Photos: Julius.kusuma at English Wikipedia, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 Olivier Bruchez from Lausanne, Switzerland, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0 MHM55, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo credits
Photos: Julius.kusuma at English Wikipedia, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 Olivier Bruchez from Lausanne, Switzerland, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0 MHM55, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Inside a lakeside villa turned art museum
Your local guide
Aurélie Cottier
View profile
Highlights
- A private villa turned art museum
- Lake views from historic gardens
- A small, deliberately chosen selection
- Art explained by a former staff member
- A quiet alternative to the city centre
About this tour
This session covers the Fondation de l'Hermitage, an art museum set inside a 19th-century villa with gardens looking out over the lake. You see the villa's facade and a small, carefully chosen selection of works inside. Aurélie, who worked at the museum before guiding, explains both the building's history and the pieces themselves.
She starts outside with the villa and its grounds before moving to a quiet room inside. She keeps the selection of works deliberately small, giving each one proper time rather than covering a whole exhibition.
This suits anyone with an interest in art history or historic houses specifically. It pairs naturally with the Lavaux terraces session for a fuller day around Lausanne's quieter sides.
Included
- Live video walk with a local guide
- Questions to your guide all the way
- A short list of places to visit later
Not included
- Internet connection
- Travel to the city
Itinerary
-
Welcome and sound check 5 min
The guide joins the video call, checks the picture and sound with you, and gives you a quick sense of Lausanne before heading out.
-
Hermitage Villa Facade 21 min
Aurélie stands before the 19th-century villa, explaining how a private house became one of the city's art museums.
-
Garden Gallery Selection 21 min
Inside, she holds the phone steady in front of a small selection of works, chosen for how they read together rather than individually.
-
Your questions 9 min
Time to ask anything about Lausanne: prices, safety, food, or whatever you are curious about.
-
A short list to keep 4 min
Before you go, the guide sums up with a few things worth remembering: a dish to try: Malakoffs and Flon, worth a slower look.
Good to know
- A stable wifi or mobile connection makes the picture smoother than a shaky one.
- Any phone, tablet or laptop with a camera works. You watch, the guide does the walking.
- Times are shown in Zurich time, so check the time where you are before you book.
- The session is not recorded, and recording it yourself is not allowed. Feel free to take your own notes.
- Ask questions any time, out loud or in the chat. The guide will pause to answer.
- Sessions run in small groups, up to 8 people, so there is room for everyone to ask something.
Questions about this tour
What will the session cover?
The guide walks through Lausanne, showing you Hermitage Villa Facade and Garden Gallery Selection live on camera, plus whatever else you would like to see.
What happens if my connection drops?
Rejoin with the same link within a few minutes and the guide will catch you up on anything you missed.
Can I ask the guide questions during the session, or is it a fixed script?
Anything, any time. Sessions leave room for your own questions throughout, not just at the end.
Do I need any background in art?
No. The guide explains what matters as you go, whatever you already know or do not.
How it works
- You get one join link after booking.
- Join from any device: phone, tablet or laptop.
- We connect on Google Meet with the link sent at booking. I keep the phone steady on each piece inside, so the details actually show up on screen.
Times shown in Zurich time (CET)
Cancellation
Flexible
- Cancel up to 24 hours before the start: full refund.
- Cancel less than 24 hours before the start, or no-show: no refund.
- If the guide cancels or the date does not reach its minimum group: full refund.
- Cancel in My Account → Bookings; the refund is calculated from the start time in the tour's local time.
Reviews
No reviews yet. Reviews appear here after travellers have completed this tour.
How reviews work
Only travellers who booked and paid through Locals Guide and whose tour took place can leave a review, within 60 days of the tour. Every review is marked "Verified booking". We check reviews before they appear and publish positive and negative ones alike; we remove only reviews that break our rules (insults, personal data, unrelated content). Guides cannot pay for, edit or hide reviews, and ratings are the plain average of all published reviews.
Next: Sat 31 Oct · 8 seats left From 23,00 €
Book