Science Travel

Where things are

The places on this page can be combined in one day. The campus of EPFL and the University of Lausanne lies on the m1 metro line west of the centre, and the Rolex Learning Center and the EPFL Pavilions are on the EPFL campus. The Olympic Museum is on the lakeshore at Ouchy. The background to what you will see is on From a private school to a federal campus and The tokamak that changes shape.

Rolex Learning Center

The building is open to students and the public every day from 07:00 to midnight. It is closed on 1 August and 25 December; on 24 and 31 December it closes at 18:00, and on 1 January it opens at 10:00 (status as of 3 November 2026). Inside are the EPFL library, whose collections are available to anyone interested, and a restaurant.

EPFL offers one-hour guided tours of the building in English or French. They cost CHF 100 plus VAT per guide and must be booked at least seven working days in advance. Tours are suspended from 21 December 2026 to 22 February 2027 (status as of 3 November 2026).

Guided tours of the campus

Besides the Rolex Learning Center, EPFL lists guided tours of the Archizoom architecture gallery, the Musée Bolo of computing history, the Swiss Plasma Center and the campus thermal power plant, as well as virtual tours. Conditions and booking are on EPFL’s visitor pages.

The Swiss Plasma Center generally welcomes groups of ten or more during office hours. A visit usually lasts about an hour and takes in the facilities and the TCV tokamak; it is booked with a form on the SPC’s website, where you can choose English, French, German, Italian or another language (status as of 3 November 2026).

The tour of the thermal power plant shows how EPFL is optimising its energy production and consumption on the way to carbon neutrality. It lasts one hour, is held in French or English and costs CHF 100 plus VAT per guide; it must be booked at least seven working days ahead, and in summer it depends on guides being available (status as of 3 November 2026).

EPFL Pavilions

The EPFL Pavilions, at Place Cosandey, show exhibitions where art meets science and engineering, and include the Montreux Jazz Café with audio-visual archives of the Montreux Jazz Festival. According to Lausanne Tourisme, they are open Tuesday to Sunday and closed on Mondays, and admission is free (status as of 3 November 2026). Neither Lausanne Tourisme nor EPFL’s page about the Pavilions gives daily opening times, so check the current exhibition page before you go.

The Olympic Museum

The Olympic Museum, at Quai d’Ouchy 1 by the lake, tells the story of the Games from their origins, with screens, objects and equipment of famous athletes, interactive activities for children and temporary exhibitions; its grounds are decorated with works of art. It is open Tuesday to Sunday from 09:00 to 18:00 and closed on Mondays, except on public holidays or special events, and on 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 January. Tickets cost CHF 20 for adults and CHF 14 at the reduced rate for seniors, students and people with disabilities; children up to 15 enter free with an adult (status as of 3 November 2026).

The museum is partly accessible by wheelchair and has a magnetic induction loop. Its background is on City & Region.

Getting there

From Lausanne railway station, take the m2 metro towards Croisettes to Lausanne-Flon, then the m1 towards Renens gare to the EPFL stop; the whole trip takes about 20 minutes. From Renens station, the m1 reaches EPFL in about 6 minutes. The University of Lausanne has three stops on the same line: UNIL-Chamberonne, UNIL-Mouline and UNIL-Sorge.