42nd International Hot Air Balloon Festival of Château-d’Oex

The international hot air balloon festival has returned to Château-d’Oex for the 42^nd time with its unique experience in the Swiss Alps. This year the theme of the festival is “Adventure, Science and Freedom” with the Swiss tennis player, Timea Bacsinszky, as godmother. The theme celebrates the discovery of cosmic radiation through various public lectures on the subject and exciting entertainment activities for children.

From 25^th of January to the 2^nd of February 2020, a total of nine days, the world capital of hot-air ballooning proudly presents 60 pilots from different nationalities as it estimates to welcome 30,000 spectators this year. With assistance from scientists at CERN, the event is set to come alive by unraveling the mysteries of universe with the most scintillating programmes on weekends.

Video Source: La Télé Vaud-Fribourg, from 2016 Château-d’Oex festival Press Gallery 

To reach Château-d’Oex by train, the MOB and the TPF (transports publics fribourgeois) offer you regular timetables and a speedy, comfortable journey. The MOB railway line runs from Montreux to Zweisimmen via Château-d’Oex and Gstaad and offers magnificent panoramas of the Alps and Lake Geneva.

The MOB junctions are at:

• Montreux for the CFF-SBB line Geneva-LausanneMontreux-Sion-Milan (Lausanne is the junction for most Swiss cities)

• Zweisimmen for the BLS line Spiez-Bern-Interlaken-Lötschberg

• Montbovon for Bulle with the TPF

New: during the weekends, direct train line S51 from Bulle to Château-d’Oex. Departures to Montreux may be 10 minutes earlier.

By road, you can reach:

• Via Bulle: Motorway N12 (Lausanne-Bern) exit Bulle, follow Château-d’Oex-Gstaad (B-road)
• Via the Col des Mosses: Motorway N9 (Lausanne-Martigny) exit Aigle, follow Col des Mosses then Château-d’Oex
• Via the Simmental: Motorway N6 (Bern-Thun) exit Spiez, follow Zweisimmen, then Saanen-Gstaad then Château-d’Oex.

• Balloon festival
• CERN
• Château-d’Oex
• Festival
• Hot air balloon