Perched gracefully between the mirrored surface of Lake Geneva and the vine-draped hills of Lavaux, the town of Vevey embodies Switzerland’s quiet poetry. It is a place of breathtaking beauty — the kind that makes you slow down, breathe deeply, and watch the light shift across the Alps. Once a simple market town, Vevey blossomed in the 19th century into part of Switzerland’s “Riviera,” drawing artists, intellectuals, and travelers seeking calm, clarity, and inspiration.
Charlie Chaplin found refuge here after leaving the United States in 1952, making his home in nearby Corsier-sur-Vevey. Today, Chaplin’s World — a remarkable museum created in his restored mansion — offers visitors an intimate glimpse into the genius of one of cinema’s most enduring figures.
Down by the lakeside, the Alimentarium Food Museum, created by Nestlé (founded here in 1867), explores cultural stories behind food and identity. Just beyond it, a gleaming 26-foot stainless-steel fork rises from the lake — whimsical, bold, and unmistakable. These layers of history and imagination reveal Vevey as a place where memory and creativity live side by side.
Lavaux Vineyards: Switzerland’s Living Terraces
A short train ride from Vevey brings you to Lavaux, a UNESCO World Heritage Site where vineyards cascade in precise terraces above Lake Geneva. Sunlight warms the stone walls, the lake reflects the slopes, and centuries of human care shape this breathtaking landscape. Walking these terraces with local guide Pierre Von Kaenel, I learned how climate, tradition, and culture converge to create the region’s celebrated wines.
Pierre shared with the New York Jewish Travel Guide: “Lavaux welcomes visitors throughout the year, with summer bringing highlights such as the Montreux Jazz Festival and the Chaplin Museum. The region is especially known for its white wine, with Chasselas grapes making up about three-quarters of production. Even in the cooler months, Lavaux offers a vibrant cultural scene, including theaters, concerts, and local festivals that celebrate the area’s rich heritage.”
Every twenty years, the terraces erupt in celebration during the Fête des Vignerons, honoring local winegrowers and their artistry — a living tradition that connects the land, its people, and centuries of history. For visitors, Lavaux is more than a wine region; it is a place where nature, culture, and legacy intertwine, offering reflection, exploration, and inspiration.
A Hidden Jewish Heritage
Beyond the cafés and vineyard trails, Vevey also holds a quieter but deeply meaningful legacy — that of its Jewish community. Though small today, the community’s history reflects resilience, migration, memory, and belonging along the lake.
Origins and Community Life
Jewish presence in Vevey began in the early 20th century, when families from Alsace, Germany, and later Eastern Europe settled in the region. Many worked as merchants, watchmakers, and hoteliers, contributing to the economic and cultural vitality of the Swiss Riviera. In 1905, they established the Communauté Israélite du district de Vevey, opening their first prayer room in the Hôtel d’Angleterre on Quai Pedonnet.
The community soon grew enough to consecrate a Jewish cemetery in La Tour-de-Peilz in 1908. Set between vineyards and water, the cemetery remains one of the most serene Jewish burial grounds in Switzerland. The gravestones — inscribed in Hebrew, French, and German — reflect languages of diaspora, faith, and integration.
Leaders such as Eduard Bloch-Blum and Jules Levy helped foster a vibrant spiritual and cultural environment, connecting Vevey’s Jewish residents to the larger Jewish community in Lausanne. Jewish identity here was not loud or monumental — it was steady, familial, and deeply rooted in everyday life.
War, Borderlands, and Quiet Courage
During World War II, Vevey stood close to the border with Nazi-occupied France. Switzerland’s neutrality was complex and imperfect, but Vevey became a site of passage, safety, and humanitarian aid for Jews fleeing persecution.
Local volunteers and community members — Jewish and non-Jewish — assisted refugees crossing the frontier. Their work was discreet, compassionate, and often carried out at personal risk.
After the war, Les Berges du Léman, a Jewish rest house and cultural center, opened its doors to survivors and displaced persons seeking recovery and dignity. In 1954, within that same building, a new synagogue was inaugurated. Its stained-glass windows, designed by Swiss artist Régine Heim, depict Hebrew letters, the lamed-vav tzadikim (the 36 righteous souls), and symbols of rebirth — a visual testament to renewal after devastation.
Jewish Vevey Today
Today, the Jewish presence in Vevey continues at a modest scale, integrated within the Communauté Israélite de Lausanne et du Canton de Vaud (CILV). The historic synagogue, built in 1904, still stands as a symbol of the town’s once-thriving Jewish life. While regular services are no longer held there, the building is maintained and used for holidays, commemorative events, and group visits arranged through the Lausanne community, which provides active rabbinic leadership in the region.
Eliezer Shai Di Martino, Rabbin de la Communauté Israélite de Lausanne et du Canton de Vaud (CILV), told the New York Jewish Travel Guide:
“There is currently no active synagogue in Vevey, and no regular services are held there. Only a few elderly Jewish residents still live in the region, and they are generally affiliated with the Lausanne community. Those who occasionally attend services do so at the synagogue in Lausanne — the only active synagogue in the entire canton of Vaud.”
He added that today, there are likely fewer than ten Jewish families living in Vevey.
Rabbi Di Martino also shared historical context:
“Historically, the Jewish community in Vevey was somewhat larger and more organized, though never very big. Within Vevey itself, the Jewish residents tended to be more secular, while in the nearby town of Montreux there was a more observant community. Montreux was also home to a well-known yeshiva — one of the first of its kind in the world — which remained active until it closed in the mid-1980s.”
Rabbi Di Martino also noted that the cemetery in La Tour-de-Peilz contains a dedicated Jewish section, distinct from the surrounding burial grounds. This section, which remains active today, holds several hundred graves — though the precise number is not known.
Set between the lake and the terraced vineyards, the site is serene and deeply evocative. It stands as a quiet testament to the generations who once lived, worked, prayed, and built community in this region.
And while the Jewish community in Vevey today is small, its legacy continues — not measured in population, but in the enduring presence of memory, landscape, and belonging.
Culture, Cuisine, and Contemplation
Vevey is a town best experienced unhurried. Start at the open-air market, where local cheeses, fresh flowers, and artisan chocolates create a tapestry of color and scent. Wander along the lakeshore, watching swans glide across the water with quiet elegance. And as you step into Vevey’s museums and cultural spaces, you’ll find an atmosphere that is intimate rather than grand — places that invite reflection, curiosity, and a sense of connection.
Kosher options in Vevey itself are limited, but vegetarian and fish-friendly menus are widely available. The Lausanne Jewish community provides resources for kosher shopping and Shabbat arrangements upon request.
Where to Stay
Hôtel des Trois Couronnes — A grand yet inviting property with sweeping lakeside views, refined hospitality, and proximity to Vevey’s Old Town and Jewish heritage sites. Less than an hour from Geneva Airport, it provides both luxury and stillness — an ideal base for travelers seeking depth and serenity.
How to Visit
- Getting there: ~60 minutes from Geneva Airport; 20 minutes from Lausanne by rail.
- Best seasons: April through October — when vineyards glow and promenades bloom.
- Sites to experience:
- Synagogue of Vevey (by appointment via cilv.ch)
- Jewish Cemetery, La Tour-de-Peilz
- Chaplin’s World
- Alimentarium Food Museum
- Lavaux Vineyards (UNESCO)
Jewish Heritage Highlights
Synagogue of Vevey (1954)
Located within “Les Berges du Léman.” Features stained-glass by Régine Heim symbolizing faith and renewal.
Jewish Cemetery – La Tour-de-Peilz (1908)
Serene site with over 400 graves, reflecting the multicultural heritage of the region’s Jewish families.
Historical Footnote
The first Jewish prayer house in Vevey was established in the Hôtel d’Angleterre (1905).
Wartime Legacy
Vevey’s Jewish residents quietly supported refugee relief efforts for Jews escaping Nazi-occupied France.
Vevey’s Beauty and Memory Intertwined
As the sun lowers behind the Alps and the lake turns to silver, Vevey reveals its truest nature — a place where beauty and memory exist in quiet conversation. The terraced vineyards, Chaplin’s timeless smile, the glimmering fork in the water — all speak to Vevey’s creativity, warmth, and scenic grace. Yet just beyond the cafés and markets, another story endures: one of Jewish life shaped by migration, refuge, resilience, and enduring spirit.
The synagogue’s glass still gathers the late-afternoon light. The cemetery in La Tour-de-Peilz still watches the seasons shift across the lake. And the community — though small — continues to honor the prayers, traditions, and humanity of those who came before.
For travelers seeking more than postcards — for those who look for meaning layered beneath beauty — Vevey is not simply a place to visit. It is a place to experience, reflect, and remember. Here, one finds the full arc of heritage: joy and artistry, struggle and renewal, presence and persistence. And in that delicate balance between landscape and legacy, Vevey becomes more than a destination — it becomes a story you carry with you long after you leave.
Meyer Harroch is the founder of the New York Jewish Travel Guide, documenting Jewish heritage, life, and culture around the world.
Special thanks to the Swiss Tourism Office and to Divine Bonga, of Switzerland Tourism North America, for their hospitality and dedication to showcasing Switzerland’s cultural and Jewish heritage.
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