Rath checks in: Le Grand Bellevue, Gstaad

My hotel for the next few days, Le Grand Bellevue with its classic buttercup-yellow facade, is right in the center of town. I like the well-kept, spacious park that surrounds the hotel.

Gstaad: Chalet village in the Bernese Oberland

I have known and respected the general manager, Fabian Nusser, for many years. I ask him what he sees as the reason for the great success of the cult village of Gstaad. The houses, he explains to me, have been built here for many decades in the chalet style and form a harmonious unit – a real alpine village. And then the myth of Gstaad is also based on the discretion and tranquility that prevail up here. Celebrities, stars and, of course, “normal” people have always come here and know: They will be left in peace and will find real peace here.

The rise to becoming a jet-set Alpine resort began around 1920, when the renowned Le Rosey boarding school was founded here and the rich sent their children to Gstaad from then on. The extraordinary mountain landscape, the fresh high mountain air, the sunny location, the beautiful lakes and forests and the hiking trails and ski slopes under the almost 3000 meter high Spitzhorn then made Gstaad the posh holiday resort that it is to this day.

Built in 1912, Le Grand Bellevue – the original Kurhaus – is part of the old town center and represents a unique type of luxury hotel in Gstaad: with a cool, but not cool design in the context of a grand hotel. Early 20th century meets lifestyle, with high-quality textiles, valuable furniture and elegant interiors. Warm colors dominate, printed wallpaper and materials such as velvet and wood create a homely feeling.

Each of the 48 light-flooded rooms and each of the nine suites in the elegant and cozy alpine chalet chic has a magnificent view of mountains and gardens through the floor-to-ceiling windows, which will not only inspire mountain lovers.

I stroll through the town and think: whether you walk along the Champs-Élysées or here along the Gstaad Promenade doesn’t really make a difference. All the big brands you can imagine are here – beautifully housed in small wooden chalets. The houses here almost all have a beautiful and nostalgic charm anyway. It’s a pleasure to simply sit down in one of the cafés, linger and enjoy the atmosphere.

Back from the walk around town I visit the in house spas and am impressed. The Le Grand Spa in the underground is the outstanding highlight of the five-star superior hotel: a 3,000 square meter, luxurious alpine wellness area with great saunas and hammams, yoga and Pilates studios and indoor and outdoor pools in front of the ubiquitous mountain backdrop of the Bernese Oberland. The Bellevue Spa is an oasis and, without exaggerating, has no equal in a mountain hotel in the Alps.

At the spa I meet Blandine, a young French woman from Montpellier. During the manicure and pedicure, which I enjoy with her, she combines aesthetics with a massage to create a beauty result. This is almost an art form of this beauty treatment. No joke: My hands and feet look like new.

Incidentally, the in-house service is always of silent perfection. And important for me: The highly motivated team always combines professionalism with cordiality.

Later, for lunch at Le Petit Chalet, I experience traditional Swiss food in a cozy wooden hut that can accommodate a maximum of 18 people. Sometimes the simple things are so great: I get a delicious chicken served with a green salad and crispy French fries. If you like down-to-earth food, you should remember this location.

Event calendar with top events

What also speaks for Gstaad for me is the interesting and varied calendar of events with numerous top sporting and cultural events throughout the year. Summer highlights are the ATP men’s tennis tournament, which has been held outdoors on sand every year in July since 1915 after the Wimbledon tournament, and the classical concerts that take place between July and September as part of the Menuhin Festival.

After these days full of peace and fresh air here in the idyllic high mountain paradise in the Saanetal, I have recovered and I don’t want to go back to civilisation. For me, Gstaad is an attractive place of refuge in the Swiss mountains away from mass tourism, where I found exclusivity, but above all alpine originality. And you can come here in peace. I’m sitting in the park, hearing the rustling of the trees. In a hotel brochure I read a quote from William Shakespeare: “The earth has music for those who listen.”

Insider tips:

mountain bike: The most beautiful route leads from Gstaad via Lake Arnen and back.

Excursion: Drive to Saanen, a pretty village with historic, centuries-old chalets and the late-Gothic Mauritius Church, which is well worth seeing.

Hiking experience: Order the nostalgic fondue backpack (from two people) and enjoy the fondue with products from local dairies in the middle of the mountain nature.

Events: Hike to the Alp Turnels, experience the traditional way of cheese production up close (the milk comes from the Simmental cows grazing there) and then enjoy a warm and healthy bath in a wooden tub made from whey that is produced during the cheese production on site.

Rath’s travel rating (current rating in bold):

1. Explicit Travel Warning
2. Better than under the bridge
3. So-so, not oh là là
4. Complaining at a high level
5. If only it were always like this
6. Great cinema

About the author: As a former grand hotelier and operator of the Travelgrand.ch travel platform, Carsten K. Rath is a professional globetrotter. He travels to all the hotels he writes about for the Handelsblatt on his own account. Rath is the brain behind the ranking “The 101 best hotels in Germany”, whose partners include the Handelsblatt.