Lausanne

ABOVE: The Olympic Museum Lausanne is in Ouchy, facing the lake.

Museums

Lausanne's Plan Officiel lists two dozen museums, a number of which have international reputations.

Close to the lake in Ouchy, the Olympic Museum Lausanne is a "must see" attraction for sports fans and Olympic TV watchers. The modern museum has permanent displays, rotating exhibits, and computer terminals where you can watch performances from yesteryear. (The displays of medals and torches alone are worth the price of admission.) Not far away, the Musée du Vieil Ouchy (Museum of Old Ouchy) has historical exhibits about the fishing-village-turned-resort.

In the Upper Town, the Museum of Design and Applied Contemporary Art, or MUDAC, is easy to visit: It's directly across the street from the cathedral, where its modern exhibits and rooms are built behind the façads of four connected medieval houses.

Uphill from the city center (but well worth the walk or bus ride) is the Collection de l'Art Brut, where you'll find amazing works by the mentally ill, prisoners, and other artists on the fringes of society. The museum owes its existence to the French artist Jean Dubuffet, who donated his collection of "outsider art" to the city of Lausanne in 1971.

Another museum above the city center, the Fondation de l'Hermitage, hosts important visiting exhibitions in an old manor house. Walk a little farther up the hill (or take the #16 bus), and you'll reach the forest of Sauvabelin with an animal park and the Tour de Sauvebelin, a tower where you can enjoy panoramic views of the city and Lac Léman.

For more museums, see the Lausanne museums list in English at Tempslibre.ch or the French-language museum listings at Lausanne-tourisme.ch. Another good source of information--also in French--is the free Infos Expos - Musées Lausanne et Pully brochure from the tourist office, which has a map, addresses, opening hours, etc. along with descriptions of current exhibitions.

Next page: Lausanne hotels and hostels

Lausanne:
Introduction	Restaurants
Location, history	Transportation
Sightseeing, excursions	Schools, universities
Museums	Tourist information
Hotels, hostels	Lausanne photos

Related articles:
Olympic Museum Lausanne	Hotel Beau-Rivage Palace

Cities and attractions near Lausanne:
Montreux	Vevey
Castle of Chillon	Lavaux Vineyards

Sightseeing tours:

Viator tours and excursions from Lausanne

Tourist offices:

Lausanne Tourisme

Lake Geneva Region Tourist Office

Switzerland Tourism

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