Tourist Attractions in Lausanne

Lausanne is without doubt a walking city. Yes, it is hilly and can be a bit of a work out going from place to place, but on foot is the only real way to get to know this city of 125,000 people. There is a practical reason for this: many of the sites (Musée de Design et d'Arts Appliqués Contemporains, Musée cantonal des Beaux-Arts, Hotel de Ville and Place de la Palud) are located in pedestrian-only areas. In fact, most of Lausanne's downtown is closed to traffic.

A walking tour of Lausanne (Lausanne Foot Tour) is worth a look and during the summer months, right up until mid-October, there are also guided tours of the various gardens, parks and all things green (Lausanne Gardens). For a tour of the lake, the owner of Ciels Bleus would be glad to show you around. For a personal guided tour, contact the tourist office (Lausanne Tourisme) and they will find you someone to show you about. Otherwise, grab one of the very detailed information booklets from the tourist office, especially the one on the city's museums, and head off on your own walking tour. You will find most people extremely friendly and knowledgeable about their city. It is highly recommended you visit Place de la Palud and the surrounding streets on a Saturday morning (Marché du centre). Market day is the busiest time of the week, with hundreds of Lausannoise— their kids, dogs, cats, and everything else,out for a few hours of food shopping and a visit to a café. There is a market on these streets on Wednesdays as well, but Saturday is the better of the two days.

Lausanne is considered to be one of the greenest cities in Europe. A kilometre or two in any direction leads you to calm surroundings. To the north, walk up Route du Signal (Fondation de l'Hermitage) for a magnificent view; to the south, walk along the Lake Geneva (Lac Léman) shoreline to Lutry or to one of the other nearby charming coastal towns. To the west, you will find the Casino de Montebon and its gorgeous surroundings, and to the east, stately mansions along Tribunal-Fédéral.

For the bustle of the city, head to rue de Bourg for upscale shops; the Flon district, under the Grand Pont, for downscale trendy shops like Maniak. Rue Enning is where the students hang out and Place St-François is the nucleus of the town according to just about everyone at one point or another. All of these places are within walking distance so just grab a map and start walking in whatever direction takes your fancy.