This is where the monks' Father Superior, the Prior, received prestigious and passing guests who set out on the long Saint James pilgrimage route. This kings' residence, erected in the 13th C., has been able to preserve its treasures, among which are rooms decorated with mural paintings from the Middle Ages. The owners of the premises, Katharina von Arx and her late husband, contributed generously towards this miracle. These two enthusiasts fell in love with Romainmôtier in 1960, bought the castle, then in ruins, and renovated it gradually, which proved challenging at times. Today, they have started receiving visitors again. They offer a very cosy tearoom, dormitory beds set up in the attic, and events ranging from musical brunches to « Murder Mystery » evenings.

Information and contact: http://www.eventsetsaveurs.ch/51
Access map and practical information: www.eventsetsaveurs.ch/220
Visits (guided only) through the three rooms

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Romainmôtier in the Nozon Valley
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Photo: CCA

If there's a place that has escaped the passage of time, it's surely the village of Romainmôtier. Picturesque houses that almost all have a story to tell, artisans at work in their boutique-workshops, sober and grandiose buildings around the abbey. Also, at the town's entrance, do not miss the Clock Tower, an ancient 14th C. door along the surrounding wall and the 18th C. Maison de la Dîme built to store the wheat that was deducted as tax, and which today supports an exhibition on the abbey.

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Romainmôtier: locate

Photo: CCA

Nestled in the small valley of Nozon, close to Orbe, the little town of Romainmôtier has put up towers and ramparts around its thousand-year-old abbey. A jewel to be discovered at the exit of a magnificent boxwood and oak forest.

From La Sarraz or Ferreyres, follow the Nozon Valley, along the beautiful Nozon River. The little stream winds its way past fountains, gardens and coppice forests, before digging deep gorges in the limestone cliffs and finally breaking into an impressive waterfall. A walk across moss and ferns, marked by mills and « ferrières » (iron mines), which is a reminder that this region has a rich industrial past.

The route and other interesting things to discover:

Although everything here has a breath of serenity to it, the Romainmôtier story has new developments. This little town owes its creation - in 452 - to Saint Romain and Saint Lupicin, who came from Franche-Comté in order to found a monastery. The abbots and priors ran the establishment for four centuries before the monastery was controlled by the Cluny Abbey in the 10th C. The church's present shape is the result of six centuries of shared history with the Grand Burgundian Congregation. It influenced the Lombardic arcading, the majestic fore-nave and the 14th C. Gothic choir.

To celebrate its first millennium, this scale-model of Cluny underwent a complete make-over before the year 2000. The renovation still maintained a sense of simplicity and left the rough stone untouched, instead of trying to recreate a style based on rather incomplete historical sources. This intervention successfully highlights the red shades against the white Jura limestone, evidence of the presence of iron in this region. And within the church, there's an astonishing variety of colours on the vaults.

To see in the Church: