Asuka N.
Yelp
It was a bit overcast and rainy during one of our days in Montreux, so we decided to pay a visit to Charlie Chaplin's former mansion grounds near Vevey and learn a little bit more about the man that I know only a little bit about from my U.S. history classes in middle school. Despite the admission price being a little on the steeper side (25 francs for an adult), I felt that it was money very well-spent. There's a lot more to Chaplin than just the slapstick, physical comedy that everyone has probably seen a clip or two of, and it was great to see the two sides of him: one represented by 'The Studio' (his filmography and career) and the other represented by the mansion where he used to live (his personal life). I won't get too much into how 'The Studio' is laid out, as I think part of the fun (and surprise) was seeing how you encounter different aspects of Chaplin's work, but it was very thoughtful, and the one takeaway I got from a lot of the factoids was that the man was very dedicated to his work, and there's a lot more to it than just Chaplin running around in an ill-fitting suit waving his cane. The mansion contains almost all photographs and biographical details about Chaplin from his life after he moved to Switzerland in the early 1950s, and it's a stark contrast to see an aging movie star who worked very little beyond a couple movies and re-scoring his old silent films simply spending time with his young kids (and his much younger wife) in the foothills above Vevey and Montreux. That said, it was fascinating to get a glimpse of the man behind the too-white makeup and the mustache. Walking around the grounds is a peaceful way to end a tour around the grounds, and one can imagine the serenity that Chaplin felt when he took in the view from his house.
There is also a cafe and a small food truck outside the museum entrance, but we did not check that out. Nonetheless, whether you are a diehard Chaplin fan, someone looking to kill time in bad weather, or simply wondering why there is a museum devoted to a Hollywood movie star from the early-mid 20th century in western Switzerland (that was me, mainly), Chaplin's World is a fantastic museum to visit for both kids and adults alike.