suspire

Greetings!

I am trying to figure out a good place to stay for one or two nights between Montreux and Neuchatel - preferably much closer to Neuchatel. We will be heading across the NW Swiss border into France briefly after this stay, and I'm hoping to shorten the travel time. (With my newly revised itinerary - ever-changing, I should add - we'll be staying two or three nights in Montreux already.)

Ideas? I had been thinking Murten, but after reading reviews here it sounds like it's not worth an overnight.

Thanks!

swandav2000

Hi suspire,

I agree that Murten isn't wholly interesting; I had scheduled several nights there once but left after one.

I would think Morges (about 40 minutes from Neuchatel) would be perfect. I love Morges. Here is my "review" w/photos:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...rges_Vaud.html

Another choice might be Yverdon-les-Bains on Lake Neuchatel. I haven't been there, but the website is at www.yverdonlesbains-tourisme.ch

Have fun!

s

suspire

Fantastic. I will look into both.

By the way, swan, I'm reading so many of your old posts and reviews! Thanks for taking the time to give such great information to those of us who are following after!

enzian

Hi Suspire---how is your itinerary developing? Where else are you thinking of going?

suspire

Enzian my friend! The itinerary ... I think I'm on Version 3.0 at this point, having gone through several iterations of Version 1 and Version 2!

Here's how it's shaping up at this point:

Day 1: Arrive Geneva; head to Montreux. Possibly Chateau de Chillon that afternoon if time and energy. Stay Montreux. (Looking at Hotel Masson; still figuring out the car part of this, as we'll need a car for at least a day or two.)

Day 2: Explore wineries in region - Vevey, Lavaux, Aigle; Train des Vignes; stay Montreux

Day 3: Chocolate Train to cheese tour, chocolate tour; stay Montreux

Day 4: Drive to Neuchatel area for family-history related sites. Sleep Morges?

(Possibly insert another day in this area)

Day 5: Drive to France (Montbeliard) for more family-history sites. Not sure where to stay that night. Basel? Head back in to Morges? Head to Bern?

Day 6: Head to Bern (if not already there). Explore Bern, including family-history sites.

Day 7: Drive around Emmental Valley to family-history sites. See covered bridges, Langnau, Wynigen. Get rid of car.

Day 8: To Lauterbrunnen, Trammelbach Falls, explore area. Sleep Wengen or ?

Day 9: Jungfraujoch; Mannlichen-KS hike (still working on the spelling, but getting better!); sleep Wengen (or ?)

Day 10: Ballenberg Open Air Museum, Brienz; possibly Swiss Dinner Cruise. (Day interchangeable with Day 9 depending on which has better weather for Jungfraujoch.) Sleep Wengen (or ?)

Day 11: Misc. in Wengen/Murren/etc. area; sleep Wengen (or ?)

Day 12: To Zurich; explore Zurich

Day 13: Fly home.

Still working on the last part, trying to decide how much time we want in Zurich and whether to add another day somewhere else toward the end, whether to cut out a day in Wengen, etc.

I realized this is the first time I've traveled to a non-English speaking country - makes the research much more challenging! Many websites have information in English, but certainly not all. Ich need to work on meine Deutsch!

swandav2000

Hi again,

Oh, I'm very happy that you're making use of my Montreux ramblings!!

Just a note ahout the rental car: no reason to rent until you leave Montreux. In fact, a car may be a hinderance, for instance, while exploring the Lavaux. You just take the train to Vevey and change for a train to Chexbres. At Chexbres, you wander through town, then just head downhill for the lake, and follow the signs to Rivaz through the vineyards. In Rivaz, you can grab a bite to eat at the Auberge then take the ferry (www.cgn.ch) back to Montreux. Alternately, you can ramble over to St Saphorin and catch the ferry from there. So easy and pleasant, using the train, your feet, and the ferry. There is an underground parking lot in the Lavaux, but it's hard to find the lot and hard to maneuver the car among the vineyards. Using a car for this just doesn't make sense.

Also, of course, no sense to drive doing the Chocolate train.

You can get to Chillon by local train, city bus, or ferry. Or, if you're at the Masson, you can easily walk to it!

Neat itinerary; I think you'll have a wonderful time. Most folks in Montreux & in the Berner Oberland (a longtime British haunt) speak English.

Have fun!

s

suspire

So here's a car/Montreux question - are there car rental agencies in Montreux?

I remember that when I was considering renting a car in Ireland, it turned out that if I wasn't renting and returning the cars to rather big cities, it was pretty expensive. But here, we pretty much need a car to get out to the old farmsteads, etc.

I think that's good advice, though, not to get a car until leaving Montreux. Is Hotel Masson easy enough to get to without transportation? (It seems so from what I've read, but I do want to make sure!)

Ingo

Have stayed at the Masson (1 week) and liked it very much (considering to stay there again). My car was parked in front of the hotel and I did not need it at all. The bus stop is just 200 m down the street and the bus runs every 10 minutes, less frequent, but still, at night.

Btw, I don't get it why you want to rent a car when leaving Montreux and why you want to stay somewhere inbetween M. and Neuchatel. Why not going by train all the way to Neuchatel, stay there and rent a car there the next day?

I am sure Montreux has car rental agencies; you may contact either the Hotel Masson or the tourist information.

swandav2000

Hi Again,

Yes, Europecar has an agency in Montreux behind the Montreux Palace on the street side (I've passed it during walks). I think if you rent with Autoeurope, you'll get linked to the Europecar there.

And (of course!) I agree with Ingo -- just rent a car in Neuchatel. You may have to use a taxi to get to the Masson when you arrive if you have a lot of luggage, but other than that, you'll be fine without a car.

Have fun!

s

suspire

I should have clarified why we're getting a car in Montreux. We'll be driving out from Montreux and through the Neuchatel region that day, to farm sites and family lands and whatnot. THEN at the end of the day we'll be heading to our destination for the evening. That's why the car that day, and the days after it.

After looking at the map, I think Morges looks lovely but not quite in the area I was looking for. I think maybe Neuchatel itself or La Chaux-de-Fonds will be my choice! If anyone has a hotel/lodging recommendation for either, I'd love to hear them! Right now I'm thinking either the Grand Hotel les Endroits (La Chaux-de-Fonds) or the La Maison du Prussien (Neuchatel).

enzian

Suspire---are you studying German for the first time? Or renewing an old acquaintance witht the language from high school or college? Although as Swandav noted, many people in the Berner Oberland do speak some English, it would definitely enhance your visit there and in your family heritage areas to know a little German.

suspire

I took German in high school, and several people in my grandparents' generation spoke German, so the cadence of the language and the words are definitely familiar. Reading, even though it's been 20 years since HS, I can still sort of figure a lot of things out. Speaking and listening are the big challenges!

enzian

Then I might be able to help you out with the loan of some tapes or CD's---I'll check tonight and see what I have that I'm not using myself these days.

Although the Swiss speak "Swiss German", I found that most people in the tourist industry will readily change to clear and understandable Hochdeutsch once the see you are having difficulty understanding the dialect.

If you actually locate any relatives, I'm sure they will appreciate that you made the effort to learn the language!

scheraulei

Just want to make sure you know that Neuchatel is strictly French speaking. Fribourg is my favorite city in Switzerland, it is bilingual and it's somewhat between Montreux and Neuchatel. Closer to Neuchatel on the lake and near Yverdon-les-Bains is a little village called Cortaillod. I have not stayed there but a friend used to live in Berne and that village was his little relaxing "getaway." Sit outdoors in a café and drink wine and peacefully hang out with the locals. Does that sound like you? My friend begged me to base there (but I ended up in Lausanne as my base because I wanted more action and nightlife).