Villeneuve

VILLENEUVE
Situated at the eastern end of Lake Geneva, this small town is the gateway to the Rhône plain. The municipality is part of the District of Aigle, so it is supposed to belong to the Vaud Chablais, but its lakeside location gives it a Riviera atmosphere. Don't miss the flower-filled quays and the Grand-Rue (Main Street), which are well worth a visit!

GRANGETTES NATURE RESERVE
Birdwatchers often stop off at Villeneuve, as the Grangettes reserve is a resting place for migratory birds. All motorised traffic is prohibited. Every spring for the past thirty years, under the aegis of Pro Natura, teams of volunteers, aided by helicopters, have been clearing the shore of logs (over 100 tonnes in 2000), which threaten the reed beds, as well as the rubbish and other floating objects that the lake's natural currents accumulate in the Gulf of Villeneuve.

PEILZ ISLAND
This green bouquet emerges from the lake 800 m from the landing stage and is the only natural island in Lake Geneva. In spring, the tree sometimes appears snow-covered, because migrating cormorants have stopped here and their droppings whiten the foliage.

SOME HISTORY
Known as Pennelucos in Celtic times and Compangié in Roman and early medieval times, when it was much easier to transport people and goods by lake than by land, the village was an important stopover on the France-Italy route. The current name dates from around 1200, when Duke Thomas I of Savoy decided to give his Castle of Chillon a larger settlement than the few houses clinging to the lake and mountains. In 1214, the inhabitants of the "Ville Neuve de Chillon" (New Town of Chillon) received the franchises that made them free men.