Which Swiss accommodation to choose for staying in style:

Recently on my blog you found a guide to visiting Switzerland and a list of premium Swiss destinations. Now I would like to inform you where to go in my home country for luxury hotels. I will do this along the grand tour of Switzerland proposed in my recent blogpost.

For details on how to visit Switzerland (grand tour, divided into a basic tour and 5 modular ones to add according to desire), please have a look at my correspondent blogpost.

Now to high-end accommodation in my home country. While I know many fine hotels from personal experience, of course I have not been to all the lodging that follows. But I am going to let you know where I already stayed. And I will either refer to a separate post or share with you my experiences made before starting my blog. Finally, it goes without saying that I have often also an image of a property in my mind without having actually been there.

One more remark to the hotels that follow. I will always start with my personal favorite and then continue with a priority list. That means the hotel last mentioned is my least preferred. Sometimes, I will give you a reason, other times I will not (in case I have just some kind of feeling).

All the accommodations mentioned are 5-star properties (luxury). If this should not be the case, I will inform you accordingly. Most probably it will then be a 4-star hotel instead (first-class).

If you care for a hotel guide with the best hotels in Switzerland by category, I have a tip for you. Karl Wild publishes every year a new edition of the top 100 Swiss hotels. While this book is an excellent source of information, it is unfortunately only available in German.

Basic tour No 1b: Lucerne-Interlaken – luxury hotels in Switzerland’s core

Lake Lucerne region

Here you have to make a choice whether you want to stay in the town of Lucerne or somewhere around the lake. If you are rushed, I would opt for Lucerne. If you have more time, then it is a nice thing to have an accommodation in the country side.

Lucerne

So far I have not stayed at 5-star hotels in the town of Lucerne. The newest high-end lodging in town is  Mandarin Oriental Palace.

An alternative to the before mentioned one is the Schweizerhof.

This hotel offers renovated facilities along a small spa and a quality restaurant. Grand Hotel National

might also be an option featuring gourmet dining, a swimming pool and some wellness offerings.

As to 4-star establishments in Lucerne, I already did a staycation at Art Deco Hotel Montana, a 4-star superior property, in the recent past.

And I was delighted with the offered (great views, relaxed ambiance, good restaurant). Here is my review. And in the meantime, they also did some more renovation works.

Around Lake Lucerne

There is a handful of recommended places to go for a luxury stay. All of them are historic hotels (at least in the core). First, there is Vitznauerhof in Vitznau (4-star property).

I already was a guest here three times and liked its relaxed atmosphere. Find a correspondent post on my blog here. Also a good choice is the nearby Park Hotel Vitznau (my blogpost).

Whereas it is a winner in many respects (fabulous fine dining, perfect wellness, ultra-luxury rooms), I found the ambiance a bit stiff and the prices exorbitant.

The Buergenstock Resort (my blogpost)

is another recommended option. It is huge, the selection in terms of accommodations and restaurants (for lovers of fine dining) is impressive and the wellness facilities are state-of-the-art. Plus, it is situated on the mountain, you can reach it from Lucerne by shuttle boat and funicular. I stayed here a few months after reopening and found it expensive at the time. In the meantime, rates have shot up even more.

There is one more hotel in the area geared to luxury travel, Villa Honegg in Ennetbuergen.

I have not been here yet. It is situated in the immediate vicinity of the Buergenstock Resort and is boutique-sized. Onsite you find a great outdoor pool offering fantastic views along fine wellness facilities and a quality restaurant.

You can get to all the mentioned hotels from Lucerne in due time. Vitznauerhof is the easiest to reach (by shuttle boat and by foot in about half an hour).

Interlaken

This gateway to the Bernese Alps makes it easy for demanding travelers. You encounter here only one hotel that is truly luxurious, Victoria-Jungfrau. While my stay at this old-world property was a few years ago, the situation is still the same. It remains one of Switzerland’s landmark hotels with a management having their fingers on the pulse of the time. From the room decor to the culinary offer and the wellness, everything is first-rate. The only thing I did not like when staying here was the noise from the busy road in front of the hotel.

Modular tour No 1: Basel-Solothurn-Bern – luxury hotels in Switzerland’s northwest

Basel

Your best choice as a luxury traveler in Basel is by no doubt Grand Hotel Les Trois Rois.

It is one of Europe’s oldest city accommodations and a true hotel jewel. It leaves nothing to be desired as to furnishings and culinary delights (three-star Michelin restaurant). In case you value extensive wellness facilities, this might be not your first pick.

If you fancy a new, modern 4-star hotel, then the Moevenpick Hotel Basel

might be your choice. While I have not spent the night here, I had lunch at its fine dining restaurant Puro. And of course, I had a look around in here.

Solothurn

As this is a rather small place (the most beautiful Baroque town in Switzerland) and not exactly in the middle of a tourist area, there is no 5-star hotel. Notwithstanding that, is has some good lodging. Although I do not know it from personal experience, I recommend staying at the newly renovated historic La Couronne.

It features nicely appointed rooms and a quality restaurant.

Bern

I never had the chance to spend a night in Bern so far.

Having said that I know the bars and restaurants of the two hotels I am going to propose to you. The Bellevue Palace is certainly the capital’s flagship hotel with a gourmet restaurant and a fitness room complete with sauna.

Close on its heel is the Schweizerhof with a recommended fine dining restaurant along the best hotel spa in town.

Modular tour No 2: Interlaken-Gstaad-Montreux-Lausanne(-Geneva) – luxury hotels in Switzerland’s west

As I already covered Interlaken earlier in this blogpost, I come directly to Gstaad in the Bernese Alps.

Gstaad region

While Gstaad is the core and the actual “brand”, the name includes the neighboring chalet villages.

Schoenried, Saanen, Rougemont and others offer lots of quality lodging.

Gstaad

I have never been guest to a 5-star property in Gstaad. But I spent twice a few nights at Le Grand Chalet (4-star hotel) in the past. From what I read and hear about it, it is still a good choice, especially if you are a gourmet.

There are four accommodations available to stay in style. While three of them are hotels from a bygone era, one is a newly built one. Le Grand Bellevue, Gstaad Palace and Park Gstaad belong to the first category, The Alpina Gstaad to the second one.

When comparing the three historical establishments, all of them offer everything a discerning clientele wishes for (fine dining/wellness). I guess Le Grand Bellevue is maybe the most modern one amongst them. Family friends spent a week here this year, and this to their complete satisfaction. Gstaad Palace might be the most traditional one. And as to Park Gstaad, it is – at least for me – the great unknown (lots of management changes in the recent past).

The “newcomer” The Alpina Gstaad (opened in 2012) finally plays in a class of its own, be it in terms of culinary offer (two one-star Michelin restaurants) or wellness (it has the one and only Six Senses Spa in Switzerland). However, these amenities come with a hefty price tag!

Around Gstaad

In Gstaad’s immediate neighborhood you find another luxury hotel, Ermitage Wellness- & Spa Hotel in Schoenried.

As the name says it, it is strong in matters of wellness, it also has a saltwater pool. Bottom line after three short stays here (my blogpost), it is a well-managed property. Although, I do not consider it an absolute must-go in view of the selection you have in Gstaad.

Montreux

The one and only 5-star here is the Fairmont Le Montreux Palace. I have never been here but my husband had and he liked his stay. I am sure the wellness (Willow Stream Spa) will be top upon reopening (under renovation at the moment), the gastronomy is solid but unexceptional.

If you look for a pleasant hotel with a gourmet restaurant, Hotel Victoria in Glion (4-star), high above Montreux with great views of the lake, is a good choice. I have recently spent two nights here and was fond of its old-world ambiance and the fantastic views of Lake Geneva from here (my blogpost).

Lausanne

This second-largest city in the country’s French-speaking part (fourth largest in Switzerland) is a good patch for lovers of fine lodging. You find here three luxury hotels (all historic ones) from which I know two of them from earlier stays.

My possibly favorite accommodation in town is the Beau-Rivage Palace.

 

It is not only set on the shores of Lake Geneva in a private park but features high-end cuisine too (2-star Michelin restaurant). Rooms are recently renovated and the Cinq Mondes Spa is state-of-the-art. I can look back at two stays here and and was both time delighted by its beauty and facilities. Here is my post about everything you have to know about it.

I also liked being at the Royal Savoy (see my post about it).

It offers a lot, be it in terms of culinary delights or wellness offers. Above all, it is in a pristine (remodeled) state.

And I think that the last remaining, Lausanne Palace, knows how to persuade a demanding clientele too. The culinary offer is impressive, wellness facilities are of high quality and the hotel underwent a refurbishment a short time ago.

Geneva

Out of the numerous 5-star hotel in Geneva I have already been to three of them. One the one hand, I spent two nights at La Réserve in Bellevue a short time ago (my blogpost)

just outside the gates of the city. While I liked its lake location and extensive grounds, I found it a bit overpriced.

On the other hand, I stayed at two other luxury hotels in Geneva quite some time ago, at the traditional Beau-Rivage in the city center by the lake and at the modern Mandarin Oriental in Geneva’s heart on the river Rhone. I have pleasant memories of both properties but I do not remember too many details. What stuck in my mind as to the former is the excellent fine dining restaurant (still the case). Regarding the latter, I was much in favor of its relaxed ambiance.

Overall, if you want a hotel with the best views and gourmet cuisine, go to the grande old dame of Beau Rivage. In case you would like to be in the city center yet in a quieter setting, opt for the Mandarin Oriental. If you look for extensive wellness facilities, give La Réserve Bellevue a try. The former and the latter have both one-star Michelin dining-spots.

As far as the other luxury hotels in Geneva are concerned, other well known establishments are the following ones: the Four Seasons des Bergues, the Ritz-Carlton de la Paix, the Fairmont Grand Hotel and the President Wilson. All of them are housed in old-word buildings except the last mentioned. If you are a gourmet and consider Michelin star dining-spots as important asset, The Four Seasons and the President Wilson feature such ones. As to wellness, President Wilson might have the finest spa in the city’s core.

And certainly worth considering a stay is the newest luxury hotel in town, The Woodward Geneva. Whereas its facilities seem to be immaculate (suites only and one of those L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon Restaurants onsite), I find its pricing a bit over the top.

Overall

After a guide to visiting Switzerland and going into the country’s premium destinations, I listed in this blogpost all the luxury lodging that makes a hotel stay in my home country so much more pleasant. And I did this along the grand tour of Switzerland described in the before mentioned travel manual.

As I did not want this post to become too long, here is part one of this guide to luxury hotels in Switzerland. Soon on my blog you will find part two. Next will be the same thing as to fine dining in Switzerland in line with the proposed tour across this Alpine nation (part one and two).

last revised: December 2023

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