Château d'Hauteville
Château d'Hauteville
A Historic Doorway to the Future
Nestled in the hills above Vevey, Switzerland, with unparalleled views of Lake Geneva and the Alps, the historic Château d'Hauteville is Pepperdine's newest international campus and a dynamic expansion of Pepperdine's global impact. One of the region's largest and most prestigious properties, the château features 58,547 square feet of living space and will be the home to more than 100 Pepperdine students, faculty, and staff each semester. The château's estate comprises approximately 90 acres (or 36.7 hectares). Of those 90 acres, 67 acres is the approximate area of the farmland on the estate. Hundred-year-old trees, picturesque pathways, vineyards, French-style formal gardens, stone-carved fountains, and woodland forests surround the grounds, providing an optimal environment for students and visitors to experience the peaceful surroundings, reflect on their academic studies, and be inspired to make a difference with their lives.
Growth and Support
For more than 60 years, Pepperdine students’ lives have been transformed by distinctive study-abroad experiences across the globe. Your support will continue to provide meaningful opportunities for emerging leaders to engage in cultural exchange and develop into globally minded citizens.
Opportunities at the Château
An Immersive Academic Experience
The beauty of the château will only be matched by the transformative academic studies and cultural immersion experiences available to the students, faculty, and staff who will reside there.
While engaging in their studies, students will also have the opportunity to participate in the estate's agricultural rhythms by planting the vegetable garden and harvesting grapes in the vineyards. Students can bake bread and pizza in the château's ancient ovens and collect bear garlic in the spring. Wine presses and the millstone, the greenhouse and the barn, and springs and fountains will take on new meaning as students spend months living and learning in this rich academic environment.
Students and residents of the château will also find opportunities to enjoy surrounding sites and attractions with ease. Across the street from the front gate is a train stop designated and named for the château. This train provides convenient access to restaurants, shopping, lake-front promenades, an international airport, and outdoor recreational activities such as hiking, camping, and skiing. Inspired by the château’s historical and cultural significance and character, students and guests will learn about the culture of Swiss Romande, the history of Vaud in the 18th century, and the French language.
World Changing Conversations
Beyond its world-class academic focus, the château will serve as a global center for Pepperdine to host conferences, retreats, and diplomatic summits and provide a platform for the convening of constructive gatherings with the greatest thinkers and leaders in the world. Its picturesque and peaceful location will enable thoughtful and world-changing conversations about issues that matter.
Graduate International Experiences
In addition to the robust undergraduate study-abroad opportunities that will come to life at the château, the new Switzerland campus will provide students of the University’s graduate schools of law, business, education, psychology, and public policy with an international setting to integrate culturally-diverse experiences into their ever-globalizing disciplines.
Facts and Features
Facts
Location
Blonay - Saint-Légier
Built
1760
Purchased
2019
Dedicated
2023
Residents
80 undergraduate students and 45 graduate students per semester on average
Living Space
58,547 sq. ft.
Property
90 acres (67 of which are farmland)
Features
Main building: classrooms, lounges, student kitchen, grand salon, library, and cellar
Exterior structures: grand cobblestone courtyard, two-story orangerie, barn, pavilion, greenhouse, gardener's house, and gatehouse
Grounds: French-style gardens, vineyards, orchards, forests, tree-lined pathways, stream, and vegetable garden
Renovations
All new utilities, student residence rooms, commercial kitchen and dining room, new roofs and windows, new information technology infrastructure, restored facades, and more
Academic Courses
French language, world civilizations, earth science, Christianity and culture, farming, plants and the environment, sociology, foreign policy, and alternative dispute resolution
Global Engagement
World-class venue for retreats, conferences, and lectures on topics of global significance
Fun Facts
The estate is designated by Switzerland as a Class 1 Historic Site.
The campus is heated by a sustainable wood chip system.
The campus will become 100% organic working farmland.
A train stop across the street from campus provides public transportation and eliminates students’ need for private vehicles.
Explore the Campus
