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Lausanne has the huge advantage of offering many green spaces just a stone’s throw from the bustle of the city centre. Parks, gardens and beaches are for me true havens of peace that are accessible for free all year round, and where I love to go as soon as the need for nature arises.
Short itinerary in three stages to escape without leaving Lausanne…
Mon-Repos Park
A few minutes away from the Cathedral, Mon-Repos Park, landscaped on a slope, is for me one of the town’s most beautiful parks. In addition to offering lovely walks, there are enough curiosities and amenities in the park to spend a whole day there. From the indoor pool to children’s playgrounds to aviaries with all kinds of birds, there is something for everyone. For refreshment or a snack, head to the Folie Voltaire, a small café set up in a former kiosk. Right nearby, I never forget to pause to admire the lovely mansion that housed the International Olympic Committee for several years. Perhaps less widely known, the north part of the park above the Avenue du Tribunal-Fédéral shelters an unexpected neo-Gothic tower overlooking a small cascade as well as the magnificent Orangerie building, initially built to overwinter plants and that is today an artist’s studio.
Milan Park
A little further down, in the area under the station, Milan Park is one of the best known and best loved of Lausanners. And for good reason. If you wish to practise your favourite sport, share an aperitif with friends, bargain hunt in a yard sale or watch a movie screening in the summer, Milan Park is THE meeting place. In addition, since the month of April, a new farmer’s market sets up there every Friday until 7 pm – perfect to stock up on delicious fresh and local products. And how could I not mention Le Montriond, set up in former public toilets at the park’s entrance and that offers drinks and snacks. But the park also boasts plenty of other assets, such as the Botanical Garden, in which the small museum, greenhouses and trails lead you on a discovery of tree or plant species. Not forgetting the breathtaking view on the lake and mountains from the top of Montriond Hill! The path to get there cuts through a small forest and also gives the opportunity to admire allotments, always very flowered, that are looked after by the inhabitants.
Ouchy and lakeside
Lausanne’s major asset is undoubtedly its lakeside. Easily reached on foot or by metro, Ouchy is probably the most sought-after place in the summer! It’s got to be said that activities are aplenty: boats cruising the lake, playgrounds, pedal-boat rentals and, recently, a new platform to make it easier to access for a swim. Everything we need to make the most of the summery days in Lausanne… A bit further along, the Jetée de la Compagnie opens shop in a container as from April and offers drinks to enjoy on its terrasse and something to nibble between two dips in the lake. Thanks to the installation of a new access to the lake, combining swimming and an aperitif on the Jetée’s wooden deck has become an absolute must, as you may have gathered.
Not for nothing is Lausanne sometimes nicknamed the small San Francisco of Switzerland, and the lakeside is one of the rare places that are flat over a long distance. So this is where I recommend you go to cycle or rollerblade, or just go for a run or a walk. Pleasant paths let you rejoin the pretty villages in Lausanne’s surroundings, dotted with small beaches for swimming breaks in Lake Geneva’s clear waters.
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