Learning from luxury

The good life according to general managers of old Swiss grand hotels

Fortepan / Fortepan

During the pandemic, a friend of mine developed a new habit. Whenever his time and the lockdown rules allowed, he booked a room in an upscale hotel and retreated for a few days to focus and relax. Prices were unprecedentedly low, so he could frequent hotels of the highest category without spending insane amounts. After the pandemic, he took advantage of his flexible working hours and perfected his skill at finding inexpensive time slots for occasional stays in luxury hotels.

I wondered why luxury hotels. The apparent answers (the splendor, the status signaling, the seclusion) did not convincingly explain his choice because he isn’t concerned with being seen by the right people under lavish chandeliers. I developed a hypothesis: Staying in luxury hotels tells us something about the good life that is not tied to sumptuous amenities.

To reverse-engineer the experience, I conducted a mini-study. I read interviews with those ultimately responsible for making the stay in a hotel as pleasant as possible: the general managers. My sample was deliberately limited to traditional, independent, preferably family-run Swiss luxury hotels, a category my friend had found a particular liking for. This scope allowed me to avoid corporate PR talk, although, of course, the conversations I analyzed nonetheless needed to be approached with a grain of salt.

The secrets of traditional Swiss luxury hotels

Apart from surface-level sumptuousness, I noticed three recurring elements that make staying in upscale hotels so attractive. In one way or another and to varying degrees, they can be applied to an ordinary life outside of abundance.

A world without flaws

Entering a good hotel means leaving the world’s hardships outside because everything is taken care of. Location matters, so does history, but at the end of the day, a hotel is a place to unwind and become completely relieved. A bed, a room, food & beverages, fitness, wellness, transportation, and concierge service are all readily available and work as desired.

Hotels are micro-communities with flawlessly functioning infrastructures and clear rules (including friendliness and discretion) that everybody is supposed to follow. Many things happen in the background, so the guests don’t even notice the work that goes into it. In luxury hotels, this smoothness is so resilient that even the most extravagant wishes of very demanding guests can be fulfilled, guests, who – as many general managers confirm – are increasingly self-centered, impatient and ​​disorganized.

Interestingly, several interviewees emphasize that they sometimes need to explain to their guests that something is impossible or that a behavior is unacceptable. Markus Granelli, General Manager of the Dolder Grand in Zurich, says:

„If someone treats the employees disrespectfully, I intervene. We have zero tolerance for racism, discrimination, or sexual harassment. We also expel people from the hotel. This happens every now and then.“

It’s the experience, stupid

Every general manager points out that human connection and personal, individual attention are the most distinguishing features of an outstanding luxury hotel.

That’s why, e.g., the Les Trois Rois in Basel has three employees per guest. Again, Markus Granelli of Zurich’s Dolder Grand:

„Most of our guests can stay anywhere in the world. There are an incredible number of beautiful hotels. The difference is made in the quality of the service. If someone wants to check in quickly, I don't have to recite all the offers, but hand over the key as quickly as possible. Or vice versa, if someone has all the time in the world, I also have to be able to chat a bit with the guest.“

„Underpromise and overdeliver“ is the maxim that best characterizes first-class service. It’s about remembering preferences, reading somebody’s wishes before the person even utters them, and pleasant surprises. Andrea Scherz, director of the Palace hotel in Gstaad:

„The level of comfort must be the same as that of a guest at home. Our guests also naturally want their favorite table, their favorite waiter, their favorite room. I notice it myself: I am happy when people in a hotel know my habits. Please don't try to sell me wine at lunchtime, in the evening please just one plate and not a whole meal with dessert. And when I'm drinking my Negroni at the bar: please do not disturb.“

Some ingredients of a good life

Asked why he doesn’t sell the Palace hotel to live like his guests, Scherz replies:

“Usually the rule is: more money, more problems. With the Palace I have something much more valuable: a life's work. (...) In the end, simplicity is the most beautiful. The super-rich have to constantly manage their possessions and their environment and see themselves as competing with other super-rich people. The greatest enemy of humanity is the ego.“

Scherz’s plea for simplicity neither denies the advantages of not having to worry about money nor the joy of excellent quality. But it does acknowledge that, eventually, satisfaction and happiness are about leaving the comparison game, choosing the company you keep, and doing elementary things well, like delicious food and drinks and deep sleep.

The wisdom of the hoteliers culminates in the fact that even the wealthiest guests can experience nothing more beautiful than a look at the sea, a walk in the forest, or stopping by a small bar on a rainy day stroll through the city.