Please sign in to post.

- Your Recommendation is appreciated: Luxury travel to Switzerland and North Italy

Honestly I need your expert advice.

I'm a luxury traveller who expect high standards in everything. I'm planning a very special trip this summer (August 10th - Sept 1st) with my Parents and adult 2 sisters to Europe and I definetly looking for your advice.

Few things about us that I think will be helpful to you to know:
- We are looking for something luxury and top notch.
- We will not drive, so cities with easy access public transportations and taxi).

First: Switzerland (very flexible)
we are looking for stay in 2 cities ( one major and the other is a resorts town) :

a- One major vibrant tourist destination city with nice scenery over the lake either around Lake Geneva (Montreux, Geneva or Lausanne) or lake Zurich (Zurich and Luzern)? which one do you suggest ( vibrant and non boring) from your experience.?

b- A couple of Days in a Swiss Breathtaking Luxury Resorts Town? I was browsing the internet and there are so many towns that I impossible to choose from by myself without an advice! ( Interlaken, Zermatt, gstaad, St. Moritz , Adermatt ...etc) which one is the top notch in terms of scenery and luxury?

Second: Italy - preferably by train

a- Milan is a must for shopping (for a week) and a night in Venice as well.

b- 2-3 nights in either ( lake como , Lugano, Maggiore , Garda) which one of the lakes you prefer?

P.S: Budget is not an issue, I'm looking for the best of the best places to make the trip truly unique.

Thank you so much for your time in advance, I really truly appreciate it.

Sincere.

Meloni

Posted by
15678 posts

Personally, I think a week in Milan is far too much and 1 night in Venice is far too little. I'd suggest subtracting some nights from the one to add to the other. By the time you'd gotten there from whatever city you were traveling from, there would be be very little time left to see much of it at all, it's higher on the 'uniqueness' scale than Milan, and there are other small nearby islands (Burano, Murano, etc.) to explore.

Posted by
7179 posts

It is extremely late to be planning a luxury vacation in August. For example, I toyed with the Italian lake district, but the real high-end places sell out "in season" months in advance. There are plenty of hotels, but no more rooms at your level. August is vacation month in Europe, and there are plenty of well-off travelers already resident there! You are going to have to take your fourth or fifth choice of hotel in any case. I would suggest that you contact a high end travel agent, who may have special connections, and who can make a living from the relatively high commissions at expensive hotels.

Posted by
8 posts

Luxury in Venice might be in Lido or another island nearby. Check them out as they are less crowded.

Posted by
2111 posts

Agree with the others that it is going to be hard (maybe not impossible) to find rooms at top-rated places this late (if you are talking about this year). If next year, no problem.

What I would suggest is:

1) Check Conde Nast magazine's Gold List of the world's best hotels to see what's on it for Switzerland

2) Google luxury resorts/hotels Switzerland

3) Check the various itineraries for Tauck Tours (to see which hotels they use), as their travel style is definitely luxury

And, AFTER you secure your reservations, please let us all know what your chose and where you were able to find wonderful places for next month. The reason I don't think it is impossible to find SOME great places is because things happen, and people sometimes have to cancel reservations at the last minute. But, it might be impossible to secure reservations at all your first choices, in which case you may have to "settle" for the best of what's left.

Have a wonderful trip!!

Posted by
262 posts

Here's an article which you may find of interest. I agree with the recommendation to find a luxury travel agent. They will be able to match your criteria for vibrant and non boring, will have the connections to find availability for your dates of travel. I would also stay longer in Venice and shorten Milan or the lakes.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/neloliviawaga/2015/11/06/the-art-of-relaxing-5-swiss-luxury-hotels-with-outstanding-spas/#6cde71d14a91

Posted by
437 posts

I would pick Zermatt and if money was no problem I would stay on the mountain at Riffelhaus 1853. A search on booking.com shows they have two rooms available for dates within your window. I would call them immediately and stay 3 or more nights.

I would try Lausanne for your city on the lake and ride the boat to Chillion Castle.

Also I agree that Venice needs at least 3 nights, but I would not stay on Lido but would pick something near St. Marks Square where I could walk about before breakfast when it is empty and amazing.

You may need to be a bit flexible on dates to get the best places but I bet you can find luxury lodging if you start booking today. The high end places probably can handle phone calls at any time of day and speak English.

What a fun puzzle - I spent a few minutes dreaming of returning to Venice and staying in unbelievably expensive places! If it was me and I just won the lottery, I would book today.

http://www.booking.com/searchresults.en-gb.html?label=gen173nr-1FCAEoggJCAlhYSDNiBW5vcmVmcgV1c19jb4gBA5gBLrgBCcgBD9gBAegBAfgBC6gCAw;sid=9373438db266c38410383c2f1ff62b00;dcid=1;checkin_monthday=28;checkin_year_month=2016-8;checkout_monthday=1;checkout_year_month=2016-9;city=-132007;class_interval=1;dtdisc=0;group_adults=5;group_children=0;highlighted_hotels=85111;hlrd=0;hyb_red=0;inac=0;label_click=undef;nha_red=0;no_rooms=3;postcard=0;redirected_from_city=0;redirected_from_landmark=0;redirected_from_region=0;review_score_group=empty;room1=A;room2=A%2CA;room3=A%2CA;sb_price_type=total;sb_travel_purpose=business;score_min=0;src=hotel;ss=Venice;ss_all=0;ssb=empty;sshis=0;ssne=Venice;ssne_untouched=Venice&;;nflt=class%3D5%3B;filter_used=class-5

Enjoy the trip!

Posted by
3551 posts

As it is late to be reserving hotels best go for a chain like less luxury Sofitel or Ritz.
Good Luck.

Posted by
19637 posts

Zermatt. Grand Hotel Zermatterhof. Its way out of my price range, but it is the classic Zermatt luxury hotel.

Posted by
11294 posts

If Terri Lynn doesn't respond to this thread, send her a private message.

Posted by
3057 posts

I checked for luxury hotels in Montreux and found rooms for your dates at the Fairmont Le Montreux Palace with lake view etc.

http://www.fivestaralliance.com/luxury-hotels/626/europe/switzerland/montreux

For a mountain resort I suggest either Zermatt or St Moritz.

The luxury hotel in Venice would be the Cipriani but I did not check for vacancies. Not familiar with Milan but I agree with others that a week is too long there! even if you do a lot of shopping.

Posted by
3057 posts

OK, so. Checked the Cipriani in Venice. They do have rooms available in your August timeframe, starting at €1500 a night. But you said budget is not an issue, and this hotel is definitely "the best of the best."

Posted by
16025 posts

Perhaps she got cold feet when she saw the price of the Cipriani. But there are less expensive luxury hotels in Venice. My brother-in-law loves luxury hotels and can afford them, but was appalled at that price and found a lovely hotel for much less.

Posted by
3387 posts

Vevey is a small, lovely town on the shore of Lake Geneva near Lausanne and Montreux. One of the nicest hotels on the shores of the lake is in this town...the Grand Hotel du Lac. It's quite luxurious and meets the highest standards. From there you can easily explore everything along the shores of the lake from east to west!
If you want an exclusive mountain resort town I would suggest Verbier, about an hour+ east of Vevey. It's expensive, beautiful, and quite an enclave. The views from the town as well as from the top of the gondola are breathtaking. It's a fairly well-kept secret in Switzerland but many royals and celebs keep residences here in this small town. It's a lovely place in the summertime!
Hope this helps!

Posted by
32171 posts

Meloni,

I've sent you a PM with a suggestion.

Posted by
782 posts

Good luck,I just booked for Arles,Annecy,Chaminoux and Lyon for next April and May and had to take third and fourth choices,only got my first choice in Paris because I go there all the time.
Mike