Last April I manifested an international work trip to London. Friends, I did it again! This time I had to do a work trip to Lausanne, Switzerland, for an important presentation. I’ll write more about Lausanne and the Christmas markets soon, if you want a quick snapshot of my trip, read on:
LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND
Length of stay:
4 nights total, not including a night on a redeye flight
Where I stayed:
-1 night at the Ibis Styles Mad House in Lausanne for Reasons
-3 nights at the Moxy Lausanne City (Marriott Bonvoy hotel)
I actually preferred the ibis over the Moxy, since the Ibis had water and a coffee maker in the room. Both gave you a free drink when you checked in. The USB ports in the Ibis did not work, but my French plugs did work there though they did not at the Moxy. The Ibis also had a coffee pot which I didn’t realize I needed until I did not have it.
Why I visited Lausanne, Switzerland
A customer with a Swiss HQ invited us to come on site to present. I’m no dummy so I jumped on that opportunity immediately. Sometimes working in sales pays off!
Highlights of Lausanne, Switzerland
Visiting Switzerland in December while having amazing weather. I barely wore my coat, and never even put on my winter hat. Lausanne is on the water of Lake Geneva/Lac Léman, so it stays mild. Also visiting some actual Christmas markets was incredibly fun!
I also made Gold 75K on Alaska Airlines and Emerald on OneWorld during my flight LAX-SEA. That status got me into first class lounges at every hotel, so I was able to shower, clean up, and enjoy some excellent champagne to celebrate.
Lowlights
I had to planes, trains and automobiles my way to Lausanne when British Airways delayed my original flight more than 24 hours. After hours on hold with BA and our corporate travel agent, I rebooked myself on a flight to LAX, then a different flight to Geneva. I actually made it to my hotel before my original flight even took off. That reminds me, I need to follow up with BA as they owe me a refund on my flight!
Another lowlight was just the pace of the trip. It took me 21 hours to arrive, and I spent three days in Switzerland before coming back home. I’m not sure it would be worth it for a vacation, although I did not have much jet lag so it wasn’t so bad.
Also, as it so happens, my French is terrible.
What I did in Lausanne, Switzerland
-Worked, like a lot.
-Visited the UNESCO World Heritage Lavaux Vineyards including the Vinorama, which had 300 wines from the region along the lake including several Grand Cru varieties
-Visited the medieval Château de Chillon castle in Montreux. (It’s free if you have a Swiss Rail Pass or a Montreux travel card)
-Visited my first official Christmas markets in Lausanne and Montreux and drank a lot of vin chaud (mulled wine)
-Ate my weight in melted cheese
What I didn’t do
-Did not make it to any of the local museums, like Olympic Museum, or up into the mountains. I just didn’t have time.
-Did not get to winery hop because, as one might expect, many of the vineyards are closed on Thursday afternoons in December.
-Ate a lot of raclette but not enough hard cheese like Gruyere, which is made near Lausanne and you can take a tour to taste it!!
-Did not freak out when my flight was delayed 24 hours. Instead I leveled up my profesh traveler skills to reroute myself
Approximate trip cost
Airfare: This was free to me, but my og airfare economy plus on BA was $3100 which is INSANE. I rerouted my inbound via LAX and in economy it was $334 to LAX, and then $500 to Heathrow on an empty plane.
Hotel: ibis was $165, Moxy was about $200 a night.
Food: Most of my meals were team dinners. I spent about $40 at the Christmas markets on mulled wine and crepes. I’m not sure I bought anything else. Except chocolate! I spent about $60 on chocolate. They also had it at duty free for only a little more.
Entrance fees: €11 for the castle. I bought a combined rail ticket and museum entry to save 20% on both.
Travel: Train travel was actually very expensive. My train from the airport was around €40 I think? Although Lausanne has a free intracity travel card so the subway was free. This travel card is included with your tourism fees, and your hotel can print out the card for you. It won’t get you all the way to Montreux, for example, but the metro in the city is very easy and fast.
Books I read
I love reading books set in or written about the areas I visit. Below are some books I read to give me a sense of place of Lausanne, Switzerland, and the Alps. All are Bookshop dot org links.
- The Alps, by Stephen O’Shea – covers the alps from France to Switzerland to Italy and beyond, providing a lot of history of the area.
- Slow Train to Switzerland: One Tour, Two Trips, 150 Years and a World of Change Apart, by Diccan Bewes – covers a present-day trip covering the same trip a woman made on an original Thomas Cook tour 150 years prior
- Swiss Vendetta, by Tracee de Hahn- a mystery set in Lausanne along the lake
If you visit Lausanne, Switzerland or find this information helpful, please let me know. Follow me on IG: @HiFriendsItsLaura
