It cannot be easy to be exiled from a country one has grown to love, but were that to happen, as it did to Charlie Chaplin, there are few places more restorative to resettle than Vevey in the Montreux Riviera region in Switzerland. For the last 25 years of his life, Chaplin lived happily above the shores of Lac Léman (aka Lake Geneva) with his wife and children.
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Notable for its hospitable charm and a favorite locale on the Grand Tour of Switzerland, Vevey has been the headquarters of Nestle since the company’s inception nearly 150 years ago, as well as the home of the Alimentarium, a food museum that is responsible for the giant fork that rises from the lake. Designed by Swiss sculptor Jean-Pierre Zaugg, the 26-foot stainless steel fork has become as much a symbol of the town as is the commemorative lakeside promenade statue of Chaplin who was known as Charlot throughout Europe.
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During his residency in Switzerland, Chaplin settled above the city center in Corsier-sur-Vevey in a gracious manor house known as Domaine du Manoir de Ban. Built in 1840, the neoclassical mansion was surrounded by a 35-acre park with century-old sequoias and verdant lawns in a stunning setting between the Lavaux vineyards and the peaks of the Swiss Alps. The architect, Philippe Franel, was also responsible for Vevey’s premier hotel, Hôtel des Trois Couronnes, where Henry James was to write his haunted novella Daisy Miller.
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Currently undergoing a complete restoration, Manoir de Ban will be the centerpiece of Chaplin’s World: The Modern Times Museum, which is scheduled to open in the spring of 2016. More than a museum, the center will host permanent and temporary exhibitions, cinematic presentations, cultural programs, and festivals throughout the year. Le Manoir de Ban will be surrounded by formal gardens and pathways, while public areas will include the “Limelight” restaurant and the “Little Tramp” boutique. Designed with input from Chaplin’s children, Chaplin’s World promises an insider’s view into the life and mind of one of the world’s one beloved creative artists in a place that captured his heart and nurtured his soul.
Situated on the Montreux Riviera in the heart of one of Switzerland’s most popular tourism regions, Chaplin’s World is located near Chillon Castle, Switzerland’s most visited attraction, as well as Lausanne’s Olympic Museum.
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One of the most pleasant ways to arrive into and depart from Vevey is aboard the electric paddle-wheeled vessel, the Vevey, a part of the CGN Belle-Époque fleet. Built in 1907, the Vevey recently finished 18 months of renovations for a return to the lake in November 2013 and as it cruises along the water, you can wave to Freddie Mercury—as well as Chaplin.
