Chablais valaisan

The Simplon line brings you from Lausanne to Saint-Maurice in just under an hour, then carries on to Martigny and Sion. From Saint-Maurice, the regional Tonkin line serves Monthey, Vouvry, Le Bouveret and Saint-Gingolph, which covers the whole lakeshore without a car. By road, you leave the A9 motorway at Bex, Aigle or Villeneuve depending on where you are heading.

Good to know: in summer, CGN boats call at Le Bouveret from Lausanne and Vevey. The crossing becomes the main event of the day, and coming back by train via Saint-Maurice saves doing the same trip twice.

The Rive Bleue beach in Le Bouveret has flat grass and a very gradual entry into the water, which solves a lot of problems before age three. The Bâtiaz beach in Saint-Gingolph is smaller and better sheltered when the afternoon wind picks up. The Vièze gorges in Monthey work with a baby carrier rather than a pushchair: the tunnel and the suspended walkway land best from four or five years old.

The Plaza cinema in Monthey is the region's main family screen, right in the centre and a short walk from the bus stops. The abbey of Saint-Maurice is visited entirely under cover. The Grotte aux Fées just above town stays the same temperature whatever the sky is doing, and ends at an underground waterfall that children remember for years. The Monthey pool, meanwhile, can wait for the sun.