Travel Guide Gruyères

Gruyères is a tourist destination if ever there was one. It is one of the most typical places in French-speaking Switzerland. For lovers of geraniums, accordions and... cheese of course! 33 kilometres from Fribourg and 5 from Bulle, this small town at the gateway to the Alps gave its name to the famous cheese born in its mountains. In a charming setting, at an altitude of 830 metres, it nestles at the foot of the Moléson, the Dent de Broc and the Dent du Chamois. In fact, Gruyères is made up of four distinct entities: the old town perched on a hill and, further down, linked by a small winding road, the more modern districts: Épagny to the north, Pringy and Moléson-Village. The districts of Prâ-Dêré and Pra-Riond are naturally oriented towards the municipality of Broc, while the inhabitants of the hamlet of Part-Dieu are more inclined towards Bulle or Vuadens.The old walled city of Gruyères is a jewel. No cars are allowed (but don't let that stop you from visiting Gruyères by parking your camper van below). Pedestrians from all over the world walk along its famous cobbled main street, where remarkable houses with proud heraldic cranes, symbols of the town from which it takes its name, are squeezed together. On the heights stands the castle of the Counts of Gruyères whose foundations date back to the 12th century. Gruyères is home to a museum dedicated to the Graubünden artist H.R. Giger, creator of the Oscar-winning monster Alien in 1980.