There are hotels with spas. And then there’s the Tschuggen Grand Hotel, where Mario Botta, the Swiss architect responsible for some of the most thoughtful modernist buildings of the last half-century, designed a 5,000-square-metre wellness sanctuary and then buried most of it inside a mountain. Only nine triangular glass “sails” emerge from the hillside, glowing like abstract sculptures at night, marking where the spa disappears into the earth. It’s one of those rare design gestures that manages to be both visually arresting and quietly, profoundly respectful of the landscape it inhabits.
The hotel sits at 1,800 metres above sea level in Arosa, a village in the Swiss canton of Graubünden that has been quietly welcoming travelers since the late 1800s. Arosa occupies a natural bowl surrounded by peaks, a geography that creates extraordinary light, clean air (it was once a sanatorium destination for tuberculosis patients), and the kind of silence that makes you realize how rarely you actually experience silence anymore. The Tschuggen Grand has been here since 1929, though the current incarnation dates to a 1960s rebuild after the original structure burned down. That modernist silhouette (all clean lines and big windows) could feel out of place in a region defined by chalets and tradition. It doesn’t. Instead, it feels like the perfect counterpoint.
Inside, Swiss-Italian designer Carlo Rampazzi has created interiors that manage to be simultaneously maximalist and refined. Handmade furniture. Embroidered headboards. Rooms painted in saturated jewel tones, like emerald, sapphire, ruby, that somehow work perfectly against the white peaks framed by those expansive south-facing windows. High-pile rugs. Custom Swarovski chandeliers in the lobby. Cashmere sofas. It’s the kind of place where every surface has been considered, every detail deliberate, and yet nothing feels precious or untouchable. You can actually relax here.
The 128 rooms and suites all benefit from that attention to detail, but the real showpieces are the four Mountain Lofts, standalone apartments ranging from one to three bedrooms, complete with full kitchens, living rooms, and private terraces. These sit adjacent to the main hotel and offer the unusual combination of total privacy with full access to everything the hotel provides: the spa, the restaurants, the Tschuggen Express (we’ll get to that), the service. It’s the setup affluent families have been quietly requesting for years, and the Tschuggen is one of the few properties that actually delivers on it well.
Back to that spa. Botta’s Bergoase “mountain oasis” spans four floors carved directly into the mountainside. The concept was “to build without building”: leave the landscape undisturbed while creating something genuinely significant below the surface. The result is a space that feels both monumental and intimate. Granite, maple, glass, water. Undulating walls that guide you through the space. Multiple indoor and outdoor pools. A hydrotherapy temple. Steam rooms and saunas. Rain curtains. Kneipp paths. Treatment rooms offering everything from sports massage to Cellcosmet facials. And that outdoor pool, heated to perfection, where you can swim out into the snow while looking directly at the Weisshorn. It’s the kind of experience that resets your entire nervous system.
The spa has been recognized by Vogue as one of the world’s top 100, and Connoisseur Circle named the Tschuggen the best wellness hotel in Switzerland. Both accolades are deserved, but they also miss the point slightly. This isn’t a spa that exists to accumulate awards. It exists because someone thought very carefully about what it means to build a place dedicated to restoration in a landscape that has been restoring people for over a century.
Then there’s the food. Four restaurants, each with its own logic and appeal. La Collina for lunch on the terrace, casual and sun-drenched, with views across the Arosa basin. The Basement for Swiss mountain classics: rösti burgers on pretzel buns, cheese fondue, Arosa cheesecake that will ruin all other cheesecakes for you. The Grand Restaurant for daily-changing five-course menus that showcase regional ingredients and traditions. And La Brezza, the two-Michelin-star flagship helmed by chef Marco Campanella, who was just named Chef of the Year 2025 by GaultMillau Switzerland and holds 19 GaultMillau points.
Campanella moves between the Tschuggen in winter and the group’s other property, Hotel Eden Roc on Lake Maggiore, in summer, which means his menus respond directly to what each season and location produce. At La Brezza Arosa, that translates to dishes built on winter’s bounty: local game, root vegetables, citrus brightness to cut through the richness, fermented elements that add depth without weight. There’s also a fully plant-based tasting menu called Moving Mountains, reflecting both the hotel’s wellness philosophy and the fact that Campanella is simply very, very good at vegetables. This is Michelin-level cooking without the Michelin-level pretension, served in a room that feels elegant but not stiff. Book it when you book your room.
What truly separates the Tschuggen from most Alpine hotels is the Tschuggen Express, the hotel’s private mountain railway. Step into the gondola from the hotel’s boot room, and four minutes later you’re at the top of the mountain, ready to ski or hike directly into the 225-kilometre Arosa Lenzerheide ski area. Ski-in, ski-out without the chaos of a public lift system. No queues. No strangers. Just you, the mountain, and whatever the day holds. In winter, that means some of the most reliably excellent skiing in Switzerland. In summer, it means hiking trails that range from gentle valley walks to serious alpine routes, all accessible without a car or transfer.
The hotel also hosts an annual “Private Mountain” event the day before Arosa’s slopes officially open for the season. Hotel guests get exclusive access to the entire mountain. DJ sets in a gondola above the slopes. Food tastings. Races. A small concert at the Hörnlihütte. It’s the kind of thing that sounds like it could tip into gimmick territory but doesn’t, because it’s done with genuine enthusiasm and the kind of logistical precision you’d expect from a Swiss five-star.
Arosa itself is worth discussing. Unlike Zermatt or St. Moritz, it hasn’t become a scene. It’s a real village where real people live year-round, with a grocery store and a pharmacy and families who have been here for generations. The tourists who come tend to be Swiss, German, and increasingly discerning international travelers who prefer substance over status signaling. There’s no paparazzi. No velvet ropes. Just extraordinarily good skiing, hiking, and that rare combination of accessibility and genuine Alpine character.
The hotel is a member of both The Leading Hotels of the World and Swiss Deluxe Hotels, and holds two Michelin Keys, recognition of excellence beyond just food and beds. It’s also Green Globe certified and fully climate neutral, which in 2026 should be table stakes but still isn’t. The Tschuggen takes sustainability seriously in ways that go beyond marketing: local suppliers, energy efficiency, waste reduction, genuine community integration.
Getting there requires commitment but not heroics. Fly to Zurich (the most connected airport in Switzerland), then either take the train to Chur and transfer to the narrow-gauge railway that winds up 360 curves to Arosa, or arrange a private transfer. The journey takes about two and a half hours by car, longer by train, and every minute is worth it. This is not a place you visit for a night. Two nights minimum. Three or four if you’re serious about actually relaxing.
The Tschuggen Grand is for travelers who understand that true luxury isn’t about ostentation, it’s about environments designed so thoughtfully that you barely notice all the work that went into making everything feel effortless. It’s for people who want to ski or hike hard, then spend the evening in a Botta-designed spa followed by a two-Michelin-star dinner, and wake up in a room where even the ceiling has been painted in a way that makes you happy. It’s for families who want space, couples who want romance, and solo travelers who want to think clearly again for the first time in months.
This is Swiss hospitality at its best: precise, generous, understated, and completely uninterested in cutting corners.
The Details:
- 128 rooms and suites, plus 4 Mountain Lofts (1-3 bedrooms)
- 5,000 m² spa designed by Mario Botta with multiple pools, saunas, steam rooms, treatment rooms
- Four restaurants including La Brezza (2 Michelin stars, 19 GaultMillau points, Chef Marco Campanella)
- Private Tschuggen Express mountain railway (ski-in/ski-out access)
- 225km of skiing in Arosa Lenzerheide ski area
- Member of The Leading Hotels of the World and Swiss Deluxe Hotels
- Two Michelin Keys, Vogue Top 100 Spa, Green Globe certified
- 1,800m above sea level in Arosa, Graubünden, Switzerland
- Fly to Zurich, then 2.5 hours by car or train to Arosa
- Year-round operation (winter: Nov-Apr, summer: Jun-Sep)
