Swiss Alps

The Swiss Alps still set the standard for the grand hotel. Palace hotels in St. Moritz, Gstaad and Zermatt keep their ballrooms and their liveried staff, yet the most interesting addresses now sit a valley away: converted farmhouses in the Engadin, timber lodges above Andermatt, mountain inns reached only by cable car or on foot. Expect rigorous housekeeping, spa floors built around thermal water, and kitchens that treat Alpine dairy and river fish with genuine care.

The advantages are concrete. Zermatt and Wengen are car free, most hotels run their own shuttle to the valley station, and dogs are welcomed with more warmth than in most of Europe. Insiders travel in late June for empty trails and in January for reliable snow, and they avoid the February school holidays. A regular books the quiet floor facing the mountain, not the village, and asks for the half board that many family run hotels still offer.