Château de Prangins

Château de Prangins (Prangins Castle) is an 18th century French style castle and home to one of the branches of the Swiss National Museum. Located in the municipality of Prangins of the Canton of Vaud in Switzerland, the displays in the castle focus mainly on daily life in the castle and region.

History of Château de Prangins

Château de Prangins has been a seat of power for centuries. The current building dates to 1732, and has been extensively restored and furnished in the original style.

Château de Prangins has been home famous figures ranging from barons to Joseph Bonaparte and Voltaire. From 1873 to 1920, the castle was used as a school by a Protestant monastic order. It then changed hands a number of times before being passed to the USA government in 1962. It was finally purchased by the cantonal governments of Vaud and Geneva as a Swiss National Museum.

Château de Prangins Today

A great deal of restoration work was needed to get the castle into good enough shape to be opened as a museum. The museum opened in 1998. Now restored to the peak of its grandeur, Château de Prangins offers in an insight into its past and this period of Swiss history including a permanent open-air tour of its grounds.

The museum displays a range of historical and cultural exhibits. In particular, among its permanent exhibits is a collection about Swiss life between the 18th and 20th centuries.

A romantic park and the largest historic vegetable garden in Switzerland also form a part of the Château de Prangins.

Getting to Château de Prangins

Prangins lies just a few minutes from Nyon. From the centre of Nyon, it is reachable by car in 5 minutes via Route d’Oulteret. By foot, it’s a scenic 25-30 minute walk via Chemin de Trembley or Route 1. There are also a number of buses which run from Nyon to Prangins, Sadex, from where the château is a 7 minute walk.