What is the Lausanne self-guided walking tour?
The Lausanne self-guided walking tour is a walk across a city built on terraces above Lake Geneva, taken at your own pace, with audio narration on your phone where a guide would otherwise be. Allow about 3 hours: 41 minutes of that is walking, the route measures 2.8 km, and at 10 stops you stand still and listen. Nothing starts at a set hour and nobody moves you along.
At the cathedral the narration recalls the consecration of 1275, carried out by Pope Gregory X with King Rudolf of Habsburg present, and the watchman who still calls the hours from the tower at night. On Place de la Palud you hear about the painted Fountain of Justice and the clock that plays out scenes from the history of Vaud, at Château Saint-Maire how the bishops' castle of about 1400 passed to Bernese bailiffs after 1536, and at the Palais de Rumine that the Treaty of Lausanne was signed inside in 1923.
- Durationabout 3 hours
- Walkingabout 41 min · 2.8 km
- Stops10
- LanguagesEnglish, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch
What you do on the walking tour
Listen
At every stop the audio gives you the history of the place, the stories attached to it and the details you would otherwise walk past. The same text sits on screen if you would rather read.
Stroll
The distance is modest but the city is steep: 41 minutes on foot in all, 2.8 km of climbs and stairs, with Google Maps pointing the way.
Break off
Stop for coffee on a terrace or an hour in a museum, then pick the walk up again, the same day or another one.
Eat and browse
Tips for food and shops near the route come with the walk. The opening stop and the order of the stops are yours to change in the app.
See the route and attractions →
How it works
- Book online Choose the number of people. Your booking reference arrives by email straight away.
- Get the app Download the World City Trail app from the App Store or Google Play and enter your booking reference.
- Walk when you like Start whenever you are ready, walk at your own pace and pause any time. No guide, no fixed schedule.
Who the walking tour is for
A first visit
One walk sorts out the levels of the city, from the station to the cathedral hill and down into the Flon, and explains what you are standing in front of.
Walkers who dislike groups
No umbrella to follow and no meeting point: you stay where something holds you and move on when you feel like it.
A day by the lake
3 hours covers the upper town, which leaves the afternoon for Ouchy, the lake boats or a museum.
Good to know
- Bring a charged smartphone with mobile data; a power bank helps.
- No entry tickets needed: everything happens outside the buildings. Going inside is optional and paid separately.
- Family friendly; children must be accompanied by an adult.
- Not suitable for wheelchair users and difficult with strollers.
- Groups of up to 5 work best; larger groups split up, one ticket per person.
- Every purchase helps support stray cats and dogs in Greece.
The walk stop by stop: the station, Place de la Palud, Lausanne Cathedral, the Flon
10 stops · about 41 min walking · start: Lausanne Station · finish: Esplanade du Flon
The first stop is Lausanne Station, where the trains and the steep m2 metro meet halfway up the slope. The route goes west to the Esplanade de Montbenon, with the lake and the Alps in front of you, then into the old town for Place de la Palud and up the covered Escaliers du Marché to Lausanne Cathedral. On the Cité hill stand the Vaud Parliament and Château Saint-Maire, after which the way down takes in the Palais de Rumine on Place de la Riponne, the Church of Notre-Dame du Valentin and the Church of Saint-Laurent. The Esplanade du Flon, under the arches of the Grand-Pont, closes the walk. You can open at another stop or reorder them in the app, and no stop asks for an entry ticket.
Open the route map ↗
1Lausanne StationStart
Lausanne's railway station sits halfway up the city's steep slope, between the lake shore at Ouchy and the old town on the hill above. The m2 metro, opened in 2008, stops here on its climb through the city and is one of the steepest metro lines in the world.
2Esplanade de Montbenon
This tree-lined terrace above the Flon valley looks out over Lake Geneva to the Alps. At its western end stands the Palais de Justice de Montbenon, built in the 1880s for the Swiss Federal Supreme Court, which still has its seat in Lausanne, and nearby a statue of William Tell.
3Place de la Palud
Lausanne's old market square is framed by the Town Hall, whose arcaded façade dates from the 17th century, and by the Fountain of Justice with its painted statue. An animated clock on a house opposite shows scenes from Vaud history, and the covered wooden Escaliers du Marché lead up towards the cathedral.
Read the full story →
4Lausanne Cathedral
The Gothic Cathedral of Notre-Dame was consecrated in 1275 by Pope Gregory X in the presence of King Rudolf of Habsburg. Look for the painted portal, which still shows medieval colours, and the great rose window. Every night a watchman calls out the hours from the tower, a tradition kept since the Middle Ages.
5Vaud Parliament
The parliament of the Canton of Vaud meets on the Cité hill, right beside the Château Saint-Maire. After a fire destroyed the old parliament building in 2002, a new building with a striking sloping roof was built on the site and opened in 2017.
6Château Saint-Maire
This fortified castle was built around 1400 as the residence of the bishops of Lausanne, with a stone base and upper walls of brick, rare in this region. After the Bernese conquest of 1536 it housed the Bernese bailiffs, and today it is the seat of the government of the Canton of Vaud.
7Palais de Rumine
This palace in Florentine Renaissance style on Place de la Riponne was built in the early 20th century with a bequest from Gabriel de Rumine. It houses several cantonal museums and part of the university library, and the Treaty of Lausanne between Turkey and the Allies was signed here in 1923.
8Church of Notre-Dame du Valentin
This is Lausanne's main Catholic church, standing on the northern edge of the old town. It was built in the 1930s on the site of an older church from the 1830s, the first Catholic church built in Lausanne after the Reformation.
9Church of Saint-Laurent
The Protestant Church of Saint-Laurent stands in the old quarter of the same name, on a site where a church has stood since the Middle Ages. The present building dates mainly from the 18th century, and its classical façade faces a small square.
10Esplanade du FlonFinish
The Flon district lies in the valley of the river Flon, which was covered over and filled in during the 19th century. Its former warehouses were turned into a quarter of shops, restaurants, bars and offices, and the arches of the Grand-Pont bridge span the valley above.
Only logged in customers who have purchased this product may leave a review.
Anonymous (verified owner) –
mauro– Brazil –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Um passeio muito interessante pelos monumentos e parques de Lausanne- as subidas sao bastante cansativas- especialmente a escadaria medieval- depos da Catedral so descidas e mais tranquilo
Johanne– Canada –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Bonne idée de découvrir la ville et ses principaux monuments à l aide de cette visite guidée.
Marce– Costa Rica –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Ayuda a conocer la generalidad del lugar, caminando a su propio ritmo y leyendo información relevante.
Ulrike– Switzerland –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Gut
Katrina– France –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Très pratique, et l’idée est géniale, mais les textes sont pauvres et l’application pas facile à utiliser. J’aurais aimé une carte avec tous les arrêts à suivre. Chaque fois c’est moi qui a du taper sur Google
Sara– Canada –
Collected on GetYourGuide
It shows you and brings you to the most touristy places also along the way you discover great other things! You can take your time. On the app there’s details about each stop.. only thing is I would’ve preferred an audio instead of having to read.
France –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Une façon ludique de découvrir les lieux importants de Lausanne
Tatjana– Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Sehr gute Aktion. Am Ende des Tages hat man alles im eigenen Tempo gesehen. In manche Gebäude konnte man rein gehen und von Innen betrachten. Ich kann nur weiterempfehlen. Die nächste Stadt wird auch so erkundet
Nora– Mexico –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Muy fácil y buena para conocer
Switzerland –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Schnell geladen und installiert. Lässt auch Raum offen dazwischen etwas anderes zu entdecken.