Why are there storks nesting on the roof of a five-star hotel in Zurich? . . . Justine Tyerman learns the legend of the ‘Haus zum Storchen’. She also discovers how ‘savoir-faire with tradition’ has saved the soul but polished the visage of a much-loved city landmark.
Browsing: Switzerland
Most our travel bloggers are based out of Zurich, Switzerland. Hence Swiss locations are the easiest for us to cover. We like design and boutique hotels, restaurants, golf courses, scenic railways and a hike every now and then.
Our travelogues are also available in German on reisememo.ch.
This taller of the two Mythen peaks has my brother in its spell: time and again, he has climbed it and afterwards posted marvelous pictures on Facebook. Now it’s my turn to head up there!
“Talalpsee” has such a nice ring to it that says “mountain lake.” And, while the way up to it is something…the way down by kick scooter is something else!
Recently, we had the chance to join up with Instagram star Nicole Hunziker in Gstaad in the Bernese Highlands. With a celebrity like her in tow, we had to come up with something special… and, thanks to stage managing by HUUS Gstaad CEO Günter Weilguni, we wound up having a really good hair day with her by the Arnensee.
“Mis huus, dis huus – mis Herz isch es Hotel” (“My house, your house – my heart is a hotel.”) Even though the song by Switzerland’s award-winnning rap duo Lo & Leduc (they rap in the Swiss German dialect) has absolutely no connection to the HUUS Gstaad Hotel, I couldn’t get the catchy tune out of my mind during the drive there. Maybe it was that Latino groove?
In what was a first for us, we took in an ATP world tour tennis final in beautiful Saanenland. Thin air at this altitude supposedly lets balls fly farther and bounce higher. That can make for stunners now and then…
“Igniv” means “nest” in the Rheto-Romanic language spoken in parts of Switzerland. It is the name (in all caps) that Grisons star chef Andreas Caminada gave his second new restaurant brand that he developed and then opened in Bad Ragaz, putting his long-time sous-chef Silvio Germann in to run the kitchen for what would be the test of a new dining experience: serving gourmet cuisine, but in many small portions that are meant to be shared. By creating this “feathered nest” for the youngster, Caminada also put his reputation on the line. How would it all turn out?
Having heard quite a bit about hotel Château d’Ouchy over the years, I’d always wanted to spend a night as a princess in that castle by Lake Geneva with a history that dates to the 12th century. So, what did I find out when I finally made it there? The Château also once did duty as a prison!
Take two luxury hotels, add two unique restaurants and mix in two modern farms, combine the six establishments into one and, voilà, a new Swiss hospitality brand is born: “The Living Circle.” Different though the six may be, together they share the same purpose: to create an experience that sophisticated visitors won’t soon forget…
S. Pellegrino Sapori Ticino is a gourmet festival with star allure: 36 Michelin stars in total distinguish 21 chefs, each representing one of 21 deluxe hotels that themselves bear the five-star seal of approval.
A gourmet restaurant belongs in a luxury hotel. So far, so good. But what if the highly-decorated head chef retires and is replaced by a “young wild one”? The new man clued me in personally…
Zurich has a new NENI restaurant. It comes with a hotel: The 25hours Langstrasse, which sparkles not just because of its special location between the red-light district and Europaallee (Europa Avenue), its colorful design rooms and Kamasutra-themed bar, but also because of this restaurant serving Mediterranean fare with a Middle Eastern flair.