Review of Hotel Schweizerhof Bern & Spa

Centrally situated near the city’s train station - Bahnhofplatz  - a two-minute walk away and the city centre, the Hotel Schweizerhof Bern & Spa is one of the city’s most iconic historic properties. With ten minutes, guests will find themselves in the medieval Marktgasse district and only three kilometres from the Zentrum Paul Klee art museum. 

Regarding airports, the hotel is around 10 kilometres from Bern International Airport (BRN) and 130 kilometres from Zurich International Airport ZRH). 

The perfect city escape, Bern was listed in 1983 as a UNESCO heritage site so there is a great deal to do and see in this capital city. Highlights include the Federal Parliament Building and Federal Square, the Clock Tower, the famous Bear Pits, and the River Aare. The mix of building styles will make an architect gasp – from medieval to modernist – whilst the Einstein Museum is one of the must visits alongside the Museum of Communication if you work in the media. 

Many of Switzerland’s most beautiful nature landscapes are reachable from Bern including the Jungfrau Region of Interlaken, Jungfraujoch, Grindelwald and Schilthorn whilst the Emmentaler Cheese Dairy and La Maison du Gruyère are natural lures for any gastronomes. There are also the numerous boutiques beneath the Bernese arcades, Bernese beer tours and trips to the local Gurten mountain, of course. 

When you check in, the hotel will offer you the Bern Ticket with free use of public transport in Bern, a particular Swiss offering which is very much appreciated by visitors.

There are three types of lead in guest room including the Charming Queen Room, the Charming King Room and the Deluxe Boutique Room, ranging in size from 28 – 38 square metres and all offering a metro chic style. This heritage property saw a total restoration in 2011 keeping the infrastructure up to scratch meaning that although the property lies in the heart of the city, guests enjoy a peaceful oasis cocooned behind a well-insulated facade. 

Designed by London-based Maria Katsarou Vafiadis of MKV Design London, here are wooden herringbone pattern floors, spacious bathrooms with rainforest showers and custom furnishings. Room amenities include entertainment systems; individually controlled air conditioning; minibars; personal safes with charging sockets; Nespresso machines; a pillow menu and luxurious Bulgari toiletries. The Deluxe Boutique Room also offers unlimited national phone calls so you can call everyone in Switzerland to brag about where you are staying. Bottled water is also placed in-room. 

The hotel is also popular with families with the prime accommodation being the amply sized Family Two Bedroom (66 square metres) and Three Bedroom (99 square metres) suite of rooms. These suites effectively offer a separate living and sleeping area with a guest MediaHub for content on the television and an entertainment system – a perfect urban home for a family.  Baby and kiddie set ups can be arranged on request. 

There are five categories of suite starting with the Boutique Junior Suite, with a generous 48 square metres floor plan for those who like to feel the space. Of a similar size are the Luxury Living Studio suites with kitchenettes perfect for longer stays. The Boutique One Bedroom Suites are more like private apartments with separate living, sleeping, and dining areas set over 60 square metres of space. The 95 square metre Signature Suites lie under the eaves on the top floor of the hotel, enjoying a loft living vibe. Contemporary furnishings are complemented by antique pieces, artwork, books, chaise longues and colourful artwork with pieces handpicked by Maria Katsarou Vafiadis, the designer. 

For the ultimate accommodation however, spread out over 120 square metres of living space with The Presidential Suite, luxuriously appointed and kitted out. The marble bathroom has a rain forest shower, freestanding Japanese bathtub and a television, there is a walk-in dressing room, a fully equipped kitchenette for those night-time snacks or chef-created dinners and a guest powder room.

James Bond 007 (George Lazenby) "stayed" at Hotel Schweizerhof Bern & Spa - On Her Majesty's Secret Service in 1969. His suite (Number 411) is quite delightful!

This is a pet-friendly hotel too so if needs be, a pet setup can be easily arranged for your pooch to feel at home.

The hotel has to have one of the best urban spas in the city, ideal for either workouts or for simply relaxing and rejuvenating. The Spa offers 500 square metres of spa with a host of amenities including an enormous whirlpool with bubble loungers, massage jets and fountain shower; a Finnish sauna and cold-water pool; a steam bath; an ice fountain; experience showers; a relaxation room with water beds; five treatment and cosmetic rooms and a fitness centre with cardio and strength Technogym equipment, a fitness studio and personal training on request. Only specially selected natural products are used in the treatments and the hotel also uses its own Sky Deluxe honey for the Honey Fascia Massage. Other signature treatments include the Relaxation in Gold which uses 24-carat gold in its treatment or the Venus Clam massage using warm Venus clams from the South Pacific. In addition, The Spa offers a range of beauty treatments from eyelash tinting to mani-pedis to waxing.

Jack’s Brasserie is the hotel’s signature restaurant open for breakfast right through to dinner and is styled in a traditional Parisian manner from the belle epoque era with free standing lighting, chandeliers, crisp white linen tablecloths and a mix of banquette and chair seating. Using seasonal and fresh ingredients, the restaurant offers a range of traditional French classic brasserie items alongside modern interpretations which have earned the restaurant 14 Gault Millau points. Many people come to the restaurant simply to experience Jack’s Wiener schnitzel which is a popular winner - 20,000 are served every year - and one of Switzerland’s best. The beetroot salad starter is truly magnificent. 

Locals and guests congregate in the welcoming Lobby Lounge with its adjoining bar for coffee throughout the day through to innovative and refreshing cocktails come the evening. The venue offers a range of fine wines, whiskies and rums, served alongside seasonal snacks. Here you can enjoy salads and soups, beef burgers and club sandwiches alongside a few Middle Eastern dishes. There is also a long list of teas to choose from.

As Bern’s finest rooftop bar, the Sky Terrace offers 360-degree views out over city rooftops to the Bernese Alps all year around. In the summer, bask in the heat of the day with refreshing cocktails, a glass of Champagne with accompanying nibbles whilst in winter, snuggle up with hot chocolate and fondue. If you come for a celebration, the venue can easily accommodate up to 50 friends and family.

Hotel Schweizerhof Bern & Spa is part of the Bürgenstock Selection which includes the Hôtel Royal Savoy Lausanne and Bürgenstock Hotels & Resort - which towers above Lake Lucerne.

The Hotel Schweizerhof Bern & Spa is a veritable little gem. Ideally located in the heart of town between the train station and the old town, the hotel retains its illustrious reputation by introducing venues like the Sky Terrace and ensuring that the accommodation is smart, sassy and relevant for today’s clientele. Traditional on the outside - with stunning Juliet balconies - it is cool, calm and elegantly cosy inside offering a welcoming ambiance complemented by superb service. 

The Spa in particular is a real draw for both guests and day spa visitors with a reputation for excellence and treatments designed to both stay the years and to re-energise tired bodies and faces. You can even book the spa for just you and your friends to enjoy which is quite rare for a hotel facility and the perfect bonding opportunity for the family – a unique ultimate tailored experience. 

The Hotel Schweizerhof Bern & Spa is fully committed to sustainable operations and their corporate social responsibility is an integral part of their corporate philosophy. The hotel’s own inhouse team of “Green Busters” has been working since 2016 to make the property more environmentally friendly, with their efforts being acknowledged by a MyClimateAward in 2019 as a “Pioneer of holistic sustainability in hotel operations”. They are also part of Swisstainable, an initiative from Swiss Tourism. 

Since 2017, the hotel has been a member of MyClimate and with them, determine annual targets for CO2 emissions, planning initiatives to make this happen. They have also involved guests at the hotel by offering them the opportunity to become part of the “Cause We Care” programme, endeavouring to make their stay at the property carbon neutral. The hotel matches any Cause We Care contribution which is then invested back into the local and global climate protection measures. 

The team at the hotel are also invested in their local society participating with their stakeholders in various charitable events such as Swiss Paralympics, Foodsave Banquets, Benefit Bicycle-Marathon Race for live, Swiss Women’s Run and so forth. Through their relationship with the foundation Diaconis and Intact, they are also involved in “professional integration”.