Swiss Highlights

Winegrowing village of the Vully · Fribourg

Praz

A winegrowing village of national heritage significance on the shore of Lake Morat, at the southern foot of the Mont Vully, in canton Fribourg.

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Translated during an AI-assisted second-pass review — not yet validated by a native-speaking editor.

Praz is a locality of the municipality of Mont-Vully, on the shore of Lake Morat, at the southern foot of the Mont Vully, in canton Fribourg, at 434 m elevation. Its old winegrowers' houses, including the patrician houses of Erlach-Velga and Wattenwyl, have earned the site a national heritage listing.

Praz belonged to the lordship of Morat until 1484, then came under the joint bailiwick of Bern and Fribourg; the village was attached to the Reformed parish of Môtier in 1530 and joined the district of Morat from 1798. From the 16th century Praz was closely tied to the neighbouring village of Chaumont — a shared school was built there in 1568 and the two localities pooled their administrations — but Chaumont has been deserted since the 19th century. In 2016 the former municipality of Bas-Vully, of which Praz was part, merged with Haut-Vully to form Mont-Vully.

The Vully grape harvest festival is held in old Praz, at the foot of the Mont Vully and its vineyards, over two days, usually on the last weekend of September. Grape-harvest celebrations existed before this format was created, less organised, around the Auberge de l'Écu; after a break of some twenty years, the Société de développement du Vully revived the festival in 1981. Its 36th edition, in 2016, drew 3,000 visitors — attendance that was declining at the time compared with previous years.

Why this place is remarkable

The Hôtel Restaurant Cave Bel-Air opened as a restaurant in 1900, added its hotel wing in 1918 and has cellared its own wines since 1945 — run by the same family since its beginnings. That continuous thread, from the lordship of Morat in the 15th century to the harvest festival revived in 1981, can still be read in the village's patrician winegrowers' houses, listed as being of national heritage significance.

What to do and see

  • Observe the village's old wine-growers' buildings, including the patrician houses of Erlach-Velga and Wattenwyl, classified of national significance.
  • Walk along the shore of Lake Morat, at the southern foot of Mont Vully and its vineyards.
  • Look for traces of the neighbouring deserted village of Chaumont, with which Praz shared a school from 1568.

As a couple

  • Stroll through old Praz, where the Vully grape-harvest festival is held, typically on the last weekend of September.
  • Admire the village's patrician wine-growers' houses, classified of national significance.
  • Walk along Lake Morat at the foot of Mont Vully, between vineyards and shore.

Location

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