Badrutt's Palace Hotel

Rooms and decor

Picture a big stone castle with a tower standing on a hill above the lake — that is the first image of Badrutt's Palace Hotel, the symbol of St. Moritz the whole world recognizes. The hotel has been running since 1896, founded by the Badrutt family, the people credited with turning St. Moritz into one of the first renowned winter resort towns. Step inside and you feel right away that you are walking through history — a classic grand-hotel mood built up over 130 years, with high ceilings, dark woodwork, thick soft carpets, and decor that tells the story of the renowned guests who have stayed. The roughly 157 rooms and suites are done in a warm classic style that varies from room to room, many keeping their original feel alongside updated comforts. The thing reviews agree on most is the rooms that face the lake — open the curtains and Lake St. Moritz and the Engadin range stretch across the window, and in winter, when the lake freezes and the mountains turn white, the view feels like a fairytale. If you want to wake up to the full Alps, the lake-side rooms are what set a stay here apart.

Food and amenities

What makes Badrutt's Palace a world of its own is how complete it is — you barely need to leave the whole trip. Start with food: 11 restaurants in one hotel, from high-end fine dining for a special meal, the Italian Le Restaurant with its classic mood, and Japanese food, to bars and cafés for an easy meal — a different choice every day. The heart of the place is Le Grand Hall, the big lobby with a fireplace and piano, the spot for afternoon tea or an evening cocktail with full classic atmosphere, especially in winter when the fire is lit. Downstairs is the Palace Wellness spa, with treatment rooms, and an indoor lake-view pool where you can soak while looking at the mountains. For the party crowd, the King's Club nightclub is a legendary St. Moritz name that opens in high season and has hosted famous guests from around the world. Winter also brings the hotel's own ice rink and full ski service. All told, it is a hotel you can spend the whole day in without running out of things to do.

Location and getting there

Badrutt's Palace sits on the hill in the middle of St. Moritz Dorf, which is about as well-placed as it gets here — high enough to look down over the whole of Lake St. Moritz with the Engadin range behind, yet still right by the village center for easy walking. A few minutes out the door is the Via Serlas luxury shopping street, lined with renowned brand boutiques, Swiss watch shops and good cafés. For skiers, the hotel runs a free shuttle to the Corvatsch cable car, one of the main ski areas in the Engadin, so you can get up the mountain without driving. The St. Moritz train station is below by the lake, about 5 minutes up by hotel shuttle, and the famous Glacier Express / Bernina railway — one of the most scenic lines in the world — runs through town. If you want a base with lake views, easy shopping and walking in the village, and simple access to the slopes, this hill-in-the-center spot covers it.

Things to know before booking

Straight talk to help you decide — the first thing to prepare for is the price. Badrutt's Palace sits at the very top of St. Moritz, itself an expensive town, and that goes beyond the room: food, drinks and spa inside the hotel all run pricey to match the legend, so budget extra if you plan to eat and drink here mostly. The second is that the hotel opens seasonally, like Alpine resort hotels do — mainly winter and summer, closing during the low season between seasons — so some parts of the year you cannot book at all. Check the opening and closing dates for that year before planning, and note that high season, especially Christmas and New Year, fills very fast, so book far ahead. The last point is that this is an old building that keeps its classic character. The charm is in the age and the original atmosphere, but it also means rooms differ from one another; some reviews feel the entry-level or non-lake-side rooms look more classic in size and style than a newer design hotel. If you want sharply modern or care most about the view, name the room type and the lake side clearly when you book.

Our take

From reading through plenty of real reviews, Badrutt's Palace Hotel is a hotel that sells legend, atmosphere and the lake view with full confidence, and it is hard to find anywhere else to match. The thing guests agree on most is the special feeling from the moment you walk in — the building that is the landmark of the town, the Alpine view from the lake-side rooms, and the polished old-world service of a hotel that has looked after renowned guests for over a century. If your trip in your head is staying in a castle on a hill, waking up to a frozen lake and snowy mountains filling the window, soaking in the indoor lake-view pool, having a fine dinner at Le Restaurant and ending the night at the legendary King's Club, this is about as complete a St. Moritz experience as you will find. But if your budget is tight or you are after a flashy newer design hotel at a friendlier price, the rates and classic style here may not be the best value for you. Overall we give it 9.4/10, best for couples and luxury travelers who want to soak up the Alpine legend and the lake view in full, price no object.