Unusual Hotels

Pleasant days reminiscent of the times of Gotthelf can be experienced in the Sulzfluh - the mountain guesthouse at 1,772 metres that was built in 1875.

This small Bed&Berakfast is a true gem in the heart of Swiss watchmaking country! Here, not only watch lovers are welcome and sure to feel at ease!

To be unique may mean spending a different kind of holiday. The members of the water and bread association may have just the right kind of innovative option to spend some time in special surroundings. Far from being just another cheap vacation, their project combines affordable holidays with special events. Their website lists original offers like: sleep in a construction car, a bed in the cornfield, overnights in an Alpine shed, sleep in the hay, in a tipi and much more.

The number of igloo villages in the Swiss Alps is constantly increasing, with the latest addition set in the ski area of Davos Parsenn. During ski hours, the igloos are open for visits, bar hopping and fondue meals. In the evening, they turn into regular hotel rooms, the 17 individual igloos being connected by huge corridors. A special highlight are the integrated sauna and whirlpool in the romantic igloos at 2’620 meters.

At the “Le Grand Toit” in the village of Eschert near Moutier, lovers or adventurers may spend a night in an old train car. When the air gets colder in autumn, a nice and warm whirlpool is perfect to heat up the atmosphere. The hotel has, of course, also perfectly “normal” rooms for less adventurous guests, each one with its personal touch, in a different coloring and with a kitchenette. And the so-called “Gîtes”, with a surface of 7m2, are particularly low priced.

A team of „half-crazed“ people designed each one of the eight rooms in a different style, skillfully and gaily combining latest technologies with rustic Baroque interiors. Everything is to please the senses, such as the bathtub on rails, allowing Juliet to wash up on the balcony while Romeo takes a swim in the pool in the midst of a dream garden, which sees a great variety of people passing by in the course of the year.

In the Vaud commune of La Cure, you may sleep in a quite extraordinary hotel straddling the border. The house was built right on the line of demarcation between France and Switzerland. In the honeymoon suite, the border even cuts the wedding bed in two! The hotel also has excellent meals and exquisite wines to pamper its guests. For a place with two names, two addresses, and two nationalities, the hotel seems to be quite at ease with its dual identity!

The “Chouett’Nid” tree house in Le Locle (NE) is an unusual alternative to a hotel. The neat little house offers all the modern creature comforts and may accommodate two to four. Anyone looking for an extraordinary place to stay may indeed find nothing quite like this: the tree-house with glass windows was built eight meters above ground and is solid enough to last a minimum of eight years. Guests are highly satisfied with this unusual, top-class offer.

Whitepod is more than just a hotel complex. It is a unique, ecologically sound and exclusive resort, where guests are housed in single original igloo pods. In the nearby mountain hut, Alpine life takes on a new and different dimension. The resort offers numerous leisure possibilities, such as a ski area, which is open day and night. Far from the masses, Whitepod offers style in good taste, highest comfort and service, an unforgettable mountain world to experience and enjoy.

The Löwengraben Jail Hotel is the first one of its kind in Switzerland. The historic central prison, a landmark building, was built in 1862 and served as a penitentiary until 1998. The place where during 135 years thousands of escape plans were made, now offers an exciting environment to both tourists and locals. The Jail Hotel has different rooms, from the original prison cell to the small “suite” in the former office of the prison director.

A fortress straight out of a storybook! Where the knights once roamed, groups and school classes show up today, eager to spend some princely nights in a dream castle. The style is authentic, with old steps leading up the hill, meter-thick walls sheltering the rooms, and steep, quirky staircases leading all the way up to the tower room. The surroundings are splendid too and the most beautiful sunsets in all of Northwestern Switzerland may be observed from the castle battlements.

Seven original Mongol yurts are somewhat different accommodations for families, school classes and groups, wishing to stay overnight at Rochers-de-Naye, at an altitude of 2’000 meters. Each yurt is kept in a different color and may sleep eight. Planting yurts at the summit finds a favorable echo and as far down as Italy everyone knows, that Father Christmas himself has taken up residence at Rochers-de-Naye from November 24 to December 24.

Following a several-month development and trial phase notably supported by both very successful test nights of October and November 2008 in Sevelen (St. Gallen), the world’s first "zero-star hotel" has opened its doors for good in Teufen in Appenzell-Ausserrhoden in the norhteast of Switzerland.

Allow yourself to experience the time of Diogenes and spend one night in a 15’000-liter-barrel (from May to October). Each barrel sleeps six persons and is equipped with beds, mattresses, and wooden blankets (40 beds in total). The interior is simple, but well kept, facilities to wash up are located in the nearby barn. Here, everyone is welcome, be it for one overnight or for a meal in the gastronomic barn next door.

The first tree hotel in the canton of Fribourg is based on a unique concept, which respects both trees and nature. Taking up camp in a tree requires no special skills. You actually sleep above the ground, in a tent hanging from a tree. Though you spend a night different from any other you may have known, the bed is soft and comfortable. Such an experience in natural surroundings by the river suits everyone (April to October). In bad weather, you may move to the barn and sleep in the hay.

The only Ryokan Hotel in Europe is located on Hasenberg mountain in the canton of Aargau. Now, Japan is only 20 minutes from Zurich! Staying at a Ryokan hotel is always a special experience, for guests do feel as if they really were in far-away Japan. The outstanding Japanese food makes the stay even more memorable. Each room has its own sauna and a private outdoor whirlpool with thermal water. The view extends to the Jungfraujoch, as well as to Mt. Pilate and the Rigi.

Welcome at the highest hotel in the Swiss Alps! The Kulmhotel Gornergrat has been standing for almost 100 years on Gornergrat, the most popular destination from Zermatt, The unique location, the breathtaking panorama with 29 four-thousand-meter-high peaks all around, and the pure mountain air, together with the proverbial Valais hospitality, make the ***Kulmhotel Gornergrat the perfect meeting place for mountain lovers, skiers, sun worshippers and stargazers.