Overlooking the Cité quarter and cathedral, the Hermitage is close to Lausanne’s historic centre while enjoying magnificent, panoramic views over the Alps and Lake Geneva.
Its extensive grounds were designed and planted when the residence was built and reflect the topography of the land. The curves of the garden, with its avenues and paths, shaded benches and surrounding corona of trees, are typical of the gardens in the “English style” that were popular in the early 19th century. Walk around the grounds to discover picturesque features including a Roman column and a (now inaccessible) cave.
The flowerbeds in the lawn around the museum are designed by the City of Lausanne gardeners to offer banks of seasonal colour. A little further down, the wild flower meadow adds a poetry all of its own.
The majestic trees in the Hermitage grounds, including tulip tree, incense cedar, Atlas cedar, Austrian pine, beech, American black walnut and willow, are over a hundred years old. Above the orchard lies a broad meadow that is cut only twice a year to promote biodiversity. Its bucolic atmosphere is a reminder that, until the 19th century, the site where the Hermitage now stands was agricultural land.
