Montreux Noël Christmas market • 10 Activities for Families

Each year we like to try a different Christmas market in Switzerland, giving us an excuse to travel around this country and see the villages at their most festive. In 2019, I visited Montreux Noël, a lively Christmas market set on the beautiful shores of Lake Geneva with mountain views.

This market has lots of fun extras for children, making it a great choice for a special family weekend during the lead up to Christmas.

Open: 20 Nov to 24 Dec 2025 (see opening hours on their website).

Here are 10 fun things to do with children at the Montreux Christmas market as well as some tips on where to eat and stay while you’re there.

Note: Thanks to Montreux tourism for arranging this press trip, helping me gather more info and tips for our loyal readers. All opinions stated here are my own.

1. Watch Santa and his reindeer fly over the market

This was the most unique and special feature of the market. Every evening at 17:00. 18:00 and 19:00, Santa and his reindeer fly over the market in his sleigh. He stops near the big ferris wheel to say hello, play his guitar and sing. This little bit of spectacle is quite convincing for many children. 

For the best view, you might stand near the big reindeer statue near the water or in the children’s Christmas village near the ferris wheel. See this location on a map.

2. Add your wish to the wish tree 

Inside the covered Marché Montreux adjacent to the ferris wheel, you’ll find more food and craft vendors and in the northeast corner, the “Wish trees”. There are little slips of paper where you can write a wish, the you can tie it to the tree with a ribbon. It’s fun to read some wishes and see all the different languages decorating the tree.

3. Ride the ferris wheel

In the children’s village, you’ll find a big ferris wheel, which gives you a gorgeous view over the whole lakefront. I think it’s nicest to go just after sunset or in the evening when all the lights come on. Warning for those with small children: the sides are quite low and there are no safety restraints. I don’t usually get vertigo but I felt a little panicked when we reached the top. The ferris wheel is generally open the same times as the market vendors, about 11:00 to 22:00.

4. Visit Santa’s house at the top of a mountain

For an extra special treat, you can ride a mountain train to visit Santa at the top of Rochers de Naya, a 2049m mountain above Montreux. After such a journey, children often feel that they have finally met the real Santa Claus. Children can visit one-on-one with Santa, deliver their wish lists and have a photo opp with Santa. You can take pictures yourself or optionally purchase a professional photo done by the elves. Children receive a stamped certificate verifying they met Santa and a small gift of stuffed animal and treats. Then go outside and play in the snow with gorgeous panorama views of the mountains, lake and whole Montreux Riviera.

Trains run daily 9:17 to 15:17, leaving from the Montreux train station. In 2019, tickets cost CHF 19/child aged 6+, CHF 39/adult and must be booked in advance. 

For details and tips, see my post Visit Santa on the top of Rochers de Naye

5. Make a chocolate tree

In the children’s village, Läderach hosts a hut where children can decorate chocolate trees. For CHF 10, you get a chocolate cone then can choose from a variety of chocolate decorations that you “glue” to the tree with liquid chocolate. Delicious and fun!

6. Express dip candles

Also in the children’s village, you’ll find this express candle making station. For CHF 10, you can choose a candle form shown on the left below (the phone is in the picture for scale). Then you can dip it a few times in a wide variety of colors to quickly get a beautiful result as shown on the right. Normally candle dipping takes about an hour to get a candle about 2-3 cm thick. So for those with little time and/or patience, this is a great option.

7. Meet Russian Santa’s Granddaughter

Every year the Montreux Christmas market has a different country as a special guest. This year it’s Russia, which means you can meet Santa’s granddaughter who helps Santa deliver presents to children in Russia. She also happens to look a lot like Elsa from Frozen, which is sure to charm many little girls. Although her official job is promoting the Russian restaurant at the market, she is very friendly and happy to tell her story to curious little children.

8. Medieval Christmas at Chillon castle

This famous castle is nice to visit anytime of year. But at Christmas, they host a medieval celebration on the three weekends leading up to Christmas. They have a variety of activities and entertainment, including music shows, workshops like making wreaths and candles, demonstrations from skilled craft workers, medieval characters in costume, farm animals to visit, fire show and jesters, etc.  

In 2019, these festivities run on 30 Nov – 2 Dec, 7-8 Dec and 14-15 Dec. The castle is open from 10:00 to 17:00 (last entry at 16:00). Some things are happening all day, some demonstrations and entertainment happen at specific times. So check the program for that day before going.

Entrance fee: Tickets for this special event cost CHF 15/anyone over 6 years old, CHF 6 for children under 6. Family pass is CHF 35 for 2 adults and up to 5 children. You don’t have to reserve tickets in advance. But some activities require that you sign up on-site and places are limited. There are few activities that require an extra fee, like candle making. 

Getting There: Chillon Castle is a short train or bus ride from the Christmas market at Montreux, covered by the Montreux Riviera card available for free from your accommodation. You can take bus 201 from anywhere along the main street in Montreux to the Veytaux, château de Chillon bus stop, a 10 min ride. The castle is adjacent to the bus stop. Or from the Montreux train station, take the S2 train to Veytaux, château de Chillon train station, a 4 min ride, then a 500m walk along the lake to the castle.

Practical: There is an indoor picnic area with vending machines inside the castle. There are lockers to store valuables during your visit. The castle is not suitable for strollers, there is a place near the entrance to park them. There are lots of stairs throughout the castle. The gift shop has castle dress up clothes for children and lots of fun castle-related children’s books in English.

More info here.

9. Try new treats

If you’ve lived in Switzerland awhile, you might be a little tired of seeing the same food over and over. So I was delighted to find quite a few different things to eat than I typically see in eastern Switzerland.

Lebkuchen isn’t new, but this lady has the best lebkuchen I’ve ever eaten, so soft and flavorful, a bit more like gingerbread. I bought a big piece to take home and my kids ate it in seconds. On the right are cone shaped croissants filled with pastry cream. There were also chimney cakes and all sorts of pastries and candies I hadn’t see before. I couldn’t possibly eat everything I wanted to, so we’ll just have to go back.

10. Watch the maroni show

This will make no sense until you see it in action, but the chestnut roasting stand was maybe our favorite part of the market. It’s like a dance performance, constantly lifting up the various pots, shaking them, switching positions, emptying and filling the pots. They have music playing, the people working there are dancing around and talking to all the people passing by. The chestnuts taste pretty good too. We ran into one of the guys later and he showed us where the best sandwiches were, great tip!

Extra credit: Walk along the lake

Christmas markets can get quite crowded. So if you need a break, just walk past the market on either end and stroll along the lake. The crowds disappear immediately and the views are spectacular. Once you catch your breath, head back in for more treats and Christmas cheer.

Where to stay

It’s best to book early if you want to stay right in Montreux. But there are plenty of neighboring villages well connected by train and bus, so you’re sure to find something.

We were treated to the Fairmont Le Montreux Palace, a gorgeous 5 star hotel with lots of old world charm. It’s conveniently located across the street from the market, so it was easy to go back to our room to drop off purchases and pick up warmer clothing for the evening.

Our room had a balcony overlooking the lake and mountains. I wish I could wake up to that every morning. The hotel had beautiful and cosy lounging areas, making it a nice place to stay in winter. 

Our room was beautiful, which a very comfortable that made me want to sleep in even though we had a full program the next day. 

The spacious dining area has huge panorama windows and skylights, letting in so much light. The atmosphere was so nice that I wanted to linger longer and have a second breakfast just so I could enjoy the view.

I loved all the fresh fruit which balanced out the many pastries I wanted to sample.

Where to eat

If you aren’t full from all the yummy treats at the food stands, there are plenty of indoor restaurants and cafes where you can warm up and have a more traditional meal.

For dinner, we had fondue at the Heidi hut, so adorable and cosy. We tried two non-traditional fondues. My favorite had speck and caramelized onions, a perfect addition in my opinion and I’ll definitely be trying that home. I was nervous that the truffle fondue might be too strong, but it was very balanced and tasty. 

Our host explained that the tomato fondue is meant to spooned over potatoes on your plate, not for dipping bread. I’ll have to try that one next time. I also appreciated that they let me bring in my Christmas tea from a vendor outside hut, since they didn’t serve that flavor there.

We also attended a lovely sunset apero at Terre Vaudoise, which specializes in food products from the Vaud region of Switzerland (includes Montreux and the surrounding villages). We were able to sample a delicious variety of cheese and charcuterie from the region, with one of the Terre Vaudoise experts explaining the unique conditions under which the food is produced.

As most of their products are also bought locally, you can’t necessarily find them outside the region. In addition to the cafe, you can buy Terre Vaudoise products in the shop below, including unique food stuffs you can’t find in Zürich.

My favorite bite from the food stands was at Au Pere Magret, which has two sandwichs: fois gras with truffle sauce and duck breast (aka Magret) with mushroom sauce. So delicious I wanted to immediately eat another one. I love places that do just a couple things really well. They are located in the covered market next to the ferris wheel.

This market has two covered areas including this big hall. This great for when the weather is less than ideal.

Insider tip: Chat up vendors

I’m a little shy by nature, but my traveling companion was a bit more gregarious. As we explored the market, she would often ask vendors about their craft and background, which revealed so many interesting stories that gave me an entirely different perspective on booths that I might have quickly passed without much notice. The vendors would talk about the special materials and processes they used, the generations of family involved in the craft, and the passion they had for their little corner of the world. I loved it and highly recommend chatting with vendors as you wander.

Getting to the Montreux Christmas market

Montreux is located in western Switzerland as shown on the map below. The Christmas market is along the lake, directly across from the main train stations. It’s best to travel there by public transportation as parking is extremely limited.

By public transport: Simply take a train to Montreux Gare.  The market is just one block down the hill on the lakefront. In 2019, there is a special offer of 50% off train travel to Montreux for the Christmas market.

By car: Montreux is about 1hr south of Bern, about 1hr20 east of Geneva and about 2hr20 west from Zürich. On weekends during market season, traffic is restricted in Montreux. When you get off the highway, you’ll be diverted to parking areas outside the city (usually free to park). Then you can take a shuttle for CHF 5 into Montreux. Alternatively, you could park at a nearby train station, like Vevey and take the train into town.

I wasn’t able to find the exact location of the parking areas. But when we drove there for the Jazz festival, it was the same and the detours at the freeway exits were very clear and obvious.

On weekdays, it’s possible to park in Montreux in various car parks. The website cartoriviera.ch has a list of many parking areas, prices, hours and the currently available spots. These parking areas are closest to the market:

• Place du Marché
• Parking de la gare at train station
• Parking La Paix

Behind the scenes and a little history

Since I was on a press trip, I had the opportunity to meet people that organize the market. This was an amazing opportunity to see behind the scenes, which gave me an entirely different perspective on the market and made me appreciate all the hard work that goes into creating the magic.

This year they are celebrating 25 years of this market. The man on the right, Yves Cornaro, is one of the founding members and CEO of the market. He and few colleagues started this market with their own money and loans to help bring business to Montreux, which basically shut down entirely between November and March. Hotels, restaurants and shops would often close for the whole season and it was very difficult for many businesses. The first ten years of the market were quite slow and they considering quitting. But they decided to double down, raise more money, bring in some experts and happily, it took off and now is very successful and has completed revived the area. 

One thing I particularly liked was how they select vendors. I don’t know how it is at other markets. But at Montreux, every vendor has to apply each year and they go through a selection process. The organizers want 20% new vendors each year, so some previous vendors don’t make the cut. They don’t accept more than 2 vendors of the same sort of product or food. They prioritize handmade, local crafts and products and try to fill the market with as much of these as possible.

Like many markets, they also have large companies that sponsor the market, which provides much needed support for all the infrastructure needed to host such a large event. But Montreux Noel requires that each sponsor to create an experience in the market, not just post their logos and banners around for marketing. For example, the wish trees are sponsored by Le Redoute. Their logo is present on the wish cards, but not in your face. The primary experience at the wish trees is a special Christmas moment, not a marketing opportunity. 

Mr Cornaro stressed that he wants the market to be a place where friends gather, where they put their phones away and really connect. There are many social spaces designed for exactly that. Also there is something for everyone, something for every budget. Some things are free, some things are inexpensive, like the CHF 1 tea at the Lumberjack hut. Of course, you can spend a lot during a market visit, but it’s not required to experience some Christmas magic with your community. 

Mr Cornaro was clearly very passionate about their values as well as running a successful venture. I really respect that. Thanks for Mr Cornaro for generously sharing his story and making this market something really special.