The Château de Lucens hosts seminars, conferences and receptions for about 160 people and weddings for up to 180 guests, with 29 bedrooms on the estate. The castle stands on a hill above the old town of Lucens, in the canton of Vaud, looking over the Broye valley, about 20 minutes from Lausanne.
Seminars and company events
The castle sells seminars, business meetings, conferences, product launches, networking events and professional receptions. Around 500 square meters of indoor and outdoor space are divided into more than five settings, from vaulted halls to the courtyard and the gardens, so a working session, a lunch and an evening reception can each have their own space. Corporate guests can stay at the Ferme du Château, the converted farm on the estate, which keeps a two-day program on one site.
The castle also lists activities that can be added to a program: an aperitif, a cooking session with a chef, wine tasting, yoga, regional excursions and a guided tour of the castle.
Weddings and receptions
For a wedding, the whole castle, its courtyard and its gardens are reserved for one party. The vin d'honneur and the banquet take up to 180 guests. The château is approved for civil marriages and also hosts religious and secular ceremonies, and it appears on the canton of Vaud's list of exceptional wedding venues. Civil ceremonies take place in the Salle de Justice. The chapel on the estate seats up to 120 and has a handmade organ. A dance party, a tasting or a tour of the castle can be added, and overnight guests have breakfast on site the next morning. The team replies to enquiries within 24 hours and arranges private visits.
Rooms and capacities
The castle gives about 160 people as its figure for corporate events and 180 for a wedding banquet. Named spaces include the Salle de Justice, the Salon italien, the vaulted halls, the main courtyard and the gardens. The chapel seats 120. Parking covers about 50 cars in a garden car park, plus 40 spaces at the castle itself.
Accommodation
There are 29 bedrooms on the estate. A hotel of 21 modern double rooms can be booked as a whole, and an annex holds 8 rooms with historic character. Both are in converted outbuildings, including the Ferme du Château.
Catering
The castle works with a list of partner providers for food and drink, and wedding menus are drawn up for each event. Ask the team which caterers are available for a seminar day.
History and setting
A first fortification stood on this hill around 1200. In the Middle Ages the castle was a residence of the bishops of Lausanne, who governed their lands from it. It was damaged during the Burgundian Wars in 1476, then renovated between the 16th and 18th centuries. Episcopal rule ended with the Helvetic Revolution of 1798. In 1965 Adrien Conan Doyle turned the castle into a place devoted to his father's detective, Sherlock Holmes. The building has two parts, the Gothic castle and the Bernese castle, and it is a Swiss cultural property of national significance.
Getting there
The address is Chemin du Pont-Levis, 1522 Lucens. Lausanne is about 20 minutes away, and Geneva and Bern about one hour each. Lucens has a railway station on the line through the Broye valley.
