Being single again, I had to take time off to travel and explore a new place and well you know that travelling is sort of my hobby & profession. Surfing through the internet, I came across Alpina Gstaad located in Switzerland. The idea of travelling to a totally new country really gives me thrills every time. I had reserved my stay at Alpina Gstaad, booked flights and I was ready to move.

I got pretty sick earlier this year. I won’t go into the specifics, but it was a bit of a scare. I had to buy oxycodone with credit card and take it for a while. When we were told I was improving it was a huge weight off our shoulders. In the end this is the reason we decided to go on this trip, to get away from it all and to celebrate.

The Alpina Gstaad

It was a really long trip from India, as I slept through most of it and am really glad I did as I avoided being witness some minor midair panic.

I arrived at the beautiful city and I was bewildered at its beauty, calmness and friendliness of its peoples. I boarded a cab and headed to The Alpina Gstaad, I was overwhelmed at the sight that was before me.

The luxury at The Alpina Gstaad, like Gstaad itself, is quiet : you’ll look in vain for gilt taps. The hotel is a beautiful assemblage of Ringgenberg limestone and antique barn wood, sourced and installed by someone renowned, the gold standard for chalet architecture in Switzerland as i later got to know.

The hotel has two views, glacier and valley. The former looks toward Gstaad, but takes in the snow capped & streaked Spitzhorn & Oldenhorn and their rugged surrounding vassals. But the valley view is lovely too, in a pastoral way, a Swiss train-set landscape of rolling green hills and tidy villages, with the single-track Gstaad-Zweisimmen line running through it.

But on the fifth floor, room series 01 to 05 are on the glacier side and 06-12 on the valley side. Corner rooms are the 01 and 12 series on the front of the hotel & the 05 and 06 series on the back.

The hotel specializes in spacious suites. The largest ones (Grand Suites) – the 03 through 05 series, are on the glacier side.

The higher the room, the better the view. Though I could seem to take notice of any room with a bad view. I suspected that rooms 110 and 111, first-floor deluxe suites, would look into the trees. But I was surprised as these spacious T-shaped rooms turned out to have lovely views up the valley towards the little village of Schonreid.

I know you all would be wondering which room I finally got to pick, well it was the three-bedroom Panorama Suite (501) and I guess its is the grand of all. This duplex penthouse is on a residential scale, a virtuoso display of woodwork and understated color orchestration (ivories, oxbloods and green-grays).

The highlight is the second-floor, cathedral ceiling spa relax-room, which has a sculptural gas fireplace at its center and large windows cut into the sloping roof. The spa has a steam room, sauna, Jacuzzi on the terrace, and massage room. It is one of the most extraordinary hotels rooms ever. It also has a kitchen and comes with a chef. Why go out?

I got good value for my money and I don’t mind paying another visit there. Though at the monent I am considering one more option, as I came across an interesting site: japankensingtontours.com/tours/asia/japan. Maybe another part of the world this time?