The Tamina Therme, Bad Ragaz
I knew I had to visit this hotel the second I saw a picture of its new thermal baths. That’s it on the left. I mean… just look at it! What’s not to love?
The Grand Resort Bad Ragaz might look – from recent photographs at least – like it just landed from space, but it was first opened to take advantage of the thermal waters that began pumping here in 1870. It now takes over most of the profoundly pretty, mountain-flanked town of Bad Ragaz, near to Liechtenstein and St Moritz in east Switzerland.
It’s actually two hotels, the Grand Hotel Quellenhof (with new Spa Suites) and the Grand Hotel Hof Ragaz, originally a four star property, but now upgraded to be on par with its sibling. If anything, it actually feels like five or six hotels… a very swish, almost-Vegas-like complex with wildly different styles, from stark white intergalactic modernity to garishly royal blue-carpeted grandeur, while the antique-filled rooms in the old monastery building date from 1774. The downside is it might take you a while to get your bearings; it’s easy to get lost in the maze of old and new buildings when you first arrive.
This is a fantastic place to spend a very long weekend, or even a fortnight – there’s enough high-class novelty in terms of recreation, from spa treatments to dining, to keep you busy. There’s great golfing, a casino, a mini-cinema and a shopping arcade with designer boutiques. The emphasis at the Resort is firmly on wellness, and you should pick a bedroom when booking to reflect your taste. While all rooms have state of the art TVs and Nespresso machines, the Spa Suites are the most modern, with their own saunas and steam-facilities in the showers. Also beautiful is the Principal Suite in Hof Ragaz (Room 206), the prettiest and most romantic room, with gorgeous period details, an ornate wood floor, claw footed bath and two poster bed.
A wild mix of hyper-modern and vintage grandeur, this wild, white complex of indoor and outdoor pools, with jets and bubbles aplenty, looks like it just landed from outer space
You can, of course, be as decadent as you like in the pursuit of that elusive well-being – the clue is the bottle of Prosecco next to the muesli selection on the breakfast buffet in the starched-white linen and chandelier adorned Bel Air restaurant – and the three-hour Golden Treatment at the spa might be the ultimate in luxury-masquerading-as-healthiness: a Jacuzzi full of gold leaf, Champagne with gold leaf to drink, and a massage… with gold leaf.
Bad Ragaz’s guests likewise run the gamut from blue-rinse retired guests in the autumn to younger couples and a few families in the spring; annual weight-loss, detox and sleep programme devotees; and those after a little light (local anaesthetic only) facial work. A Saudi princess takes the royal suite for six months of every year.
There are myriad dining options, from the near theme-restaurant trad-Swiss of Zollstube (veal cordon bleu is a must, with ham and cheese) to the refined interpretations of Thai and Chinese dishes at Namun, whose spicy papaya salad with chicken and lemongrass skewers is particularly good. There’s bison fillet on the menu at Roland Schmid’s fine dining restaurabt, Äbtestube, while those looking to shift some pounds can chose from chef Renato Wüst’s Cuisine Equilibrée options in the Restaurant Olives d’Or. Those who aren’t so abstemious can carb-load with some of the best pasta dishes you’ll find in Europe in the same dining room. Cigar smokers can imbibe within the Davidoff Fumoir, with a brandy.
The vast, architecturally dramatic Tamina Therme – which opened in 2009 – is a huge draw for guests and locals. A wild mix of hyper-modern and vintage grandeur, this wild, white complex of indoor and outdoor pools, with jets and bubbles aplenty, looks like it just landed from outer space. You can spend a whole day hopping from pool to pool, and sitting in the outdoor hot tub surrounded by the snow capped Swiss Alps.
Grand Resort Bad Ragaz, Bernhard-Simonstrasse, Bad Ragaz, Switzerland
081 303 30 30; resortragaz.ch