell Fuessli is the equivalent in Zurich, if you're interested in getting your hands on a copy.

My personal recommendations for Vaud are:

There is a Vine and Wine museum in Aigle that you might find worth a visit, given the nature of your trip. I'd also recommend taking a walk through the Lavaux vineyards; this is the bit that was recently designated a UNSESCO World Heritage Site. The scenery alone makes it worth the walk, and as an added bonus, you should be able to squeeze in a few visits to caves as well. (My favourite Swiss wines are the ones from Epesses.) I wrote a bit about this hike on this thread. If you can squeeze it in, a boat ride on Lake Geneva is definitely worth doing.

Regarding castles, the Château de Chillon is a must-see. Even though the site is crawling with tourists, it is with good reason: this is probably the finest and best-preserved castle in Switzerland.

I haven't read this myself, but there is also a food and wine section at myswitzerland.com that might be of interest to you.

I hope you enjoy your trip.

HeatherM

i would also recommend the lovely castle at Aigle (which houses the wine and vine museum) - it sits in the most beautiful position, surrounded by vineyards through which you can take the sentier de vignes.

I would suggest, if you are coming from Zurich, the castle and old town of Gruyères (FR) and then take the road to Château-d’Oex, over the Col des Mosses, to the castle at Aigle. After this, if you still have time, take the road towards Montreux and visit Château de Chillon.

As an addendum to my previous post, I'd like to add that despite my glowing recommendations of all sorts of things to do in the Lake Geneva region, I don't think you should limit your trip to this part of the country. Of course I'm more familiar with this area (given that I've lived here for several years), but everything I've seen on the backroads of Neuchatel, and along the lakes in that region (for example, the towns of Morat and Estavayer-le-lac) have been absolutely beautiful.

It looks like the only solution is for you to take more than one trip to this part of the country. There's a lot to see on the other side of the Roestigraben.

HM

Just to add my two pennyworth. Chillon and Aigle chateaux are must sees but please ring Aigle as it's undergoing restoration and the castle/wine museum was closed when I last passed that way. The best way to see the vineyards between Lausanne and Vevey (Lavaux) is to take the corniche road which runs right through the middle of the vineyards ( a world heritage site) rather than the lakeshore road (though that gives a great view too). I can recommend the Auberge de L'Onde in St. Saphorin just outside Vevey. Just before St. Saphorin, Testuz has a Cave which showcases wines from Lavaux and you can definitely taste there. Both these however are on the lakeshore road. Other recommendations for restaurants on this stretch are here:
Day Trip to Vevey

In the Chablais region around Yvorne/Aigle/Ollon/Bex take the route cantonale between Montreux and Bex, direction Sion/Martigny (not the autoroute) to see the vineyards. The Hotel des Messageries in Aigle serves good food but if the weather is nice the Pinte de Paradis opposite the Chateau d'Aigle has a terrace overlooking the Rhone valley and the vineyards and is worth it even if the chateau is closed as you can walk from Aigle centre up through the vineyards and old towns to the chateau. Alternatively the Hotel de Ville in Ollon also serves a good lunch and you can eat outside but it's closed Tues/Wed. In Aigle village centre Badoux has a Cave which is worth a visit and where I know you can taste wines. In the Chablais all wine producing villages - Yvorne, Aigle, Ollon, Bex have "Associations Viticole" where you can sample wines but not usually from specific producers ie it's the generic "village"branded blends they sell.

If you get that far it would be a shame not to drive into the Valais and see the vineyards between Martigny and Sion. Take the autoroute from Aigle to Martigny then after 15 mins get off it in Martigny and take the road that runs to Fully, Saillon and Chamoson. You could even take in the hot spa at Saillon if you have time. This route is studded with caves.

Can't say I've ever stayed in or seen castle hotels though none of the areas I've mentioned are that far from each other. You could easily drive from Lausanne to Sion and back in a day and have time to take in most of what's on offer though two days would be better. Either way you could easily base yourself in say Montreux for the whole of this region.

I know nothing of the Neuchatel vineyards so hopefully someone else can give you some tips on that.

Sorry,
Here's another castle to see in Martigny:
http://www.batiaz.ch/

Wow, thanks for the input so far - I guess we'll have to plan more than 1 weekend!

As we have friends living in Vevey and Lausanne, we often drive through the area but never have the time to stop and look around. That's why we decided to dedicate a weekend to exploring this beautiful part of Switzerland I am really looking forward to it, although I think we won't be going before August... boyfriend is a little busy at the mo'

Last fall I posted a note on Oenotourism in Vaud with a link to an article in Le Temps. That article is no longer available for free, but my good friend Google helped me find it in PDF form over two pages: page 1 and page 2.

Aigle Castle was undergoing some major work last year. I don't know if this is completed yet. The website makes no reference to it.

http://www.villars.ch/en/navpage_lis...CastlesVG.html

One suggestion - Travel to Chillon, then take the Chocolate Train from Montreux to Gruyere and Broc to finish with a visit to the Cailler Chocolate works!

Grandson castle , is also close to the lake of Neuchatel and if you are interested in Oldtimer cars it's well worth a visit to its museum in the basement .

http://www.swisscastels.ch/vaud/grandson/default_d.htm

http://www.switzerland.isyours.com/e...soncastle.html

Sounds like that would make an excellent EF event.

Is there an official web-page for it, I could only find references to it. Maybe I should go into Basel SBB and ask.

EDIT: Found this: http://myswitzerland.raileurope.com/...late_train.htm

cheers,
(Mr)Wibble

You beat me to it with the website. I did the trip from Montreux last September. Travelled in the 'Belle Epoque' Pullman Coach. See pics below. Chocolate croissants, hot chocolate to start with. We included a stop at Le Gruyere Dairy, then into Gruyere itself for the Castle. There is also the H R Giger Museum there (see my photo gallery).

Final stop was the Cailler Chocolate Works including unlimited free samples as long as you stay in the tasting room.

On the return journey there was wine and a selection of Gruyere Cheeses of different ages. In all I consider it to be a well put together trip. It is much more than just the journey, or the attractions. It was planned in great detail. On the optional tour at Cailler the group was split into separate nationalities to get information in their own language. I think there were about 4 or more groups.