Montreux occupies a bulge of land jutting out into the lake, with the landmark Casino on the tip of the bulge. The large train station is set on a terrace above and slightly west of the town centre; stairs and escalators within the station raise you up to the Old Town on the slopes above, while Avenue des Alpes, the street outside the station’s ticket office, has stairs and a lift which shuttle you down a level to the main central boulevard, Grand-Rue. A patch of park sandwiched between Grand-Rue and the lakefront promenade has at its western end the ferrydébarcadère, and at its eastern end the town’s huge covered market, Place du Marché. East of here, Grand-Rue becomes the Avenue du Casino which heads out of town as Avenue de Chillon on its way along the lakefront to the château. Bus #1 from Vevey runs along Grand-Rue, stopping below the train station, at the débarcadère, the covered market and the Casino, before heading on to Chillon.

The tourist office is next to the débarcadère in a lakefront hut (April–Sept Mon–Sat 9am–6pm, Sun 9am–noon; Oct–March Mon–Fri 9am–6pm, Sat 9am–noon; 021/962 84 84, www.montreux.ch). There’s a two-hour walking tour of the town, which leaves from beside the débarcadère (April–Oct Wed–Sat 10am & 3pm; Fr.10); check in advance about the availability of an English-speaking guide, and beware too that the walk will take you up the mountainous slopes into the Old Town and down again.