Evian--been there?
 

Has anyone been to the Evian region in France? If so, where did you stay? What is it like? How far is it from the Lake Como region? <BR>Thanks.

June, <BR>Hello. Sorry, I've never been to Evian, but I've spent some time in Montreux just across Lake Geneva from Evian. So I can tell you that Evian is on Lake Geneva, on the southern, less-sunny side. I checked the routing at www.mappy.com and found that it's 216 miles from Como,and they say it'll be about 4:35 hours to drive, going through Lausanne and Aigle in Switzerland. The train will take 7 - 8 hours, also going through Lausanne. <BR> <BR>Lake Geneva is one of my favorite spots in all of Europe, but I usually base myself in Montreux. You can get some information at www.lake-geneva-region.ch and www.montreux.ch and www.vevey.ch. The website for the city (town?) of Evian is www.evian.fr. <BR> <BR>Good luck! <BR> <BR>s

June, <BR> <BR>Oops. The town's website is www.eviantourism.com. The other website takes you to the water folks, which will link you to evian vie and then evian ville and then evian tourism . . . or just go to www.eviantourism.com. Look like a nice place! <BR> <BR>s

The whole town is a bottling water sweatshop!

Drove through it and didn't stop. Spent a pleasant morning at Yvoire, a touristy hamlet down the coast.

Besides water, the town is also known for its unfortunate history: in the 1930s (I think 1938), this was where the Evian Conference was held, where almost every country in the world (with the exceptions, I believe, of the Dominican Republic and one other) said they would not increase the number of Jewish refugees allowed into their country in light of their persecution by the Nazis. This conference is said to have, in effect, given Nazi Germany a green light to go ahead with the Holocaust.

I visited Evian a couple of years ago. Sorry to say, it really wasn't worth the effort. Visit Montraux instead.

June.. <BR> <BR>If you do decide to stay on the Swiss side, either Montreux or Lausanne, which I agree with, then there are some excellent lake steamers that cross the lake to Evian and/or Thonon, for a half day or evening visit. From Lausanne there is quite a regular ferry service. <BR>The lake cruises themselves are beautiful, and most of the steamers serve refreshments and meals as you cruise. Quite a few of the Swiss locals seem to cross over in the evening to visit the Casino at Evian I think.