The terraces of Lavaux, eleven kilometres among vines above Lake Geneva.

This is the way to really see Lavaux: on foot, with the lake below and the Savoy Alps opposite. You don't have to do all of it; Cully and Rivaz have a station and a landing stage to shorten it.

What it is

Lavaux is the hillside of terraced vineyards that drops to Lake Geneva between Lausanne and Vevey. It is about 800 hectares of vineyard held up by more than 10,000 terraces and between 400 and 450 km of stone walls, documented as far back as the 14th century. UNESCO inscribed it as a World Heritage cultural landscape on 28 June 2007.

This route is the central stretch of the SuisseRando waymarked path through the vines: from Lutry to Saint-Saphorin, passing Grandvaux, Riex, Epesses and Rivaz. According to the official sheet it is 11.4 km, about 3 h 15 of walking, 415 m of ascent and 435 m of descent, with difficulty T1. You follow paths between stone walls, with no difficult sections, but with constant ups and downs.

Getting there and where to park

The practical way is to go and come back by train: you start at one station and finish at another. From Lausanne, the S1 or S3 regional train reaches Lutry in about 5 minutes; the station is about 10 minutes' walk from the lake. At the end, in Saint-Saphorin, you take the train back towards Lausanne or Vevey.

If you come by car, in Lutry there is the Possession car park, outdoor and underground, with about 200 spaces, and La Combe, with about 100. Leave it there and come back by train to collect it. You can also arrive by CGN boat, which calls at Lutry, Cully and Rivaz.

When to go

You can walk all year, but the best time is from March to October. In September and October the grape harvest arrives and the vines change colour; in summer the sun beats down and there is almost no shade. In winter many wineries close and the atmosphere is different, although the view over the lake stays the same.

Water, food and stops

In the villages there are cafés and wineries, but between them you are in full sun: carry water and a cap. Halfway, in Rivaz, is the Lavaux Vinorama, which brings together close to 300 wines from the area and runs tastings from CHF 17. From May to September, the winegrowers of each village take turns to open their caveaux, the cellars where you taste the local wine.

With children, with a dog and if it rains

With children who walk, yes: there is no danger and every hour you pass through a village. For little ones, the Lavaux Express does a tour of the vineyards without effort. You can walk with a dog, but the vineyards are private land: don't go into the terraces and keep it on a lead. In the rain the cobbles are slippery, and on the descents you need to take care.

How to shorten or lengthen it

From Lutry to Cully is about two hours, and at Cully you have a train and a boat. From Rivaz, halfway through the second part, the train also leaves. If you would rather come down from above than traverse the hillside, the train from Vevey to Puidoux-Chexbres takes you up to Chexbres, and from there you walk down to Rivaz or Saint-Saphorin.