Void

I'm trying to find extra days in my itinerary. Right now I have a day
allocated for Montreux, but I'm wondering if I can skip it. My guidebook says
it offers a great view of the Alps, but I will also be going to Mt. Pilatus
near Lucerne to see the Alps. There is also a castle in Montreux, but is it
really different from other castles in Europe?

Emilia

[email protected] (void) wrote in
news:[email protected]:

    > I'm trying to find extra days in my itinerary. Right now I have a day
    > allocated for Montreux, but I'm wondering if I can skip it. My
    > guidebook says it offers a great view of the Alps, but I will also be
    > going to Mt. Pilatus near Lucerne to see the Alps. There is also a
    > castle in Montreux, but is it really different from other castles in
    > Europe?


It depends what you like and what your other options are. Personally I
like Montreux (it's a lovely city) but there really isn't that much to do
there. You can spend a nice afternoon walking along the lake but you can
do that in many other cities/towns. I prefer Vevey myself. There are
other cities I'd recommend over Montreux (Fribourg being up on the top of
my list) but again, it depends where you are coming from & where you are
going.

To get to Chillion you will need to take a bus/train out of Montreux
about 5 mins. Is it that different than other castles in Europe? Well, I
think all of them are different. It's not like there was Ikea or prefab
castles when it was made. If you are really interested in castles then
you will notice and appreciate the differences. If castles are not your
thing, you probably won't see anything particularly different. You can
check out inside & out on the following links.

http://www.about.ch/cantons/vaud/chateau-chillion.html
http://www.chillon.ch/us/index_us.htm?

If you are more interested in the scenery than if the weather is nice,
you might prefer a boat ride on the lake. Perhaps from Montreux to Vevey
or Lausanne & back?

J-Ph

"void" a écrit dans le message news:
[email protected]...
    > I'm trying to find extra days in my itinerary. Right now I have a day
    > allocated for Montreux, but I'm wondering if I can skip it. My guidebook
says
    > it offers a great view of the Alps, but I will also be going to Mt.
Pilatus
    > near Lucerne to see the Alps.

It's always difficult to answer that kind of question. I really like
Montreux. The setting is wonderful, but on the other hand, I don't think it
has any real tourist sight (but the castlle of Chillon). Maybe it's the kind
of place you're likely to appreciate when you live there or when you have a
long stay. By comparaison, Genève and Lausanne, which are older and greater
cities may be more interesting for a tourist (but I don't know what you
like, so I may be wrong).

    > There is also a castle in Montreux, but is it
    > really different from other castles in Europe?

I think you mean the castle of Chillon, which is maybe 2 kilometres away
from the center of Montreux. The castle in itself is interesting and it has
a stunning setting (imo) : an island in the lake. I visited it in the
morning of Christmas, 2001. The castle and the mountains were covered with
snow, it was very cold and I was alone in the castle : it's one of the best
memories of my life (!). Maybe in summer, with flocks of tourists, it
wouldn't be that kind of experience.

JPh

Void

Thank you Emilia and J-Ph for the replies. I think I will just skip it.