🧗 The 48 Climbing Rooms in French-speaking Switzerland in 2020

The new fashion

The rooms dedicated to climbing have grown significantly in French-speaking Switzerland since 2010, particularly in the Lake Geneva region. Laniac’s climbing room is the first room opened in 2005 in Bulle. The idea is to climb a track along a wall using sockets of the same color. Each route is labelled with its own level of difficulty.

The different holds in the climbing room.

The climbing disciplines

The disciplines of climbing are as follows:

1. Lead
2. Boulder
3. Speed

Among the three disciplines of climbing, two disciplines are available in the halls of French-speaking Switzerland: bouldering and lead climbing. The third discipline is speed, where two climbers climb a vertical wall at the same time and as quickly as possible. Lead climbing is practiced by a rope and the appropriate equipment with a partner or alone with a reel at a height of about 12 meters.

World speed record in 2014.

Lead type championship in 2018.

The bouldering discipline is limited to 4.5 meters but climbs without belay, padded mats cushion any fall. It is particularly popular today because it can be practiced alone and without rope. The block offers a friendly look by allowing several climbers to try to climb one track after the other while staying close to the ground and much shorter than with a wall 12 or 15 metres high.

World bouldering championship in 2016.

The climbing rooms of Western Switzerland

Climbing rooms are classified into two categories by la Torpille:

The main climbing rooms for which a full description is available. 20 rooms.
Small climbing rooms or rooms in the Jura. 28 rooms.

The main rooms listed by La Torpille have the following particularities:

Large climbing room with cloakroom and showers.
Permanent presence of a receptionist.
Rental of equipment such as shoes.
Reels in the upper rooms.

The 20 climbing halls in French-speaking Switzerland are mainly located in the canton of Vaud on the Lake Geneva area. Below, the geographical distribution by canton:

Canton of Vaud: 8
Canton of Fribourg: 4 (+1 Under construction)
Canton of Valais: 1
Canton of Geneva: 1 (+1 Under construction)
Canton of Neuchâtel: 1 (+1 Under construction)

Some climbing companies own several large halls:

Grimper.ch: 4 (+1 Under construction) managed by the Rebetez brothers.
Totem: 4
Vertic-Halle: 2
Laniac: 2

The main climbing halls are classified in two categories

Lead and Block
Block only

Lead and bouldering

Les 9 salles ci-dessous propose de la grimpe en voie et du bloc.

C+ Urban Climbing
Gecko
Laniac
Mur de grimpe de Chavornay
Rocspot
Vertic-Halle Saxon
BlocZone
Mur de grimpe de la Moubra
Villeneuve (ouverture 2020)
Le Locle (Projet avancé)
Satigny (Projet avancé)

C+ Urban Climbing

📍 Location: Colombier NE
🏗️ Construction: 2018
🧗 Climbing surface: 1’000 m²
👍 Reels: YES
🔗 C+ Urban Climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

The climbing room C+ Urban Climbing is located in Colombier in the commune of Milvignes in the canton of Neuchâtel just next to the aerodrome. It contains 5 parts:

Reception area, changing rooms, cafeteria
Lead climbing from a height of more than 10 meters
Block for toddlers
Block for children and adults
Lead climbing for children

The building housing C+ Urban Climbing.

L’intérieur de la salle de grimpe.

Gecko Climbing

📍 Location: Sottens VD
🏗️ Construction: 2008
🧗 Climbing surface: 1’000 m²
👍 Reels: YES
🔗 Gecko Escalade climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

The Sottens climbing gym is one of the oldest in French-speaking Switzerland. It is located in Sottens in the Gros-de-Vaud region between Lausanne and Yverdon. It offers large lead climbing areas, an adult block and a children’s area.

The building housing Gecko Climbing.

The inside of the climbing room.

Laniac

📍 Location: Bulle FR
🏗️ Construction: 2005
🧗 Climbing surface: 700 m²
👍 Reels: YES
🔗 Laniac climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

Built in 2005, Laniac Escalade’s climbing gym is the oldest in French-speaking Switzerland. Small compared to the other rooms, it still offers boulder and lead climbing.

Laniac’s climbing room building.

Inside the climbing room with a reel for solo climbing.

A video about Laniac’s climbing gym.

Roc’o’drome

The Chavornay climbing wall is located in the centre of the former Chavornay mills.

📍 Location: Chavornay VD
🏗️ Construction: ?
🧗 Climbing surface: 1’000 m²
👍 Reels: NO
🔗Chavornay climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

The building of Chavornay’s climbing room.

One of the climbing rooms.

A video on the Chavornay climbing wall.

Rocspot

📍 Location: Echandens VD
🏗️ Construction: 2016
🧗 Climbing surface: 2’500 m²
👍 Reels: YES
🔗 Rocspot climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

Rocspot is located west of Lausanne. The hall is one of the largest in French-speaking Switzerland with a large lead climbing area and an imposing central block. It is the only room to offer track climbing outside and is held by the same owner as BlocZone.

The Rocspot room building with the external climbing wall.

Rocspot’s central block with the high walls around it.

A video on the Rocspot Echandens climbing gym.

Vertic-Halle Saxon

📍 Location: Saxon VS
🏗️ Construction: 2012
🧗 Climbing surface: 2’300 m²
👍 Reels: YES
🔗 Vertic-Halle climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

Vertic-Halle is one of the largest climbing halls in French-speaking Switzerland and the only one in Valais. A boulder is available in summer outside.

The Vertic-Halle building.

A high wall of Vertic-Halle with a reel.

A video about the climbing gym at Vertic-Halle.

BlocZone

📍 Location: Givisiez FR
🏗️ Construction: 2011
🧗 Climbing surface: 1’500 m²
👍 Reels: YES
🔗 BlocZone climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

The Moubra climbing hall is a small climbing room located in the resort of Crans-Montana inside the tennis hall on the banks of the Moubra lake.

BlocZone’s entry in the industrial zone of Givisiez.

Bloczone’s climbing area from the cafeteria.

A video about the BlocZone room in Givisiez.

Moubra climbing room

📍 Location: Crans-Montana VS
🏗️ Construction: ?
🧗 Climbing surface: 650 m²
👍 Reels: YES
🔗 Moubra Climbing Room
🔗 Check all the details

La salle d’escalade de la Moubra est une petite salle de grimpe qui se trouve dans la station de Crans-Montana à l’intérieur de la halle de tennis au bord du lac de la Moubra.

The Moubra tennis hall.

The climbing wall in the tennis hall.

A video on the Moubra climbing hall

Villeneuve climbing centre

📍 Location: Villeneuve VD
🏗️ Construction: 2019
🧗 Climbing surface: 4’000 m²
👍 Reels: YES
🔗 Villeneuve Climbing Room
🔗 Check all the details

The Villeneuve climbing centre opened its doors in December 2019. It is the largest climbing room in French-speaking Switzerland and the only one with a speed wall. It is located inside the RocVille shopping centre.

The main area of the Villeneuve climbing room.

Le Locle climbing room

A project of the “Multiprise SA” is currently being developed …

A model of the climbing room project in Le Locle. Photo: Arcinfo.ch newspaper

Satigny climbing room

A project of the company grimper.ch is currently being developed …

A model of the climbing gym project in Satigny. Photo: ghi.ch newspaper

Bouldering rooms only

The boulder is a recent discipline of climbing. The climber ascends a wall from 4 to 5 metres high without being tied up with large mattresses on the ground to cushion a possible fall.

It is a very recent discipline and is very fashionable today because of the fact that the visitor can climb alone and its friendly side where several people can try alternately a way and thus create an emulation.

The construction and maintenance of bouldering rooms is also much cheaper since it is sufficient to have a height of 5 metres instead of about 13 metres for rooms offering lead climbing.

The 9 block rooms:

Dbloc
Le Cube
Totem Ecublens
Totem Gland
Totem Vevey
Totem Versoix
Vertic-Halle Monthey
L’Entrepôt
Fribourg (Opening in 2020)

Dbloc

📍 Location: Bulle FR
🏗️ Construction: 2009
🧗 Climbing surface: ?
🔗 Dbloc climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

Dbloc is a block room in a house in the city of Bulle. It has a traditional side and climbing walls much less impressive than the brand new block rooms but keeps a good-natured friendly side and has a climbing face on the outside.

The house of the Dbloc climbing room.

An outer block of Dbloc.

Le Cube

logo salle de grimpe du Cube à Bussigny

📍 Location: Le Mont-sur-Lausanne VD
🏗️ Construction: 2011 (Au Mont depuis 2019)
🧗 Climbing surface: 1’450 m²
🔗 Le Cube climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

Le Cube is a climbing room in an industrial building of the Lausanne suburb of Mont-sur-Lausanne. It is a room that offers the largest climbing surface dedicated to bouldering with Totem Ecublens.

The entrance of the Cube with the parking lot.

The climbing room with many central blocks.

Totem climbing Ecublens

📍 Location: Ecublens VD
🏗️ Construction: 2018
🧗 Climbing surface: 1’600 m²
🔗 Totem Ecublens climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

Totem Escalade Ecublens is the largest block room in French-speaking Switzerland. It offers a large area for children and an outdoor wall for summer.

Totem Ecublens building.

Totem Ecublens’ boulder.

Totem climbing Gland

📍 Location: Gland VD
🏗️ Construction: 2015
🧗 Climbing surface: 500 m²
🔗 Totem Gland climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

Totem Escalade Gland is located in the same building as the bowling alley in Gland. It is part of the Totem chain dedicated exclusively to the block.

The building housing Totem Gland.

Totem Gland’s boulder.

A video on in Totem Gland’s climbing room.

Totem climbing Vevey

📍 Location: Vevey VD
🏗️ Construction: 2018
🧗 Climbing surface:: 400 m²
🔗 Totem Vevey climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

Totem Escalade Gland is located in a residential building in the heart of Vevey in front of Nestlé’s headquarters. It is part of the Totem chain dedicated exclusively to the block.

Totem Vevey’s room from the outsider.

Totem Vevey’s boulder.

Totem climbing Versoix

📍 Location: Versoix GE
🏗️ Construction: 2017
🧗 Climbing surface: 500 m²
🔗 Totem Versoix climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

Totem Escalade Versoix in the canton of Geneva is located in the Migros building. It is part of the Totem chain dedicated exclusively to the block.

The Migros building containing the Totem Versoix room.

The Totem Versoix block.

A video on the Swiss bouldering championships at Totem Versoix’s climbing gym.

Vertic-Halle Monthey

📍 Location: Monthey VS
🏗️ Construction: 2019
🧗 Climbing surface: 500 m²
🔗 Vertic-Halle Monthey block room
🔗 Check all the details

The climbing room in Monthey is dedicated solely to bouldering. It belongs to the Vertic-Halle company, which already owns a room in Saxon. Vertic-Halle Monthey also offers a children’s area with trampolines and tubular structures.

The building that contains Vertic-Halle Monthey.

The block with a part of the cafeteria.

L’Entrepôt

📍 Location: Bulle FR
🏗️ Construction: 2019
🧗 Climbing surface: 1’000 m²
🔗 L’Entrepôt climbing room
🔗 Check all the details

L’Entrepôt (Warehouse) is a climbing boulder and trampoline hall in Bulle. It belongs to Laniac who already owns a climbing gym dedicated to lead in Bulle.

The block of l’Entrepôt.

Fribourg

Opening in 2020 in the city of Fribourg of a climbing gym of the company “Grimper.ch”.

The comparative table

Drag the table to the right to see all the results

	Bloczone	C+ Urban Climbing	DBloc	Fribourg	Gecko	Bulle Laniac	Le Cube	Mur de Crans-Montana	Roc'o'drome	RocSpot	Totem Ecublens	Totem Gland	Totem Versoix	Totem Vevey	Vertic-Halle Monthey	Vertic-Halle Saxon	Villeneuve
Logo								Pas de logo
Link to activity	Activity	Activity	Activity	Ouverture en 2020	Activity	Activity	Activity	Activity	Activity	Activity	Activity	Activity	Activity	Activity	Activity	Activity	Activity
Photo
Canton	Fribourg	Neuchâtel	Fribourg	Fribourg	Vaud	Fribourg	Vaud	Valais	Vaud	Vaud	Vaud	Vaud	Genève	Vaud	Valais	Valais	Vaud
Town	Givisiez	Milvignes	Bulle	Fribourg	Sottens	Bulle	Bussigny	Crans-Montana	Chavornay	Echandens	Ecublens	Gland	Versoix	Vevey	Monthey	Saxon	Villeneuve
Block	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️
Central Block	✔️	❌	❌		❌	❌	✔️	❌	❌	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	❌	✔️	❌
Lead climbing	✔️	✔️	❌	❌	✔️	✔️	❌	✔️	✔️	✔️	❌	❌	❌	❌	❌	✔️	✔️
Ropes already installed	✔️ 20	✔️	❌	❌	✔️	❌	❌	❌	✔️	✔️	❌	❌	❌	❌	❌	✔️	❌
Number of reels (self-insurers)	✔️ 6	✔️ 2	❌	❌	✔️ 4	✔️ 2	❌	✔️ 6	❌	✔️	❌	❌	❌	❌	❌	✔️	✔️ 12
Exterior Wall	✔️ en Bloc	❌	✔️	❌	❌	❌	❌	❌	❌	✔️	❌	❌	❌	❌	❌	✔️ en Bloc	✔️
Inside height	Salle: ? Bloc: 4.5	Salle: 13 Bloc: 4	Bloc: 4		Salle: 13	Salle: 12		Salle: 13.5 Bloc: 4	Salle: 13 Bloc: 4	Salle: 13 Bloc: 4.5	Bloc: 4.5	Bloc: 4.5	Bloc: 4.5	Bloc: 4.5	Bloc: 4.5	Salle: 15 Bloc: 4.5	Salle:16
Number of rooms	1	1	4		2	2	2	1	4	1	1	1	2	2	2	3	4
Floor area m2					250 Bloc:40 Voies: 210				320 Bloc: 110 Voies: 210			Env: 300	280	Env: 300			2450
Quantity of plugs										18'000				2'500 (total)			35'000
Number of tracks	300					120				450				120		150	700
Number of difficulty levels	Degrés	6	6		Degrés	Degrés	6 Couleurs	8	Degrés (difficulté) 6 couleurs (bloc)	Degrés	9 Couleurs	9 Couleurs	9 Couleurs	9 Couleurs		Degrés
Dedicated children's area	❌	✔️	✔️		✔️ bloc et mini toboggan	✔️ fermé	✔️ ouvert	✔️	❌	❌	✔️	❌	❌	✔️ fermé	✔️ ouvert	✔️ ouvert	✔️
Climbing Area (m2)	1'500	Total: 1'000	?		Total: 1'000	Total: 700	Total: 1'300	Total: 650 Bloc: 150 Mur à corde: 500	Total: 1'000 Bloc: 110 Mur à corde: 900	Total: 2'500 Outdoor: 450 Mur à corde: 1'850 Bloc: 200	Total: 1'600	Environ 500	Environ 500	Environ 400	400	Total: 2'300 Mur à corde: 1'650 Bloc: 500	4'000
Overhanging course	❌	❌	✔️		✔️	✔️	❌	✔️	✔️ petit	❌	✔️	✔️	❌	✔️	✔️	✔️ plafond	✔️
Moonboard	✔️	❌	❌		❌	✔️	✔️	❌	❌	❌	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	❌
Magnesia available	❌	✔️	❌		❌	❌	❌	✔️	❌	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	❌	❌
Training area	✔️		✔️ petite		(1 élément)	✔️	✔️	✔️ petite	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️ Séparée	✔️ Séparée	✔️	✔️
Building dedicated to climbing	❌	✔️			✔️	✔️		❌		✔️	❌	❌	❌	❌	❌	✔️	❌
Cafet Space	Moyen	Moyen	Pas de table		Grand	Petit	Moyen	✔️	Grand	Grand	Grand	Petit	Moyen	Petit	Grand	Moyen	Moyen
Catering	✔️	❌	❌		✔️	✔️	✔️	❌	✔️	✔️	✔️	❌	✔️	✔️	✔️	❌	✔️
Changing rooms	✔️	✔️	✔️ petit Pas de douche		✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️		✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️
Equipment rental	✔️	✔️	✔️		✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️	✔️
Climbing equipment sales	❌	✔️	❌		✔️	❌	❌	❌	✔️	✔️	❌	❌	❌	❌	❌	✔️	✔️
Creation	2011	2018	2009	2020	2008	2005	2011	?	?	2016	2018	2015	2017	2018	2019	2012	2019
Price adult entrance	Adulte: 22 Etudiant/AVS: 18 10-16 ans: 12 <10: 8	Adulte: 24 Etudiant/AVS: 20 12 - 16 ans: 12 Moins de 12 ans: 8	Plus de 12 ans: 10 Etudiant/AVS: 8 6 à 11 ans: 6 Moins de 6 ans: 4		Adulte: 20 Etudiant/AVS: 16 12-18 ans: 12 7-11 ans: 8 3-7 ans: 5	Adulte: 20 Etudiant/AVS: 16 12-16 ans: 12 <12: 10	Adulte: 16 Etudiant/AVS: 14 12-16 ans: 12 9-11 ans: 8 5-9: 6	Mur: Adulte/Enfant: 15/8 Bloc: Adulte/Enfant: 8/8	Mur et Bloc / Bloc Adulte: 20/10 Etudiant/AVS: 16/8 14 à 17 ans: 14/8 10 à 13 ans: 12/8 5 à 9 ans: 10/8 Moins de 5 ans: 8/8	Adulte: 26 Etudiant/AVS: 20 10-16 ans: 14 <10: 10	Adulte: 16 Etudiant/AVS: 14 12-16 ans: 12 9-11 ans: 10 5-8: 5	Adulte: 16 Etudiant/AVS: 14 12-16 ans: 12 9-11 ans: 10 5-8: 5	Adulte: 18 Etudiant/AVS: 16 12-16 ans: 14 9-11 ans: 10 5-8: 8	Adulte: 16 Etudiant/AVS: 14 12-16 ans: 12 9-11 ans: 10 5-8: 5	Adulte: 16 13-16 ans: 10 2-12 ans: 12 (avec Fun Parc)	Bloc+ enrouleurs/complet Adulte: 16/24 Etudiant/AVS: 16/19 11-16 ans: 10/13 4-10: 8/8	Adulte: 26 AVS/AI/Etudiant: 20 10 à 16 ans: 14 Moins de 10 ans: 10
Equipment Rental Prices	Chaussures: 5 Baudrier: 4 Corde: 5 Set complet: 12	Chaussures: 5 Baudrier: 5 Corde: 5 Assureur: 3 Sac à pof: 3 Set complet: 12	Chaussures: 5		Chaussures: 5 Baudrier: 3 Corde: 6 Set complet: 12	Chaussures: 5 Baudrier: 4 Corde: 4 Set complet: 10	Chaussures: Adulte/Etudiant/AVS: 5 Enfants: 2	Chaussures: 4 Baudrier: 4 Corde: 4 Assureur: 4 Set complet: 12	Chaussures: 4 Baudrier: 2 Corde: 4 Assureurs: 2	Chaussures: 5 Baudrier: 4 Corde: 4 Set complet: 12	Chaussures: Adulte: 5 Etudiant/AVS: 4 Enfants: 3	Chaussures: Adulte: 5 Etudiant/AVS: 4 Enfants: 3	Chaussures: Adulte: 5 Etudiant/AVS: 4 Enfants: 3	Chaussures: Adulte: 5 Etudiant/AVS: 4 Enfants: 3	Chaussures: 13 et +: 5 12 et -: 3	Chaussures: 5 Baudrier: 4 Corde: 6 Set complet: 13	Chaussures: 5 Baudrier: 4 Corde: 5 Set complet: 12
Remarks		Espace bloc pour les moins de 6 ans.			Montée de l'antenne en extérieur.			Salle dans la halle de tennis de la Moubra.	Salle de lecture au sous-sol.		Espace Yoga		Espace Yoga	Espace Yoga	Trampolines et strucutres tubulaires pour les enfants	Châteaux gonflables à l'extérieur en été.	A l'intérieur du centre commercial Rocville

Different coloured routes at Totem Vevey.

Rocspot with a central block.

A Moonboard at the Cube. A Moonboard is an inclined plane on which a large number of holds allow you to train on chosen difficulty paths. Each wall position is equipped with a LED that lights up to indicate the socket to be used according to the chosen channel when connecting to the Moonboard with your smartphone via Bluetooth. The word “Moonboard” is not related to the moon but comes from its inventor Ben Moon, a climber and inventor of this system.

Outdoor climbing wall at Rocspot.

Training area at Totem Versoix.

A climber on an overhanging track at Totem Gland.

Reels that make it possible to climb walls more than 10 metres high on your own in complete safety.

What is the best climbing gym in French-speaking Switzerland?

The Torpille team observed a good quality of the climbing rooms in French-speaking Switzerland. However, we are establishing here what we think are the best rooms:

The best rooms dedicated only to the Bloc: Totem Climbing Ecublens and the Cube Climbing
The best room over 10 metres high: “grimper.ch” Villeneuve

Mapping of the main climbing rooms

See the cartography of the main climbing rooms in Western Switzerland.

The 28 other climbing rooms in Western Switzerland

All the rooms listed below are not detailed by La Torpille for one of the three following reasons:

They are located in the canton of Jura.
They are not directly open to the public.
They are very small.

Rooms in the canton of Jura

The canton of Jura offers a high density of climbing halls:

Blockstock Hobee – Bressaucourt
Salle des Tilleuls – Porrentruy
Salle d’escalade Dévers Hobee – Mettembert
BlocUP – Delémont
Mur d’escalade l’Usine de Phil. (closed in 2019) – Rossemaison
Kasablok – Saignelégier

La Torpille does not visit attractions in Canton Jura for geographical reasons.

Blockstock Hobee – Bressaucourt

Photo: hobee.ch

Salle des Tilleuls – Porrentruy

Photo: porrentruy.ch

Salle d’escalade Dévers Hobee – Mettembert
BlocUP – Delémont

Photo: grimpebloc.ch

Mur d’escalade l’Usine de Phil. (fermée en 2019) – Rossemaison
Kasablok – Saignelégier

Photo: hobee.ch

Rooms that are not freely accessible

The following rooms are accessible by being a member of a club or association. Access to the room is usually done with a magnetic card.

Asen – Neuchâtel NE – Block
Antecimes – Collonge-Bellerive GE – Wall
Structure Pan d’Escalade Vernier GE – Block
Objectif Vertical – Les Acacias GE – Wall and block
Pan de Vevey – Vevey VD – Block
Sport-Escalade (salle fermée en 2019) – Saint-Légier VD – Wall
Le Dzai Château-d’Oex VD – Wall
Mur de grimpe de l’Abbaye VD
Venga Bloc La Sarraz VD – Block
Salle de Bloc de la Forclaz VD – Block
Palladium – Champéry VS – Wall
La Parey Finhaut VS – Block
Salle d’escalade de Salvan VS – Wall
Salle d’escalade de Martigny VS – Wall
Fully Grimpe VS – Block
Salle Ôtaké Grimentz VS – Wall and block
Salle omnisport de Verbier VS – Wall and block
Porte de Morat – Fribourg – Wall and block

Asen – Neuchâtel NE – Block

Photo: facebook asen

Antecimes – Collonge-Bellerive GE – Wall

Photo: livingingeneva.wordpress.com

Structure Pan d’Escalade Vernier GE – Bloc

Photo: panstructure.ch

Objectif Vertical – Les Acacias GE – Mur et Bloc

Photo: objectifvertical.ch

Pan de Vevey – Vevey VD – Bloc

Photo: lepandevevey.org

Sport-Escalade (salle fermée en 2019) – Saint-Légier VD – Mur

Photo: sportescalade.com

Le Dzai Château-d’Oex VD – Mur

Photo: region-du-leman.ch

Mur de grimpe de l’Abbaye VD
Venga Bloc La Sarraz VD – Bloc

Photo: vengabloc.ch

Salle de Bloc de la Forclaz VD – Bloc

Photo: aigle-leysin-lesmosses.ch

Palladium – Champéry VS – Mur

Photo: palladiumdechampery.ch

La Parey Finhaut VS – Bloc

Photo: la-parey.ch

Salle d’escalade de Salvan VS – Mur

Photo: valleedutrient.ch

Salle d’escalade de Martigny VS – Mur

Photo: fr.tripadvisor.ch

Salle de Fully VS – Bloc

Photo: fullygrimpe.ch

Salle Ôtaké Grimentz VS – Mur et Bloc

Photo: montagneclubanniviers.blogspot.com

Salle omnisport de Verbier VS – Mur et Bloc

Photo: verbier.ch

Porte de Morat – Fribourg – Mur et Bloc

Small rooms

The following rooms are publicly accessible. They are smaller than the 20 main halls in French-speaking Switzerland and are associated with sports centres.

Poub’Bloc – Centre sportif Villars VD – Bloc (5 francs for entry, no shoes at disposal)
Horizon’t’halle – Les Diablerets VD – Bloc (9 francs for entry, no shoes at disposal)
Mur d’escalade – Centre sportif Couvey NE – Mur (6/3 francs adult/child entrance, equipment rental)
Centre Sportif de la Piscine – Leysin VD – Mur (9 francs for entry, no shoes at disposal)

Poub’Bloc – Centre sportif Villars VD – Block

Photo: region-du-leman-ch

Horizon’t’halle – Les Diablerets VD – Block

Photo: villars-diablerets.ch

Mur d’escalade – Centre sportif Couvet NE – Wall

Photo: centresportif-vdt.ch

Centre Sportif de la Piscine – Leysin VD – Wall

Photo: aigle-leysin-lesmosses.ch

The Swiss climbing champions

Several Swiss have distinguished themselves since the creation of the World Climbing Championships in the early 1990s. In the men’s category, the Jura rider Cédric Lachat (2007 and 2012) and the Geneva rider Elie Chevieux (1995) are both bronze medallists and in the women’s category Susi Good (1991 and 1993) and the Zurich rider Petra Klinger (2016) are world champions.

Cédric Lachat climbing a 9a in 2012.

Petra Klinger 2016 World Champion.

Susi Good, 1991 world champion.

The French champions

At the international level, two Frenchmen have left their mark with Patrick Edlinger, who introduced climbing to the general public in the 1980s, and Alain Robert, who specializes in climbing unassisted buildings. Born in the early 1960s, both suffered a very serious escalation accident.

Edlinger fell 18 metres in 1995 in the creeks of Marseille and suffered a cardiac arrest. Rescued by a doctor on site, he survived with only a few muscle tears. Unfortunately, he died in 2012 from an accidental fall down a staircase.

Patrick Edlinger shortly before his death in 2012.

As for Robert, in September 1982, he made a terrible 15-metre fall head first on the rock following the breakage of the rope he had been given to rappel down. He suffered multiple fractures and a coma that left him handicapped in some joints and 66% disabled.

Alain Robert even survived another fall the following year in 1983, which also led to a coma. Nevertheless, this does not prevent him from becoming famous by climbing emblematic buildings all over the world without a security system, such as the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the Sidney Opera House, the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, the Burj Khalifa Tower in Dubai or the Empire State Building in New York.

Alain Robert in 2018 with a belay system.

Video coverage of Alain Robert, the spider man.

The Olympic Games

Climbing, with about 35 million fans worldwide, will logically become part of the Olympic Games in 2020 in Tokyo. Only one medal will be awarded in the men’s and women’s categories in the form of a combination of the performances of the three disciplines of climbing.

Videos on climbing

Video reportage with Mathilde Becerra, a professional French climber.

A video of the first ascent of a 9c, an exceptionally high level of climbing. The challenge is being carried out by Adam Ondra, a Czech climber born in 1993 on a track in Norway.

Questions

The questions concern the 20 main rooms in French-speaking Switzerland.

Which climbing rooms offer bouldering?

All climbing rooms in French-speaking Switzerland offer bouldering.

What are the free rooms in French-speaking Switzerland?

None, all climbing rooms in French-speaking Switzerland are fee-based.

What is the largest block in French-speaking Switzerland?

Totem Ecublens climbing room offers the largest climbing surface in French-speaking Switzerland.

What are the rooms where you can rent climbing equipment such as slippers or harnesses?

All climbing halls in French-speaking Switzerland offer equipment for rent.

What is the oldest room in French-speaking Switzerland?

The Laniac room in Bulle, created in 2005, is the oldest in French-speaking Switzerland.

What is the only city with two climbing rooms?

Bulle is the only city that offers two climbing rooms.

What are the climbing rooms around Lausanne?

Rocspot Echandens
Le Cube Mont-sur-Lausanne
Totem Ecublens

What is the minimum age for climbing?

There is no minimum age for climbing.

Is it possible to do lead climbing alone?

Yes, all the climbing halls in French-speaking Switzerland, with the exception of the Chavornay wall, offer reels that allow you to climb alone.

🧗 The 48 Climbing Rooms of Western Switzerland in 2020