Lausanne, Switzerland
I had expected to be a bit overwhelmed by Lausanne after enjoying the leisurely ~lake life~ in Montreux, but it turned out to be a beautiful city with plenty of charm and lots of things to do. Thanks to the amazing Swiss public transportation, it was an easy 30-minute train ride from Montreux, making it a solid and inexpensive day trip option.
We started our day with a walk to Lausanne Cathedral from the main train station. It was a cute walk with lots of shops along the way BUT it was entirely uphill, so not particularly fun because it was so hot! Luckily, the cathedral was stunning with its insane Gothic architecture and there were some great views of Lausanne and Lake Geneva. There was also a tower at the top you could pay to access for even better views, but we opted to save the 5 CHF and the stair-climbing and enjoy the free views instead.
Afterwards, we walked over to Collection de l’Art Brut, a museum full of outsider artwork — made by artists who were often on the fringes of society (prisoners, people with mental illness, self-taught artists with normal jobs, etc.). Adult tickets were 12 CHF.
My favorite pieces are pictured below. Sylvain Fusco’s art was probably my favorite but his story is a sad one — he stopped speaking at 27 after being released from prison, then spent the rest of his life in a psychiatric hospital and tragically died of hunger at 37. Eugen Gabritschevsky spent 48 years in a psychiatric hospital, Baya was an orphan, and Jane Ruffié’s art was created through communication with her dead son. Monet could never!
We spent about 1.5 hours here exploring the 4 floors. TBH I think I liked it more than a traditional art museum full of work by famous artists. I enjoyed the chaos! However, the more we explored, the more I found myself wanting a crazier and crazier artist backstory and being disappointed when the artist was ‘just’ an orphan who heard voices.
We stopped at an epic supermarket, Fooby, for lunch and had a quiche and salad (greens on vacation — WOW!). Then we took a bus down to Ouchy, Lausanne’s lakefront area. It was stunning, with lots of sailboats and the most epic lap pool in the middle of the lake. If I lived in Lausanne, I would DEFINITELY become a swimmer. At least for a couple days!
No visit to Lausanne would be complete without a visit to the Olympic Museum. We ended up just poking around the gift shop and checking out the FREE outdoor sculpture garden because we were short on time (I wanted to squeeze in a visit to the Lavaux terraced vineyards before we headed back to Montreux). The outdoor sculptures were fab though — lots of different styles and sports (judo, fencing, etc.) represented, plus a Botero! One of my favorites! Though not sure what the naked lady had to do with the Olympics…
The views of the lake from the outdoor sculpture garden are incredible, so it’s definitely still worth a visit if you’re on a budget.
There are so many things to do in Lausanne, but it’s definitely worth taking the train to nearby cities to explore. Check out my other posts for cities just a quick train ride away from Lausanne:
Vevey & Cully - La Fourchette sculpture, paddleboarding, Lavaux-terraced vineyards
Montreux - Chillon Castle, Queen The Studio Experience, Le CouCou restaurant
Lake Geneva - general guide to the area including transportation tips
