Visit the Swiss Stained Glass Museum in Romont
See the Vitro Musée of Glass Art in a Wall-Enclosed Medieval Town
Sep 9, 2009
The Vitro Musée, or Swiss Museum of Stained Glass and Glass Art, is the top sight in Romont. Romont is a wall-enclosed historic town in the canton Fribourg (Freiburg) not far from the more famous medieval castle town Gruyères. However, Romont sees far fewer tourists and after visiting the glass museum in the castle, visitors can enjoy the rest of the romantic old town including a historic Gothic church, town walls and bastions, as well as steep staircases and narrow alleys in relative peace and without running into endless touring bus groups.
The Vitro Musée of Stained Glass and Glass Art
The Vitro Musée Romont has a unique collection of glass art. The permanent collection has two distinct sections: the stained-glass collection housed inside the main building and a large reverse painting on glass section housed in an annex reached from the main building via a covered walkway.
The stained-glass collection has mostly European works from the early Middle Ages to the present. Around 50 works are on display ranging from religious themes to heraldic emblems and Art Nouveau windows designed for private residences.
The reverse painting on glass collection consists of well over 100 works from all over the world. Different techniques and methods are explained using actual historic works.
Visiting the Vitro Musée of Glass Art in Romont
Although the Vitro Musée is housed in the historical Chateau de Romont castle, almost the entire exhibition is accessible to wheel chair users. The court yard of the chateau and some rampart walks are freely accessible to non-paying visitors as well.
Visiting the museum is made easier and more pleasant with free guide pamphlets (available in English and several other languages) describing all the glass works on display in numerical order. Many rooms also have further information sheets with even more detailed information on the works on display and techniques used to create them.
Opening hours of the Vitro Musée Romont are from early April to early November, Tuesday to Sunday from 10 am to 1 pm and 2 to 6 pm, and from early November to early April, Thursday to Sunday from 10 am to 1 pm and 2 to 5 pm. Admission is CHF10 for adults and free for children under 16.
Being Swiss, the glass museum’s name is translated into French as the Musée Suisse du Vitrail et des Arts du Verre and in German as the Scheizerisches Museum für Glasmalerei und Glaskunst. Not surprisingly, Vitro Musée Romont is generally preferred.
Exploring the Old Town of Romont
After visiting the Vitro Musée it is worth exploring the old town of Romont on foot. Romont is not as pretty as say Gruyères but the upside is that it is also far less touristy – cafés and restaurants are not as common but also do not add a tourist surcharge.
It is worth picking up a free map from the tourist office – directly across the square in front of the castle – with suggested walking routes through the old town. Wonderful views of the Alps, including on a clear day Mt Blanc, and the surrounding countryside can be enjoyed from the ramparts (remparts). Several defense towers (tours) survived and some have small exhibitions.
Most of the buildings in the old town are not of particular historical or architectural interest but pretty nonetheless. It is worth exploring some of the narrow alleys and children will enjoy the steep flights of stairs (escaliers) that may be used as short cuts from the upper to the lower sections of the old town.
The Notre-Dame de l’Assomption Collegiate Church is an interesting thirteenth-century Gothic church. Some of the stained-glass windows here are the originals from the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.
Transportation to Romont in Fribourg, Switzerland
Getting to Romont is easy by train or car. Romont is on the main railway line connecting Lausanne with Bern and a mere half-hour journey from either city on very frequent trains. The wall-encircled old town with towers can be seen from the train station – it is an around fifteen-minute uphill stroll from the train to the castle.
Romont is also easily reached by car with plentiful free parking in town. From the Autoroute A1 use the Payerne exit and from the A12 use either the Vaulruz or Matran exit near Bulle. It is a pleasant drive from here via country lanes to Romont.
Drivers arriving from the south should consider leaving the Autoroute A9 at the Moudon exit in Lausanne and continue along Route 1 (not to be confused with Autoroute A1) to Lucens, which is around 10 km to the east of Romont. This route is not only shorter but more beautiful and especially on weekends quieter and potentially faster than using the highways.
Romont is a great day-trip destination from Lausanne, Geneva, or Bern. Romont is far less popular than nearby Gruyéres – and admittedly less beautiful too – but visitors will enjoy Romont as a non-tourist oriented town with a great stained-glass museum worth a journey.
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