In the days of stagecoaches, Saint-Cergue already welcomed travellers from Lake Geneva. Mentioned as early as 1880, La Poste belongs to this story of hospitality: a room in the village, a table and a stop from which to discover the Jura.
La Poste is in Saint-Cergue (VD), Switzerland, in the Vaud Jura near Nyon.
The story of La Poste is part of the history of the routes linking Lake Geneva to the Jura. In the 19th century, travellers came to Saint-Cergue to stay in the fresh air. The hotel offered sixteen rooms in 1880. In the 20th century, its sign brought together hotel and café-restaurant on the village square. Later, walking guides listed it as a stop on the Tour of Lake Geneva. These documents reveal its place in the region: welcoming those who explore it and enabling them to stay.
A carriage road connects Nyon to Morez via Saint-Cergue and the Col de la Givrine. Saint-Cergue lies on this route between the shores of Lake Geneva and the French Jura. The road predates the railway: it provides the setting in which travel and hospitality develop.
Source : Historical Dictionary of Switzerland, “Saint-Cergue”.
Tourism developed in Saint-Cergue in the second half of the 19th century. Families from Geneva, attracted by the setting and the fresh air recommended by doctors, stayed in the village’s small number of guesthouses.
Source : Municipality of Saint-Cergue, history of the village.
Before the railway, the mountains were reached by road in horse-drawn carriages. In Nyon, the post office on Place Bel-Air, built in 1876, is associated with stagecoach departures for Saint-Cergue and Gingins. Travellers waited beneath a canopy.
In 1880, Gsell-Fels’s guide records a daily postal connection from Nyon to Saint-Cergue. The ascent took two and a half hours and cost 2 francs 70. From Trélex, the road crossed the forest before reaching the village and its guesthouses.
Source : Bel-Air 5, history of Nyon’s former post office and its canopy ; Gsell-Fels, 1880, p. 190.
Theodor Gsell-Fels publishes Die Bäder und klimatischen Kurorte der Schweiz in Zurich, a guide to Swiss spas and climatic resorts. In the entry for Saint-Cergue, Hôtel de la Poste already appears among the recommended addresses.
« Hotel de la Poste, sehr hübsch; 16 Logirzimmer; Pension 5–6 Fr. »
“Hôtel de la Poste, very pretty; 16 rooms; board from 5 to 6 francs.” Translation from German.
In this era of road travel, La Poste was thus one of the houses offering stays in Saint-Cergue. Its rooms and board contributed to welcoming visitors to the village, alongside the other establishments listed in the guide.
Source : e-rara, ETH-Bibliothek Zürich, Rar 26942.
The Nyon–Saint-Cergue line opens on 12 July 1916. It reaches La Cure on 18 August 1917, then Morez on 7 March 1921. Travel from Lake Geneva enters a new era. The railway links the village to lowland stations and then to the French Jura: Saint-Cergue becomes part of an international route.
Source : NStCM, company history.
The Saint-Cergue archive inventory lists Hôtel de la Poste among the buildings with plans submitted for public review in 1930. The file bears reference G 203.
Source : Municipal archives of Saint-Cergue, G 203, plans submitted for public consultation, 1930.
Artist Noël Fontanet (1898–1982) creates a poster entitled St-Cergue Hôtel de la Poste. The Château de Nyon acquired it in 2023 with support from the Amis des Musées de Nyon and presented it in the exhibition Nyon en affiches.
Source : Château de Nyon, “Nyon en affiches” exhibition (2023 programme).
Photographer Leo Wehrli photographs Saint-Cergue’s triangular square looking south. On the left, the sign “Hôtel de la Poste / Café-Restaurant” can be read on the façade. It brings together the house’s two activities: lodging and dining. On the same wall, lettering also advertises ski equipment, rental and repairs. This photograph preserves traces of hospitality, dining and mountain leisure on a single façade.
Source : ETH-Bibliothek Zürich, permanent record.
In the Swiss Alpine Club magazine Les Alpes, Daniel Anker describes a walking tour of Lake Geneva in thirteen stages. At the end of the Aubonne–Saint-Cergue stage, he lists Hôtel de la Poste as accommodation. The house is thus a place to stop on an itinerary connecting the landscapes and communities around the lake.
The HotellerieSuisse La Côte section’s membership list dated 31 December 2021 records Hôtel-Restaurant de la Poste at Route de Nyon 5 in the Swiss Lodge category, with seven rooms.
Source : HotellerieSuisse, La Côte section, list dated 31 December 2021.
Nyon Région Tourisme’s presentation of La Poste links the establishment with hiking and activities in the surrounding area. The current listing notes the renovation closure; the new team’s offers will be announced before reopening.
The restaurant thus forms part of the village’s tourism offer: a meal extends an outing in the mountains. The hotel provides a place to stay and the table accompanies the excursion; together, these activities help make Saint-Cergue a place to stay as well as a day-trip destination.
Source : Nyon Région Tourisme, presentation of Hôtel-Restaurant de La Poste.
The story of hospitality at La Poste continues with a period of renovation. The hotel and restaurant are closed until the end of November 2026. The reopening date will be announced on the home page.