Gstaad Palace: Dinner in Season, Fondue in a Gold Vault

What to do there

5 things to do

1. 1

   Pick Your Table and Book It

   wine Free

   Free to plan: which restaurant, which season, what to wear.

   The Palace opens only in season, and someone not staying gets in by booking a meal.

   WHERE: palace.ch, or by email; the door is Palacestrasse 28, 3780 Gstaad.

   WHAT: in winter, choose Le Grill (a rôtisserie with an open kitchen, 7.00 pm to 10.30 pm) or La Fromagerie (fondue and raclette, sittings at 7.00 pm or 9.30 pm); in either season, Le Grand serves every day.

   HOW: book online or by email; GreenGo tables are booked by email. Men wear a jacket from 7 pm in Le Grill, the Bar du Grill and the Veranda of Le Grand; shorts, open-toe shoes, t-shirts and sports shoes are not allowed in the evening. The menus online carry no prices, so the cost of dinner is not known in advance.

   BACKUP: the Lobby Bar takes no reservations and is open 10.00 am to 1.00 am.

   Log Memory
2. 2

   Walk Up to the Castle on the Hill

   history Free

   Free: from the station to the door, and the house's story on the way.

   The house says a local secondary-school teacher, Robert Steffen, bought the first land here once the Montreux–Zweisimmen railway came through, and the Palace Hotel opened on 8 December 1913 with 250 beds.

   WHERE: start at Gstaad station.

   WHAT: walk to the door at Palacestrasse 28: about 920 m and about 12 minutes, uphill. Inside, look for photographs of former guests: in 2014 the bar showed Liz Taylor and Richard Burton, Louis Armstrong and David Niven, and the hotels' association Swiss Deluxe Hotels says photos line the corridors.

   HOW: free, any day in season.

   BACKUP: the house runs a horse carriage from the station for up to 4 people at CHF 100 a carriage, booked at least 24 h ahead; it also offers a station pick-up.

   Log Memory
3. 3

   Dine Where the Gold Was Kept

   wine Price: very high

   Your booked dinner, perhaps in the vault the house says once held gold.

   The house says that in 1939/40 the Union Bank of Switzerland built a huge strong room under the Palace terrace for papers and gold; today it is La Fromagerie, where GaultMillau describes the fondue served behind an armoured door.

   WHERE: inside the hotel, from 7.00 pm.

   WHAT: at La Fromagerie, find the armoured door; at Le Grill, watch the open kitchen; at Le Grand, watch a dish flambéed, carved or plated at your table. Wine is ordered at the table: the house offers no cellar tour or wine tasting and publishes no wine list or prices, so ask for the list when you sit down.

   HOW: on your booking; the price of dinner is not published.

   BACKUP: Le Grand serves every day in both seasons.

   Log Memory
4. 4

   Go Down to the 1971 Club

   Optional

   history Price: moderate

   Optional: the club the house opened in 1971, open to the public.

   GreenGo opened on 22 January 1971, and the house says Teo Jakob's interior has stayed the same; its dance floor sits over an indoor pool.

   WHERE: in the hotel.

   WHAT: dance, or just look, then go home.

   HOW: open to the public from age 17; bring a physical ID (photos or PDF copies are not accepted); dress code elegant; tables by email to havefun@greengo.ch or on +41 33 748 50 00. No entry price is published.

   BACKUP: skip it; the evening is complete after dinner.

   Log Memory
5. 5

   Photograph the Lit Towers

   adventure Free

   Free: the photo memory of the evening.

   MICHELIN's inspectors write that, lit up at night and looming high above the hamlet from its hilltop, the turreted building looks like a castle.

   WHERE: below the door at Palacestrasse 28, on your way out after dark.

   WHAT: turn round and take the photo memory of the evening: the towers, and the people you came with.

   HOW: free, any evening in season.

   BACKUP: none needed.

   Log Memory

Insider Tips

• The Bar du Grill has no booking button of its own: book Le Grill online and write "Bar du Grill" in the comment.

• The Lobby Bar takes no reservations and is open from 10.00 am to 1.00 am, from morning coffee to an evening drink.

• From Montreux, the GoldenPass Express reaches Gstaad in about 1 h 26 without a change; the regional panoramic train takes about 1 h 40.

• Le Grill and La Fromagerie open only in winter; in summer, book Le Grand, which serves every day.