Lausanne

Lausanne (pronounced low-ZANNE), the capital of the Swiss canton of Vaud, is a medium-sized city (about two-thirds the size of Geneva) located near Lake Geneva’s northernmost tip (Lac Léman). The International Olympic Committee and two major colleges are based in the city. It is also Vaud’s public transportation center and a gateway to the alpine Canton of Valais, which has some of the world’s best-known ski slopes.

As one would anticipate, the big student population creates a vibrant nightlife and artistic culture centered on the Flon area. There are also a number of excellent restaurants and two dozen noteworthy museums, including the Olympic Museum and the unusual Collection de l’Art Brut. Architecture enthusiasts should take notice that the finest preserved Gothic cathedral in Switzerland may be found at the summit of the old town.

Despite its cosmopolitan character (42 percent of its residents are foreign nationalities), Lausanne is a French-speaking city. English is not as widely spoken as it is in Geneva, and you will most likely struggle to communicate with an ordinary person on the street. However, most service-sector workers know a little English, and the level of English among young Swiss is generally high (amongst the older generation it is German that tends to be far stronger). A traveler will have minimal difficulty navigating the city using just English.

• The Lausanne Tourism Office (at the main station, and in Ouchy where it shares space with the M2 station), +41 21 613-7373. Daily 09:00-19:00. Even at the last minute, the workers at the tourist board offices or over the phone can nearly always put you in a hotel in your price range. They also provide a beautiful free map of the city and a large selection of valuable printed resources in English, French, German, and Italian.

Lausanne has an average of 119.7 days of rain or snow each year and 1,153 millimetres (45.4 in) of precipitation. The wettest month is May, with an average of 117 mm (4.6 in) of rain falling in Lausanne. Precipitation falls on an average of 12.1 days during this month. February is the driest month of the year, with an average of 67 mm (2.6 in) of precipitation over 8.8 days.

Lake Geneva (Lac Léman in French) is the most prominent geographical feature in the region around Lausanne. Lausanne is situated on the southern slope of the Swiss plateau, with a 500-metre (1,640-foot) elevation difference between the lakeshore at Ouchy and its northern boundary abutting Le Mont-sur-Lausanne and Épalinges. Lausanne has a stunning view of the lake and the Alps.

In addition to its usually southward-sloping form, the city center is the location of an old river, the Flon, which has been covered since the nineteenth century. The former river creates a canyon that runs through the city center south of the ancient city center, mainly following the line of the current Rue Centrale, with various bridges over the depression to link the nearby neighborhoods. Due to the significant elevation fluctuations, visitors need keep track of the plane of height they are on and where they wish to travel, or they will find themselves tens of meters below or above the street they are attempting to navigate. The term Flon is also used for the gorge’s metro station.

Vidy, Cour, Ouchy, Mornex, Chailly, La Sallaz, Vennes, Montblesson, Vers-chez-les-Blanc, Montheron, and Chalet-à-Gobet (871 m (2,858 ft)) are all part of the municipality, as is the exclave of Vernand.

Lausanne is situated at the crossroads of the vast wine-growing districts of Lavaux (to the east) and la Côte (to the west) (to the west).

Lausanne has a land area of 41.38–41.33 square kilometers (15.98–15.96 square miles) as of 2009. (depending on calculation method). 6.64 km2 (2.56 sq mi) or 16.0 percent of this land is used for agriculture, while 16.18 km2 (6.25 sq mi) or 39.1 percent is forested. The remaining land area is divided as follows: 18.45 km2 (7.12 sq mi) or 44.6 percent is settled (buildings or roads), 0.05 km2 (12 acres) or 0.1 percent is rivers or lakes, and 0.01 km2 (2.5 acres) or 0.0 percent is unproductive ground.

Industrial buildings accounted for 1.6 percent of the total built-up area, while housing and structures accounted for 21.6 percent and transportation infrastructure accounted for 12.5 percent. Power and water infrastructure, as well as other special developed areas, accounted for 1.4 percent of the land, with parks, green belts, and sports fields accounting for the remaining 7.5 percent. Heavy woods cover the whole wooded land region. Crops account for 11.1 percent of agricultural land, while pastures account for 4.2 percent. The municipality’s water supply is entirely comprised of lakes.

The municipality was a component of the old Lausanne District until it was disbanded on August 31, 2006, when it became the seat of the new Lausanne District.

In 2010, the unemployment rate in Lausanne was 8%. In 2008, there were 114 individuals working in the main economic sector, and around 25 enterprises were active in this area. In the secondary industry, there were 6,348 people working and 698 firms. The tertiary sector employed 83,157 people and supported 6,501 firms.

The municipality had 59,599 individuals who were working in some capacity, with females accounting for 47.4 percent of the workforce. The total number of full-time equivalent jobs in 2008 was 75,041. There were 93 employment in the primary sector, including 56 in agriculture, 34 in forestry or timber industry, and 3 in fishing or fisheries. The secondary industry employed 6,057 people, with 1,515 (25.0 percent) working in manufacturing, 24 (0.4 percent) in mining, and 3,721 (61.4 percent) working in construction. There were 68,891 jobs in the tertiary sector. In the tertiary sector, 8,520 or 12.4 percent worked in wholesale or retail sales or motor vehicle repair, 2,955 or 4.3 percent worked in goods movement and storage, 4,345 or 6.3 percent worked in a hotel or restaurant, 4,671 or 6.8 percent worked in the information industry, 6,729 or 9.8 percent worked in the insurance or financial industry, 8,213 or 11.9 percent worked as technical professionals or scientists, 5,756 or 8.4 percent worked in education, and 14,312 or

In 2000, the municipality had 55,789 employees who commuted in and 19,082 workers who commuted out. The municipality is a net importer of employees, with around 2.9 people coming for every one leaving. Around 1.9 percent of the workforce arriving in Lausanne is from outside Switzerland, whereas 0.1 percent of residents travel out of the country for employment. 40.9 percent of the working population utilized public transit to travel to work, while 35.1 percent drove themselves.

SIL, the city-owned electricity company, has recently introduced high-speed Internet via cable to its C.V., and has been building completely free Wi-Fi access sites around town, most notably at Place Palud, Place St. François, the Flon valley, and on the hill of Montbenon near the casino. It is currently difficult to locate a café in Lausanne that does not have access to one of these. In addition, SIL sells a variety of wines to those same cafés, including a fine small Chardonnay and a very robust Gamay.

Both Java and Bleu Lézard, which are mentioned above, provide time-limited but fully supported and consequently extremely stable Wi-Fi. Simply request a ticket from your server.