Ask

Ask
any music obsessive which gigs they wish they could travel
back in time and attend, and you’ll inevitably hear the word
“Montreux“, whispered in hallowed tones. Montreux Jazz
Festival was founded in June 1967 by Claude Nobs, a jazz lover and
Montreux Tourism Office worker. The festival soon became a cultural
phenomenon: Miles Davis, Keith Jarrett, Soft Machine, Nina Simone
and Ella Fitzgerald delivered legendary performances at the
lakeside casino venue in the early years. By the Seventies, the
festival had expanded into blues, soul and rock, bringing in Led
Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Frank Zappa and Deep Purple.

It’s hard to imagine the small, spotless and serene town of
Montreux playing host to some of the most radical and raucous jazz
and rock ‘n’ roll gigs of the 20th century. In 1973, Led Zeppelin
were playing to rapturous crowds of 49,000 in Atlanta and Florida,
more than twice the entire population of Montreux. The fact that
today Montreux Jazz Festival is the second-biggest annual festival
of its kind in the world (after Canada’s Montreal) speaks volumes
about just how persuasive and passionate the Swiss can be when it
comes to pursuing, and manifesting, pleasure.

Conversations between the vineyards in the region, left, and
street life in Lausanne. | Photo credit: Kevin Faingnaert

The Montreux Riviera, also known as the Dolce Riviera for its
commitment to la dolce vita, is not short of plucky tales like
this, either, with proud locals determined to preserve what is
special and spotlight what is pleasurable about their region. In
2007, after decades of tireless campaigning by the environmental
activist Franz Weber and his daughter Vera, the vineyards of Lavaux
were granted Unesco status, saving this 830-hectare expanse of
steeply terraced vineyards from redevelopment into holiday homes.
Today, exploring the sun-kissed, south-facing vineyards, cellar
rooms and wine bars of Lavaux is a highlight of any visit to this
area.

Meanwhile, the refined university town of Lausanne
feels liveable – in 2019, Monocle ranked Lausanne the best small
city in the world in its much-vaunted liveability index. The city’s
elegant Belle Époque apartments would be perfect for writing
poetry or painting watercolours – or maybe launching a tech
start-up or fashion label. Here, we find students, writers, artists
and designers chatting over fondue at the Café de Grancy and
natural wines at the Café des Philosophes.

This is a community passionate about the joys of music, nature,
food, wine and art. Striking as this region’s scenery may be, it’s
the spirit of savouring life’s sweetness that makes it so
special.

Lausanne & Montreux Riviera unpacked: the region’s address
book

Where to stay

Main photo credit: Kevin Faingnaert