Lavaux UNESCO terraces overlooking Lake Geneva

How to Complete

5 steps curated by Wine Memories

1. 📜 1

   Watch the Film That Explains 900 Years

   history Free

   Free film + terrace overview at the Lavaux discovery center

   The 20-minute film 'One Year of a Vigneron' runs in 8 languages and shows the full seasonal cycle of farming these impossible terraces — winter pruning by hand on 45-degree slopes, October harvest, first fermentation. Monks from Hautcrêt and Montheron started this in the 11th century, building 450 kilometers of dry-stone retaining walls (enough to reach Munich) because without them, these south-facing slopes were ungrowable. The Lavaux Vinorama (Route du Lac 2, Rivaz, 2 minutes from the train stop) is built into the hillside next to a small waterfall. After the film, step outside: every wall you see was placed 900 years ago so you could drink wine here today.

   🔄 BACKUP: If Vinorama is closed on a Monday or Tuesday in winter, walk 100 meters uphill from the train stop and place your hand on any stone wall. You're touching 11th-century monastic labor. That's the whole story in one gesture.

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2. ⛰️ 2

   Find the Secret Wine Hut in the Dezaley Grand Cru

   adventure $

   Self-service wine hut hidden in the Dezaley Grand Cru terraces

   A small wooden hut sits on the terrace path roughly halfway between Rivaz and Epesses, with a self-service wine fridge selling chilled bottles of local Chasselas for approximately CHF 10 per half-bottle. This is not in any guidebook — it exists because Swiss winemakers assume you'll find it. You're inside the Dézaley Grand Cru appellation (only 54 hectares worldwide), built on poudingue pudding stone conglomerate. Take a half-bottle, find the stone bench facing Lake Geneva, and taste how Dézaley Chasselas gets its smoky, almond-honey, slightly caramelized character from the ancient gravel beneath your feet. Walk east from Vinorama along the Swiss Wine Trail (Sentier Viticole) for 20 minutes.

   🔄 BACKUP: If the hut is closed, continue to Epesses for Blaise Duboux's cellar — open every Saturday 09:00–15:00, Sentier de Creyvavers 3, 1098 Epesses. He's the 17th generation on this estate. 500 years of family history, certified organic since 2018.

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3. 📜 3

   Read the 47 AD Roman Milestone in Saint-Saphorin

   history Free

   Church archaeological crypt with 47 AD Roman milestone

   The Evangelical church in Saint-Saphorin (built 1520–1530) sits on foundations of a Roman monumental complex from the 1st–2nd century AD. Inside the archaeological crypt: a Roman altar to goddess Fortuna Redux, 7th-century sculpted capitals, and a stone milestone dated 47 AD inscribed to Emperor Claudius — one of Switzerland's oldest Roman inscriptions. This village sits on the Roman road from Geneva to Rome, and Romans were growing vines here 200 years before the monks arrived. Continue east along the terrace path from Dézaley (20–30 minutes) to reach this officially designated Most Beautiful Village in Switzerland at Place du Peuplier. The crypt is accessible during daylight hours with no entrance fee.

   🔄 BACKUP: If the church is locked, the stone fountain in the village square and the 2007 UNESCO plaque tell the same story from outside. Auberge de l'Onde (Chemin Neuf, steps away) serves fera de lac — lake char caught that morning — with local Saint-Saphorin Chasselas.

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4. 🍷 4

   Taste Two Grand Crus Split by a Geological Accident

   wine $$

   Side-by-side Grand Cru Dezaley vs Calamin at Vinorama

   Ask to taste Dézaley Grand Cru and Calamin Grand Cru side by side — the only two designated Grand Crus in all of Switzerland, grown 2 kilometers apart but tasting completely different. Dézaley sits on poudingue (ancient river gravel) producing smoky, almond-honey Chasselas. Calamin sits on debris from an ancient landslide that buried a village, resulting in elegant mineral bitterness — bright lemon, white flowers, mouth-watering acidity. At Lavaux Vinorama (Route du Lac 2, Rivaz), the Expert tasting package runs CHF 22 for 5 wines. Ask staff: 'Can we have Dézaley and Calamin together?' They know exactly what you're asking and why.

   🔄 BACKUP: If Grand Cru comparison is unavailable, ask for any two wines from adjacent appellations: Epesses and Saint-Saphorin. The terroir difference is audible in the glass. Ask for Louis Bovard (Cully), Blaise Duboux, or Pierre-Luc Leyvraz — the King of Chasselas — by name.

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5. ⛰️ 5

   Ride the Train That Goes Through the UNESCO Site

   Optional

   adventure $

   SBB regional train through the heart of the UNESCO terraces

   For CHF 5 each way (free with Swiss Pass), the R4 regional Train des Vignes runs directly through the middle of the Lavaux terraces at vineyard level, stopping at 10 UNESCO-listed wine villages in 13 minutes from Vevey SBB. This isn't a tourist train — it's regular SBB commuter service that lets you hop off at different appellations: Pully, Lutry, Villette, Cully, Epesses, Rivaz, Saint-Saphorin. Ride to the top (Puidoux-Chexbres) for the panorama over the full 30km of terraces, then ride back down. Sit on the lake-facing side (right side from Vevey) for maximum vineyard views. In harvest season, grape bunches literally brush the train windows.

   🔄 BACKUP: If you prefer commentary, the Lavaux Panoramic tourist train runs from Chexbres through the vines at CHF 16 standard or CHF 35 Sunset tour. Book at lavaux-panoramic.ch. The Sunset tour is the one to do — you're inside the vines as golden hour burns across the lake.

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Insider Tips

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  Take the Lavaux Express tourist train from Cully for vineyard access without steep hiking

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  Visit during autumn (September-October) when terraces turn golden and harvest festivals happen

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  Book a cave ouverte (open cellar) visit - locals offer tastings directly from their cellars