Badrutt's Palace, St. Moritz, Switzerland

Badrutt's Palace in St. Moritz is the grand Alpine hotel against which all others are measured, and few hotels anywhere are as bound up with the story of their town. Its turreted silhouette, rising above the frozen lake, has been the symbol of Swiss mountain glamour for well over a century. Still owned and run by the Badrutt family, the Palace has welcomed royalty, film stars and generations of loyal regulars since 1896, and it remains the benchmark for the luxury ski hotel: theatrical, polished, a little eccentric and utterly unforgettable.

Location: St. Moritz, Switzerland

St. Moritz sits at around 1,800 metres in the Upper Engadine, a high, sunny valley in the south-east of Switzerland strung with lakes and ringed by 3,000-metre peaks. The Palace occupies a prime position in the heart of the town, perched above Lake St. Moritz, with sweeping views across the water to the mountains beyond. The town's boutiques, galleries and cafés are on the doorstep, and the funicular up to the Corviglia ski area is a short walk away.

Getting here is part of the pleasure. Zurich Airport is about two and a half hours by car, or you can take the train, finishing on the spectacular, UNESCO-listed Albula line of the Rhaetian Railway. For private aircraft, Samedan airport is just five minutes away. The hotel is seasonal, typically open from early December to early April and from June to early September.

Rooms and suites at Badrutt's Palace

The Palace has around 160 rooms, including some 47 suites, recently added to with a series of new suites in a contemporary Italian style. The classic rooms are decorated in a timeless, traditional manner, with rich fabrics, antiques and plush furnishings, and many have balconies. The most sought-after rooms face the lake, where you can watch the light change over the water and the mountains from morning to evening.

At the top of the scale are lavish suites, and the famous Tower Penthouse Apartment, set in the hotel's iconic tower, with its own terraces and panoramic views. Butler service is available throughout, a reminder that this is a hotel where anything is possible.

Facilities at Badrutt's Palace

The dining is extraordinary in its range. In winter there are eleven restaurants, two bars and a nightclub; in summer, around eight restaurants. Highlights include Le Restaurant, for classic French haute cuisine; La Coupole-Matsuhisa, where chef Nobu Matsuhisa's Japanese-Peruvian cooking has a winter home; and the Chesa Veglia, a sixteenth-century Engadin farmhouse that the hotel has owned since 1928, housing a grill and a much-loved pizzeria. Up on the slopes, the Paradiso Mountain Club & Restaurant offers long lunches in the sun. The spa restaurant, La Diala, provides lighter, healthy dishes.

Afternoon tea in Le Grand Hall, the hotel's vast wood-panelled lobby, is a St. Moritz ritual, best enjoyed with piano music and a view through the great windows. In the evening, the legendary King's Club nightclub is one of the town's social hubs.

Palace Wellness includes an indoor pool with a glass wall opening onto the lake and mountains, a heated outdoor pool used all year, saunas, steam rooms, a hydrotherapy pool, fitness centre, yoga room and private spa suites. Families are well looked after, with the Palazzino kids' club, a private ice rink in winter and plenty for younger guests to do.

The mountain moment

St. Moritz is widely credited as the birthplace of the Alpine winter holiday. The story goes that in 1864, Johannes Badrutt, the hotelier whose family founded the Palace, bet a group of English summer guests that they would enjoy the Engadine just as much in winter, promising to pay their costs if they did not. They came, they loved it, and winter tourism in the Alps was born.

The moment that captures this best is a clear winter day on the frozen lake, with the Palace towering above. Depending on the date, the lake hosts horse racing on snow, polo and cricket on ice, and the hotel's tower stands watch as it has for generations. Pair it with a run down from Corviglia, then tea in Le Grand Hall as the sun sets on the peaks.

Why Badrutt's Palace is one of the best mountain hotels

Badrutt's Palace earns its place as the definitive grand mountain hotel. Others are newer, more minimalist or more discreet, but none quite match its sense of history, theatre and occasion. It holds Three MICHELIN Keys, the guide's highest hotel distinction, and remains family-owned, which gives it a personality chain hotels cannot replicate.

It suits those who love glamour and buzz, celebrating a special occasion or simply wanting to experience St. Moritz at its most iconic. Beneath the polish, the family warmth and generations of devoted staff are what keep guests returning, often for decades.

When to go to Badrutt's Palace

The Palace is seasonal, typically opening from early December to early April and from June to early September. Winter is the classic St. Moritz experience, with skiing at Corviglia and the frozen-lake events. Summer brings hiking, lake life and a slightly gentler pace. Christmas, New Year and the February events book up far in advance.