Why Montreux Matters to Music Fans
Montreux is a small resort town on the eastern shore of Lake Geneva, but its place in music history is out of all proportion to its size. It hosts one of the world's best-known music festivals, it gave Deep Purple the story behind "Smoke on the Water", and it was Queen's recording base for more than a decade. For a music lover, a visit combines festival nights in July with year-round sights connected to the artists who worked here.
The Montreux Jazz Festival
The Montreux Jazz Festival was founded in 1967 by Claude Nobs, who ran it for more than four decades. It began as a jazz event but has long since opened up to rock, soul, blues, pop, hip-hop and electronic music. Over the years its stages have hosted Miles Davis, Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin, B.B. King, Prince and many others, and the festival's archive of recorded concerts is one of the largest of its kind.
The festival runs for about two weeks in early July. The 2026 edition, the 60th, took place in the first half of July. Dates for the next year are usually announced months in advance on the official festival website.
How it works:
- Paid concerts take place in the main halls of the convention centre on the lakefront. Headliners sell out quickly once tickets go on sale, typically in spring.
- Free programme: the lakeside quays become a long promenade of food and drink stalls, bars and free stages, so you can enjoy the atmosphere and hear plenty of music without a ticket.
- Accommodation in Montreux itself is scarce and expensive in festival weeks. Many visitors stay in Vevey, Lausanne or elsewhere on the Riviera and travel in by train.
Queen and Freddie Mercury in Montreux
Queen bought Mountain Studios, inside the Montreux casino building, in 1979 and recorded there for years. "Under Pressure", the collaboration with David Bowie, was partly recorded in Montreux. Freddie Mercury spent much of his last years by the lake, and his final vocal recordings were made at the studio.
Today the former studio space hosts Queen: The Studio Experience in the Casino Barrière. It is a small exhibition with the original mixing desk, handwritten lyrics, costumes and other memorabilia, and admission is free, supported by the Mercury Phoenix Trust. It is generally open every day from morning until evening.
A short walk along the lake, the bronze Freddie Mercury statue by Czech sculptor Irena Sedlecká stands on the waterfront at Place du Marché. It was unveiled in 1996 and is the most photographed spot in town; early morning is the quietest time to see it.
The Casino Fire and "Smoke on the Water"
On 4 December 1971, during a concert by Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, a flare fired by an audience member set the old Montreux casino on fire and the building burned down. Deep Purple were in town to record their album Machine Head and watched the smoke spread over the lake. The episode became the lyrics of "Smoke on the Water", with Claude Nobs named in the song as the man who helped people out. The casino was rebuilt and reopened in the 1970s, and it is the same building that now houses the Queen exhibition.
Other Music in Montreux and the Riviera
Montreux is not only about July. Septembre Musical, a classical music festival, holds orchestral concerts in Montreux and Vevey from late summer into September. Hotels, bars and the casino host smaller concerts through the year, and the festival organisation runs events outside the main festival dates. Check the Montreux Riviera tourist office listings for what is on during your visit.
Nearby, Vevey is less than ten minutes away by train and makes an easy half-day visit, while Lausanne, about 20 to 25 minutes by train, has a larger live music scene and more concert venues.
Beyond the Music
Give yourself time for the lakeside walk. The flower-lined promenade runs from the town centre south to Château de Chillon, the medieval castle on a rock in the lake, about an hour on foot or a few minutes by bus. From the hills above town, rack railways climb toward Rochers-de-Naye, and the scenic GoldenPass line heads into the mountains toward Gstaad.
Practical Tips
- Getting there: direct trains run from Geneva (a little over an hour) and Lausanne. Montreux station is a short downhill walk from the lake.
- Best time: early July for the festival; May, June and September for quieter visits.
- Festival planning: book accommodation as soon as dates are announced, and buy tickets for headline concerts when sales open.
- Budget: Montreux is expensive even by Swiss standards. The free festival stages and the free Queen exhibition help keep costs down.
Whether you come for a headline concert or simply to stand where Freddie Mercury looked out over the lake, Montreux rewards anyone with a record collection.
