Montreux is a resort town on the Lake Geneva Riviera in Switzerland, known for its lakeside promenade, jazz festival and mild microclimate, and it is worth clarifying up front that the "ZJP" code sometimes associated with Montreux refers to its railway station, not an airport, so there is no on-site air gateway or airport rental desk here. Most visitors instead fly into Geneva Airport, roughly an hour west along the lake, where a wide range of international and local rental companies operate, and the drive from there follows the lakeshore motorway most of the way to Montreux.
Once in Montreux, a car opens up the surrounding Vaud countryside: the vineyard terraces of Lavaux, a UNESCO-listed stretch of steep lakeside slopes, lie just west of town along a scenic but narrow road, while the mountain resort of Gstaad is roughly an hour southeast through winding valley roads. Heading further along the lake, Lausanne is about forty-five minutes northwest via the A9 motorway, and the French border and Chamonix in the French Alps are a couple of hours away for those extending the trip.
Driving is on the right throughout Switzerland, and a key practical point for any rental here is the vignette: Swiss motorways require an annual sticker, sold at borders, gas stations and often included with the rental itself, so it is worth confirming with the rental company whether the vignette is already fitted before setting off on the A9 or other Swiss autoroutes. Winters bring genuine snow to the surrounding hills and mountain passes, so winter tires are common practice on rental fleets serving this region between roughly November and April. Roads in and around Montreux itself are narrow in places, climbing steeply from the lakeshore into the vineyard terraces above, rewarding a smaller car and an unhurried pace on the tightest turns.