Top wellness hotel with 2 Michelin starred restaurants in spa town:

Near to normal hotel vacations are possible in Switzerland right now. And this despite the “extraordinary situation” still in place due to Corona. Thus, my husband and I booked our first short vacation in our home country since the pandemic broke out. We opted for one of Switzerland’s hotel jewels, the luxury Grand Hotel Quellenhof in a well-known spa town in the eastern part of Switzerland. After an extensive renovation this luxury hotel offers not only state-of-the facilities but improved its status as a foodie destination even more. There are now two Michelin starred restaurants – with two stars each – at your disposal! And the area around Bad Ragaz at the foothill of the Alps is perfect to go on a walk/hike or two.

Hotel stays in Switzerland in these Corona times

From mid March to mid June hotel stays were only possible for Swiss residents or people coming here for specific work reasons. This changed on June 15 when the country reopened its borders for all EU/EFTA travelers.

My first hotel stay in Corona times took place mid/end of May when the pandemic was already slowing down. While spending a night at a-hotel felt a bit awkward for me at the time, it was a a better experience on my recent short vacation. Although it was not “business as usual”, vacationing appeared much more as an ordinary thing to do than before. There were still some restrictions, with social distancing and hygiene measures still in place, yet more options for travelers, also when leaving the hotel. You could make good use of everything what vacation makes so precious: visits to restaurants and spa or riding mountain trains.

Except from dining out this was not possible on the occasion of my first night out in the Zurich area mid/end of May!

About Grand Hotel Quellenhof

The town of Bad Ragaz became a health resort due to the thermal waters coming from the Tamina Gorge.

Thanks to the healing power of the warm water (37-degree Celcius/100-degree Fahrenheit) the spa tourism in Ragaz started already in the 1700’s. Along with this, the luxury hotel industry established. The Grand Hotel Quellenhof opened its doors in 1869. And exactly 150 years later a complete renewal of the premises took place.

After a five-month renovation costing 45 million SFR/US$ the luxury hotel reopened in July 2019, complete with an air conditioning and new restaurants. The result is impressive. When entering the lobby area, your eyes first fall on the huge chandelier in the hotel’s staircase.

It is 16 m/52 ft high and consists of 2,500 blue and white glass bowls, quite a sight! On the ground floor, there is also an immense walk-in wine cellar that can hold 4,000 bottles. Furthermore, you find on this level the health and lifestyle restaurant Verve by Sven

with a “living wall” (live plants).

The hotel belongs to Thomas Schmidheiny, an immensely rich Swiss industrialist. His family has had connections to Grand Hotel Quellenhof for almost 100 years. Already the fourth generation (daughter Lisa) is actively involved into the hotel business.

Location

The USP (unique selling proposition) of Grand Hotel Quellenhof amongst comparable luxury hotels in Switzerland are the benefits stemming from the mentioned thermal water. This health advantage is – to my knowledge – unique in the upscale hotel segment in my home country.

On the other hand, Bad Ragaz is certainly not the ultimately sexy place imaginable. Despite its long tradition as a health spa it remained a fairly average Swiss town. There are some nice spots in town,

yet it is not really a mundane place. Maybe it is a good chance to experience typical Swiss everyday life!

However, Bad Ragaz’ surroundings are worth a trip. The town is nestled among the foothills of the Alps in eastern Switzerland.

It is part of the so-called Heidiland, a vacation region stretching from Lake Walen to the town of Chur. Bad Ragaz’ home mountain, Pizol, is a ski region in winter and a hiking paradise in summer. You can reach the health resort from Zurich city in about an hour’s drive. By train you get here in about one hour and 15 minutes (to Bad Ragaz Station). In three more minutes by car (they pick you up here) you arrive at the hotel.

Facilities

I have had my shares of luxury hotel stays in Switzerland. And while they offered quite a choice of things to do and restaurants to dine, I have rarely encountered such a wealth of facilities (maybe with the exception of Buergenstock Resort, see here my post).

As to spa/water activities, you are spoilt for choice. There is everything you can think of in terms of bathing and healing. Opt for the historic Helena Bath,

the Tamina Therme (open to the public yet free for hotel guests), the Family Spa, the indoor or outdoor lap pool, the sauna area or the Kneipp bath. On site you also find a medical health center and a clinic.

Apart from the thermal water world, there is much more to do at the hotel: a fitness center, three golf courses (from mini golf to 18-hole championship courses), a casino or a shopping alley. If you are here for business or a party, there is a meetings and events center, too.

Restaurants and bars are plentiful. There are eight eateries and four bars. In total, the restaurants are awarded four Michelin stars and 48 Gault Millau points.

As to lodging, you can choose among several options. Either go for one of the five-star establishments Grand Hotel Quellenhof,

Grand Hotel Hof Ragaz and the Spa suites or decide on the small but exquisite four-star boutique hotel Palais Bad Ragaz.

Rooms

There are about 250 rooms in total. While lodging at Palais Bad Ragaz must be booked separately (member of Relais & Chateaux), you find all the other accommodations available at the home page of Grand Resort Bad Ragaz (member of The Leading Hotels of the World). Here you can select from different room types at three places: Grand Hotel Quellenhof (elegant, contemporary), Grand Hotel Hof Ragaz (classy, traditional) or Spa Suites (modern, purist).

My husband and I decided on a Junior Suite Deluxe at Grand Hotel Quellenhof as rooms at this part appealed most to me in terms of style. And as a plus, they underwent a complete renewal in the first half of 2019. Compared to the slightly less expensive Junior Suites, the Deluxe Junior Suites are on the second to fourth floor and you can choose whether you want carpet or walnut parquet flooring.

And the Junior Suite Deluxe certainly did not disappoint! Ours was on the top floor with a nice view from the good-sized balcony.

And it was a gorgeously elegant room! It proved not only ample space (50 sqm), but it was also tastefully decorated with exquisite fabrics and furnishings. I find the color play utterly enchanting – beige and grey shades with touches of dark purple – in combination with wood. Air conditioning is great – efficient, silent and invisible.

When entering the spacious bathroom, your eye is immediately drawn to the huge wall picture showing the Tamina Gorge.

And it is a beauty too! The bathroom embraces contemporary style in design, just as the room. It is clad in marble and granite with both a large bath and a shower complete with two separate sinks.

Pricing (rooms with breakfast)

Here I have to point out that I stayed at Quellenhof in Corona times (beginning/mid June), meaning guests were almost exclusively Swiss residents with borders still being closed. As a result of a lower occupancy than usual, rates were (supposedly) more affordable.

As to rooms at Palais Bad Ragaz, you can book them (in the months to come) from 580 SFR/US$. With regard to accommodation at Grand Resor Bad Ragaz, the least expensive choice is Hof Ragaz starting with (official) rates as from 500 SFR/US$. Stiff prices are for sure in case you opt for the SPA Suites. But of course, they also offer more space (from 1,020 SFR for 60 sqm on their home page

As mentioned, my husband and I went for an accommodation at Quellenhof. Illogical enough, rates here start at 890 SFR/US$, for both Junior Suite and Junior Suite Deluxe. That being said, the dynamic pricing approach is apparently in use here. That means “cheaper” rates if the demand is low, more expensive if it is high. While we had to fork out quite some cash on our first night (990 SFR/US$), the following two ones did not come with this hefty price tag (820 SFR/US$). My best advice is to be flexible when seeking to stay at Grand Resort Bad Ragaz. Go for it when rates are not too steep!

Food (Michelin fine dining)

I already let you know that the hotel is ideal if you look for lodging with foodie heaven at the same time. While there are two restaurants onsite with two Michelin stars each (Igniv by Andreas Caminada and Memories), there are also others offering “more normal food”.

Out of the eight dining-spots on site we picked out a “gourmet temple” and one of the lesser ambitious ones. On our first night we visited Memories, the signature restaurant of Sven Wassmer.

The last night we opted for Namun, an upscale Asian place.

Yet we also explored the restaurant scene outside the hotel and went to two more places. Learn everything about our food experiences in my separate posts to follow. One will be about dining-out in Bad Ragaz in general. The other will illustrate our evening with one of the most promising young chefs in Switzerland’s culinary scene, Sven Wassmer, at his place Memories.

Staff

In short, my husband and I had a great time here. Generally, we felt pampered throughout our stay. The service was in the main of a high standard, with the staff being gracious, attentive and hospitable. But unfortunately, we encountered an underwhelming welcome process.

While we considered the service from bellboys as good, that is not true for the reception – although they were always friendly. We checked in before 3pm and our room was not yet ready. That was no problem for us of course! We told the young male employee at the desk that we would be back. When doing so a few hours later, the young female at the reception handed over the key and pointed towards the escalator. Yes, that was it! She offered no information about the hotel facilities, did not usher us to the room and even “withheld” our voucher for the welcome drink. We claimed the latter after going through the reservation details in our room …

Otherwise, we had the impression that the staff was up to its task. Bar service was a bit slow at times, but that was rather due to the process than the employees’ skills … I think that the staff generally tried hard to do its best. But of course, we stayed here at Corona times where the circumstances might be challenging at turns. Yet I would suggest that the management looks into the check-in process …

Ambiance

Some words to the atmosphere I encountered at the hotel. The recent renovation work at Quellenhof Bad Ragaz is a success! I fell immediately in love with all the beautiful things in the public spaces just as the stairwell with the magical chandelier or the glass wine cellar in the lobby. I also liked the hotel bar here,

integrated in Restaurant Verve yet unfortunately not in use because of Corona. And I was deeply impressed by the interior and the layout at Restaurant Memories, which I consider unique in Switzerland.

Last but least, I was positively surprised to witness a mostly pleasant clientele at Grand Resort Bad Ragaz. My husband had some fears that there would be a high proportion of guests typical for a medical resort. But he was wrong, there was a healthy mix of younger and older people. I also discovered quite many couples who dressed up for the occasion. I did appreciate because it added to the ambiance. Unfortunately, it has become more seldom in the recent past …

Things to do

There is much to do at the hotel – I already mentioned it under facilities – yet there are also many worthwhile activities in the area. I already gave some hints in the location section. Find more about things to do in Bad Ragaz’ surroundings in my separate post where I go into three walks/hikes in some detail.

Overall

Grand Resort Bad Ragaz is without any doubt one of the leading luxury hotels in Switzerland. While it has long been a flagship of Europe’s wellbeing and health resorts, it belongs – after the recent overhaul – to the finest hotels in my home country. It is a major player as well when it comes to luxury hospitality in combination with superlative gastronomy (four Michelin stars and 48 Gault-Millau points).

In a choice of the three hotel parts, I would opt for Grand Hotel Quellenhof Bad Ragaz – if you are into timeless elegance. This is also the place that was completely remodeled on the latest renovation works.

As to foodie restaurants, both Igniv and Memories (two Michelin starred each) are highly recommended picks. Be advised that the more established restaurant Igniv is very popular and needs some planning ahead. However, reservations at the latter however might be available at short notice, at least for the time being (opened not a mere year ago). My restaurant review of Memories follows in the time to come. For more information about where to eat/dine at Grand Resort Bad Ragaz and in the area, have a look at my post in question, to follow.

And last but not least, if you like walking and hiking, consider viewing my post about it. Bad Ragaz at the foothills of the Alps and on the doorstep to Buendner Herrschaft, a wine region,

is ideal for this kind of activity.

Date of stay: June 2020

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