A house, not a gallery
Paintings in rooms with wooden floors and fireplaces.
Archipat — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Roderich Kahn — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Patrick Nouhailler's… — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Patrick Nouhailler's… — CC BY-SA 3.0
The Fondation de l'Hermitage is an art museum in a **private nineteenth-century villa** on a hill north of Lausanne, surrounded by a large English garden of veteran trees with a direct view over the cathedral, the lake and the Savoy mountains — one of the loveliest settings in the city. The Bugnion family, bankers, built it in 1850 and three generations lived there before bequeathing it to the city in 1976 to become a museum. The rooms kept the spirit of a house — wooden floors, decorated ceilings, fireplaces — so you move among the paintings inside a home rather than a gallery. It has no large permanent collection on show; it runs on **major temporary exhibitions** (two or three a year) on Impressionism and after, often borrowing from world museums — so what is on the walls changes completely by season. ⚠ It is, however, **closed entirely for renovation from 10 November 2025 until autumn 2027**, so there are no exhibitions and no access to the villa until then — and the public garden alone stays open and is worth the walk.
Paintings in rooms with wooden floors and fireplaces.
Veteran trees and a vista over cathedral and lake.
Route du Signal 2, 1018 Lausanne
Palais de RumineThe Palais de Rumine is a vast neo-Florentine Renaissance building dominating th7 minutes walk4.7
Lausanne CathedralThe Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Lausanne is **Switzerland's most important Gothic8 minutes walk4.7
Escaliers du MarchéThe Escaliers du Marché are the covered wooden stairs linking the Place de la Pa9 minutes walk
Sauvabelin TowerThe Sauvabelin Tower is an observation tower built **entirely of wood**, standin10 minutes walk4.8
Collection de l'Art BrutThe Collection de l'Art Brut is a museum like no other: the French painter **Jea12 minutes walk4.8No — the foundation has been closed entirely since 10 November 2025 for a full renovation of the building and does not reopen before autumn 2027, so there are no exhibitions and no access to the villa until then. Check its official site before planning, and once it reopens check which exhibition is on, since the foundation runs on temporary exhibitions rather than a permanent collection. The **public Hermitage park stays open** though, with its veteran trees and its view over the cathedral and the lake; it is worth passing through, and it combines well with the free Sauvabelin Tower nearby.