Hotel Schweizerhof

When we arrived at the train station we were ecstatic to find out that the hotel was just a short but scenic 5 minute walk away. It ended up taking us a solid 10 minutes because I wanted to take photos of the chapel bride and swans that we passed on the way there. The front side of the hotel faces Lake Lucerne (hello dreammmm view) while the backside faces Old Town Lucerne. One of the things we loved most about this hotel was that we could walk to EVERYTHING… but more specifically:

Chapel Bridge: 5 min

Lake Lucerne: 0 min

Old Town: 0 min

Lion of Lucerne: 10 min

Our top pick for Fondue: 10 min

Train Station: 5-7 min

 We stayed in the Junior lakefront suite and y'all…. this room was U N R E A L. When we arrived they had champagne and a Schweizerhof cake (I will elaborate on this culinary masterpiece later) waiting for us. We were so awestruck by the room, the view, and the warm welcome that we simply sat in the chairs by the window and took in the view and sipped champagne for a solid 2 hours. Can we please talk about my favorite room details? 

In room espresso machine: GOD BLESS whoever thought of this. Such a jet-lag game changer. It was so amazing to be able to start the morning with fresh espresso in bed while watching the swans swim across the lake. (I know…I KNOW... I hate myself just typing that.)

The view: Our stunning balcony overlooked the lake and the room boasted another window that opened so you could see the lake from anywhere in the room. This was easily one of the most beautiful views I’ve ever seen from a hotel room. EVER. 

Electric blinds: I don’t know how to explain just how fancy they were... but these puppies are so helpful if you’re suffering from jet lag and need a mid-day nap. 

Bed: We had 2 twins that converted to a king which was nice and roomy. They also do turndown service and literally lay a mat out in front of the bed and leave chocolates on your pillow.

Bathroom: The bathroom was spacious, clean, and had a bathtub AND a separate shower. I loved that I could turn the heater up in the bathroom so it was warm and cozy in the morning.

Closet Space: The closet had a safe, slippers, robes, and TONS of room.

 First off, this hotel is architecturally a beautiful, classic European hotel. The hotel offers a gym and spa, we didn’t have time to use these, and in all honesty this trip was more about consuming calories that burning them... Although, the spa menu looked amazing. The hotel bar was beautiful and let me order a hot fudge sundae to take up to my room, so triple points for that! They serve their afternoon coffee with little bits of cake and we really loved stopping in to get one of those when we were needing a quick pick-me up. They also serve breakfast and have a restaurant, we wanted to eat out in town as we only had a few days in Lucerne. I made sure to do a walk through of the buffet to see the spread and it was pretty impressive.

{The Schweizerhof Cake} This cake! THIS CAKE! It practically deserves it’s own blog post. Upon arriving we had 2 mini Schweizerhof cakes in our room, it’s a sort of crumb, fluffy, vanilla cake with tiny specs of chocolate inside the batter and dusted with powdered sugar. So basically heaven. But one of the things I love most is the story behind it. During the war, the Chef was looking for ways to create a treat for the guests while working with limited ingredients, so he created this cake using leftover bread from the day before and shaved chocolate. After the war, the cake sort of faded away until the hotel did a remodel of the kitchen and found the chef’s old cookbook. They brought back the cake and it’s been a staple ever since.

When we left my travel shaman (don’t worry you’ll hear about him next) gave us an ENTIRE cake for the train. I nearly cried... Then I ate my feelings... 90% of the cake was gone by the next day, we rationed the last 10% off over the next week. Yes, if you’re doing the math I did bring the cake back to DFW… It was that good.

{The Staff} HOLY CUSTOMER SERVICE. I have never experienced a more accommodating, friendly, and genuine staff. Upon arrival, we were greeted by Pascal, the front desk supervisor, who came out behind the counter to welcome us to the hotel with a big smile. He grabbed our keys, took us up the elevator, and walked us to our room himself. When we got to the room he gave us the grand tour, showed us how to use the espresso machine, and gave us a quick rundown on how to best enjoy the city. He also asked us where we’d like to go for dinner and made us reservations for dinner that night and lunch the following day.

The next day when we were leaving to tour the city he met us with his trademark smile and gave us a map that he had marked with multiple paths to ensure we would get the best possible walking tour of Lucerne. He also gave us 2 pre-paid bus-passes in case we decided we were tired of walking and wanted to take the bus back. Saint. Now, this is the part that almost brings me to tears…. when we told him that we were thinking of heading to Zermatt he said he was concerned about the weather and was going to research the best possible train route. The next day when we were preparing to leave he let us know that the train route was closed due to excessive snow, but he had looked up tickets to St. Moritz, another resort mountain town and offered to call a hotel in advance and make sure they set us up with a good room. THEN, he called the hotel I had booked in Zermatt and explained the situation to them to make sure they would refund our hotel rooms so we wouldn’t have to track down a phone. Like, can you say jackpot?!

When we were about to leave for the train station he offered to drive us instead so we wouldn’t be rushed and went in to the train station with us to make sure we got the right tickets. To say he went above and beyond still feels like an understatement. Dylan and I kept saying, we showed up to the Schweizerhof as strangers and left as family. We literally wanted to kidnap Pasci (yes, we gave him a nickname) and take him round Europe with us. Totally normal, right!? 

All in all, this was my favorite 2 days of the trip. Lucerne was beautiful, the people were warm, but the hotel… the hotel just MADE it perfection. It's a MUST on your travel bucket list!