"Three attractions in one visit. " a Gruyères Travel Page by dabidc

The train from Bulle, takes no more than 10 minutes to reach the Gruyeres station, next door to the cheese factory, but the journey to the village, yes it it is way up there on top of the hill, next to the Castle, does take longer.

Unless you know that there is a small train that takes passengers to the village and the castle. Of course otherwise if you don't know or if you want to have the exercise, take the path on the far side of the rail/road crossing, it is well marked.

If you want to drive a car to the village, then you will need to park it before you get to the village. There just is not room for everything in such a small space.

In the photo the village looms out of the mist as the walkers are directed to a seconday path and cars are directed to car parks.

This was the scene at about 10.00 am on a Saturday morning in October, 2006 as I looked at the houses, restaurants, shops and the Castle.

All seemed crowded on to a small, high, old volcanic plug. The location provided an excellent defensive position at a point where the foothills merged into Mountains as the River Sarine rushes out of the mountains.

The village is to the west end of the small plateau of land, while the castle stands a little higher on the east side, in what is a better defensive location.

The Cheese Factory is located near the rail station, includes the plant for processing the cheeses, a restaurant and a gift shop.

Tours are available 3 to 4 times a day, year round, there is a small admission fee. Headsets are availbale in 6 languages.