There are over 500 castles to explore in Switzerland. Over the coming months I’ll be sharing some of my favourites. To mark Swiss Castle Day (4 October 2020) I’m starting with Château de Chillon.
Looking like a castle from a fairy tale, Château de Chillon is situated on the banks of Lake Geneva, with the mountains as a backdrop. In fact, Chillon is the inspiration for the castle in the Disney film The Little Mermaid.
Chillon is the most visited and probably most photographed castle in Switzerland. I’d seen many photos, before I visited, and it does live up to the hype. The external views of the castle on the lake are stunning and the interior is a maze of interesting insights into history, not only of the castle but of this part of Switzerland too. There are a warren of rooms to explore, on several levels, from dungeons and cellars to grand halls and a chapel.
The castle has been popular with visitors for a long time. In the 19th century many writers, painters and poets visited. The most famous of these is Lord Byron. He visited in 1816 and wrote the poem The Prisoner of Chillon. The poem is inspired by the story of François Bonivard, thrown into the dungeon for his rebellious ideas and freed by Bernese forces in 1536.
Byron’s name is graffitied into a pillar in the cellar. Although there is an ongoing debate as to whether this is genuine or not!
There are just about the right amount of objects in the reconstructed rooms, which enable you to imagine what life would have been like at various stages of the castle’s existence. There are a couple of large dining halls with huge fireplaces and I could imagine what life would have been like with the room full of people eating, drinking and dancing.
- How to get there- if you have time the best way to approach it is to walk from Montreux, along the lakeside. In spring and summer a beautiful, flower lined walk with views to Chillon and across the lake to France. You can also take a boat from Montreux (15 minutes), Vevey (50 minutes) and Lausanne (1¾ hours). I walked there and took one of the steamer boats back to Montreux.
- Routes through the castle are clearly marked, at the time of writing more prescriptive routes are in place due to Covid-19 guidelines.
- Children are well catered for with a special trail and information panels in the rooms. Also interesting for adults too!
- A new café, Byron, is situated outside the castle walls. It has a good range of meals, snacks and drinks.
