A Swiss splurge for those who love five-star service without the five-star fuss | Canada Voices

Everyone is looking for that travel unicorn: a destination that hasn’t been overrun with visitors and big resorts. So when you find one, you wonder if it’s too good to be true. This went through my mind when I was overcome by excruciatingly loud cowbells in Adelboden, a village in the Swiss Alps. All local traffic stopped to watch a dozen cows with really big bells pass through the main street. How Swiss was this, I thought.

Why I travel: From Georgia to Iran, from Italy to Turkey, there’s always a snowy slope I want to ski

Located in the Bernese Oberland Alps, Adelboden is well-known within the country for hiking and skiing with its 200 kilometres of slopes and 70 lifts, which cross into three valleys. A World Cup FIS slalom race every January attracts some international attention but most visitors ignore the town, flocking to glamazon destinations such as Zermatt, St. Moritz and Gstaad.

Adelboden sits at the end of a long and winding alpine road. It is peaceful here, and home to about 3,000 people. There are no designer boutiques but there are cows grazing between chalets. Even better, there is a new boutique hotel that will turn Adelboden into a must-visit for sybaritic skiers and anyone else who appreciates five-star service without the five-star fuss.

Why you should visit

The Brecon opened quietly this past summer. Welsh hotelier Grant Maunder has a long relationship with this town – he visited as a child on holiday and his heart never left. The Brecon, named after a town in Wales, is his new 18-room and four-suite all-inclusive chalet, a cozy escape where the kitchen and the bar always seem to be open. (All meals and alcoholic beverages are included in the starting rate of 755 Swiss francs, about $1,200, a room per night.)

The decor is delightfully understated – full of carefully curated pieces that don’t feel carefully curated. The lobby is more like a living room. Mid-century wooden chairs and a marble dining table are placed near comfortable, second-hand leather armchairs. A fancy Swiss-made Vitra sofa is within reach of reading material that’s not there to match the aesthetic but because the books and magazines are interesting to read. I flipped through one about historic ski resorts, until I spotted a 1997 Vogue with Arnold Schwarzenegger in skis on the cover.

Our room was just as warmly decorated and chic without overdoing it: Aesop lotions in the bathroom, linen sheets, down duvets and a wool blanket from Welsh mill Melin Tregwynt were noticeably fine touches in an already impressive suite. And on a rainy, chilly day, the wood-burning fireplace in our room was just what we needed.

Since you’re in the neighbourhood

No matter how comfortable the Brecon is, it’s a shame to spend all day inside. Down the street discover many outdoor-gear shops and Schmid Kaese, a cheese boutique where yummy samples lead to purchases. Ski slopes are up and running now but during my October visit, my husband and I spent every clear day finding a new cable car to go hiking and admire the Heidi-like views. (At check-in, Brecon staff e-mail guests a free bus pass offered by the town to see the sights if you don’t already have a Swiss Transit pass.)

On top of Tschentenalp we found a big swing where I sat, swung and felt on top of the world. Another day we craned our necks to admire the 600-metre Engstligen waterfall. We then got into a cable car to reach Engstligenalp plateau at 1,900-metre elevation. Up here, many wildflowers had dried into exquisitely preserved pieces of art, so I did my best not to step on them. Further along the alpine trail, we rested in mountain huts and were struck by how the fall had mellowed summer greenery into golden folds of amber and tan.

On the day it rained, a public bus dropped us at the trailhead for the Choleren Gorge. Already wet, we didn’t mind the spray from the thundering river as we entered a 100-metre slot canyon. We carefully made our way along a skinny metal pathway clinging to the rock wall. It was thrilling, loud and slightly terrifying. The gorge trail ended mid-mountain and the hike turned into a long uphill wander past chalets and cows and goats to find our bus. If I hadn’t felt like I was living like a local before, I sure did now.

Room for improvement

The Brecon is at the far end of the main street in Adelboden and sometimes the chalet was a little too quiet. This might be because we visited in October, a great time for fall colours – and fewer travellers. No matter how welcoming the staff are, it’s always more fun to mingle and meet other guests over drinks. Which is exactly what Maunder envisions for the Brecon. One night staff suggested we dine down the street at the Cambrian hotel (another high-end property Maunder owns) so we wouldn’t feel weird as the only guests at dinner. This was much appreciated and gave us a glimpse into this lively and busier property. Its Axe Bar & Grill is where I’ll head for après-ski on my next visit.

The take-away

The Brecon’s outdoor infinity hot tub is one of the hotel’s great perks. I’d slip in, turn on the jets and let my eyes drift up to the mountains that extend in all directions. The gloriously chill spa also offers wet and dry saunas, showers and chaises longues to fall asleep on. Access is reserved for hotel guests and included with your stay. Which is what makes the Brecon a great choice for a Swiss splurge: It’s a cocoon of comfort and inclusions – from meals to afternoon tea, from cocktails before dinner and wine with dinner to a generous in-room mini-bar – so all you need to do is sleep, ski (or hike or bike) and check out of the cares that fill your normal life.

• To reach the Brecon in Adelboden, Switzerland, take the train to Frutigen and book a car with the hotel, or hop on the local bus for an hour-long scenic ride through the Alps. The hotel is also a 45-minute drive from Bern or just more than two hours from Zurich. thebrecon.com
• For more information on exploring the Adelboden-Lenk-Kandersteg valleys, visit adelboden-lenk-kandersteg.ch

The writer was a guest of the hotel. It did not review or approve the story before publication.