Terraces, lake and an afternoon under sail
Four days in Lavaux, the UNESCO vineyard terraces above Lake Geneva, based in a real vigneron's guesthouse, with an afternoon sailing out of Lutry and evenings among the vines.
Into the vines above Rivaz
Where you're staying
Gîte du Débarcadère, Les Vins du Coteau, Chemin du Débarcadère 2, Rivaz: a 2½-room apartment on a genuine working vineyard estate run by the Correvon family, in the heart of Rivaz, a five-minute walk along the terrace path from Saint-Saphorin.
- A real vigneron's home rather than a converted rental, with the chance to see the cellar and taste the estate's own wine
Photos: rivaz.ch
Getting there
No car needed.
- The Lausanne–Vevey rail line stops directly at Rivaz, Saint-Saphorin and Cully; the vineyard terrace path connects all of them on foot in well under an hour
Today
Settle in, then walk the terrace path between Rivaz and Saint-Saphorin at golden hour, with the lake and the French Alps on the far shore both lit up at once.
Dinner
A cellar-door evening with the Correvon family if they're offering one that night, or a short walk to a village table in Saint-Saphorin for perch fillets, the classic Lake Geneva dish.
Flagship day
Sailing out of Lutry
Day 2
The sport
Léman sur Mer, Lutry: a real sailing school and charter operator based right on the water, a short, scenic train ride from Rivaz.
- A skippered half-day sail (no permit-holder needed in the group) out onto Lake Geneva: the Lavaux terraces rising straight out of the water make this one of the more dramatic short sails in Europe, in calm, sheltered water well suited to a relaxed afternoon
Photos: lemansurmer.ch
Nine centuries in the making
The terraced vines you'll sail past were first laid out by hand in the 11th century, one of the more dramatic backdrops for a short sail anywhere in Europe.
Alternative
Léman Croisières also runs scenic cruises out of Lutry along the Lavaux coastline, a gentler alternative if the wind doesn't cooperate on the day.
Dinner
La Gare Cully: a genuinely gastronomic table built around fresh lake fish and Lavaux's own wines; the trip's one dressier night.
Photos: lagarecully.ch
Walking the terraces, a tasting or two
Today
The Lavaux vineyard path proper, a stretch of the Lutry-to-Chexbres route, weaving between stone terrace walls that in places date back to the 11th century.
- Stop at two or three small producers along the way for a tasting; most are used to walk-ins outside the busiest summer weekends
Lunch
A vinorama or village café directly on the path: simple, local, built around the wine rather than a destination restaurant.
UNESCO since 2007
Lavaux's 10,000 individual terraces were recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007, for nine centuries of continuous, hand-built winemaking on the same slopes.
Dinner
La Cambuse, at Cully's harbour: a relaxed brasserie right on the water with lake fish and local Vaudois dishes; or Le Major Davel, Cully, for a similar terroir-driven menu.
A slow morning & departure
This morning
A last coffee among the vines, a final look at the cellar if the Correvons are around, then the short train back to Lausanne or Geneva.
- No sport scheduled, purposefully
Build this trip
We will start from this one and reshape it around your dates, your group and your pace. Nothing here is a fixed package.
Build this trip See other trips