Photograph by Anne Emmanuelle Thion

In the final part of our luxury travel views column from our Summer 2021 issue, LUX editor-in-chief Darius Sanai discovers the subtle grandeur of Domaine Les Crayères in the Champagne region of France

If the method of departure from a hotel leaves a lasting memory, so too does a welcome. The luxury hotel where the doorman ignored you, or wasn’t there in your moment of need, is likely emblazoned on your heart. And the welcome at the Domaine Les Crayères was something else. It was a five-hour drive, roof down into the sun, from Baden-Baden to the outskirts of Reims in the Champagne region of France; after some moments of interest passing through (but sadly not stopping in) the wonderful hills of Alsace, the road was relentless. Crunching down the drive and drawing up to the grand mansion, I felt like nothing more than passing out on a cool bed for half an hour before an early dinner, ahead of my day of meetings the following day.

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The doorman whisked my door open and ushered me in; reception was a brief formality; all good. And then: “We would like to invite you onto our terrace for a glass of champagne, monsieur.” Really, I thought, like this? I was wearing black jeans and a polo, not evening wear. I was assured it would be fine. Still swaying from the drive, I walked out onto a broad terrace above a long stretch of parkland garden, was shown to my table and poured a glass of their champagne. Canapés appeared. The sun was about to set but still a few centimetres above the treetops; it was warm, and the terrace was scattered with lively and appropriately spaced couples. What had seemed like a slightly bad idea on arrival – shouldn’t you have a glass of champagne before dinner? – turned out to be a stroke of genius. A blanc de blancs champagne is reviving, not soporific, and when I finally went up to my room at sunset, I felt energised.

One of the hotel’s elegant bedrooms

My room, at the top corner of the château, was elegant and elaborately decorated, with a view out over the same parkland. Although it is on the edge of Reims, the feel is peaceful: you have no sense of being in a big city, but nevertheless I walked to my meetings in the centre of town the next morning (full disclosure: it was a couple of kilometres each way, and I was working on my step count after a lot of driving).

Read more: Professor Peter Newell on why the wealthy need to act on climate change

You come to Champagne to drink champagne (or in my case to meet clients who own champagne houses), and you come to the Crayères for the best possible base while doing so – and to drink champagne and most of all to dine in its two Michelin-starred restaurant.

The atmosphere here, in its intimate dining room, was surprising in a positive way: it wasn’t so grand and formal that guests felt they had to dine in a hush. And yet the chef Philippe Mille and his creativity were very much front and centre. As well as à la carte, you can choose from various menus including an ‘Escape into the Vines’ menu. This was an astonishing piece of imagination and artistry, and so far beyond a mere manifestation of its ingredients that it would do it a disservice to describe it by the ingredients of each individual course.

A foie gras dish from the two Michelin-starred restaurant at Domaine Les Crayères

There were seven courses, created to work in sequence like a story and woven together by a freshness and life so often missing from formal French dining where heavy saucing is a substitute for imagination. Oh, OK, I will describe just one of them: lobster from the Iles de Chausey, grilled on vine shoots, with shells juice (no typo there) and pinot meunier.

The champagne list – encyclopaedia, really – is extensive but what is really impressive is the selection of small-grower champagnes, many of them just farmers making champagne on their smallholding, many of them cheap, unavailable elsewhere and absolutely delicious. I do not usually seek the advice of sommeliers, finding them too often beholden to their own tastes or trends, but here, stay away from the brands you know, and seek one of these out. A unique and highly repeatable experience.

Book your stay: lescrayeres.com

This article originally appeared in the Summer 2021 issue.

Markus Neff in the kitchen at Gütsch. Image by Valentin Luthiger

At the top of the 2,300 metre-high Gütsch-Express mountain station in the Swiss ski resort of Andermatt resides Markus Neff’s Michelin-starred restaurant Gütsch. Ahead of the resort’s reopening for the summer season, we speak to the chef about the challenges of running a high altitude restaurant and his childhood memories of family cooking

1. Tell us more about your dining concept “From Valley Low to Mountain High” – what does that mean exactly?

It means using everything that the mountains and the valley have to offer, preferably regional and Swiss products, but also everything else if the quality is right. Cuisine for everyone.

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2. Who or what has influenced your tastes in food and cooking?

My mother’s cuisine, childhood memories (back then without fast food), my father’s Sunday roasts, and a lot of curiosity.

3. What’s your typical process for developing a new dish?

It starts by having an idea, then bringing it to the plate. It often comes from the gut, but can also be triggered by regular customers who want something new or new products.

Gütsch boasts spectacular views over the Alps

4. How do you think your cooking style has evolved over the years?

I’m always looking for something new, and try to be open to everything, but at the same time, I preserve the signature of my kitchen and avoid jumping on every trend.

Read more: Meet the new generation of artisanal producers

5. What are some of the challenges of running a fine dining restaurant at high altitude?

The transport of goods, the height at which we work, weather conditions and sometimes, time pressure (but that last one has nothing to do with altitude).

6. Can you give us any clues of what to expect from the new season menu at Gütsch?

The menu will only be done at the beginning of the season, but you can certainly except fresh products, homemade pasta, dishes adapted to the summer. Let us surprise you!

Gütsch reopens for the season on 3 July 2021. For the latest updates and more information visit: guetsch.com

Hôtel de l’Etrier is located in the sunny Alpine resort of Crans-Montana

Why should I go now?

While many Swiss resorts suffer from “deep valley” syndrome in midwinter, with the sun hidden by peaks for most of the day, Crans-Montana is both snowy (it sits at 1450m and its top station is at 3000m) and sunny, as it’s on a south-facing shelf high above the deep Rhône valley. Hôtel de l’Etrier is a Crans-Montana institution: take one of its recently refurbished, Alpine-contemporary pine clad, coolly lit south-facing rooms with a big balcony, and you have one of the best views of any Alpine hotel, and one of the sunniest locations.

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What’s the lowdown?

L’Etrier is a three minute walk from the main Crans lift station (you can leave your skis at the lift station rental store, which incidentally does an excellent line in Swiss Stoeckli skis, among our favourites). Step into the hotel and you have a picture-window view from the bar across the Valais Alps; there are few better places to relax with a long cocktail after (or maybe before) a day on the excellent Crans slopes.

The hotel has a spa and indoor pool, which connects to an outside swimming pool in summer

You also have access to two of this foodie village’s most well-known restaurants without even stepping outside, as a passageway leads to the Michelin-starred Pas de l’Ours restaurant and its more casual counterpart, the Bistrot de l’Ours, serving signature dishes such as candied pig shank with curry, beer cabbage, juniper and apple vitelotte.

The bar offers a cosy atmosphere for casual dining, whilst le Fer à Cheval restaurant (below) serves traditional Swiss alpine cuisine

The bar in the hotel itself is supremely relaxed and serves casual food, and this was our favourite hangout of all, in a deep armchair by a picture window looking out at the dramatic view. Many Alpine hotels nestle deep in valleys and views are limited; not so here. There is also an indoor pool (connecting outside in summer) and spa/wet area.

Getting horizontal

Our “superior” room was just that. It wasn’t the last word in high luxury, and l’Etrier is not priced as such, being a four-star hotel. But we preferred it to rooms we have had in some of Europe’s (and Switzerland’s) grandest institutions. The light pine and modern lighting decor were just right; the furnishings were light and contemporary without being irritatingly over-designed and the emphasis was on comfort.

Read more: Andermatt’s new high-altitude restaurants

One of the hotel’s spacious suites

The balcony had such magnificent views across the resort, below, the woods around it and across the Rhône valley to the giant peaks of the Pennine Alps surrounding the distant resorts of Zermatt and Zinal, that we spent an evening sitting and admiring the rose-coloured sunset, despite the increasing Alpine winter cold. Some rooms are just right in terms of general vibe: this was a room you didn’t want to leave, in the evenings, as the canopy of stars emerged above the mountains and valley.

Flipside

Crans-Montana is quite a spread-out resort and none of its top hotels can claim to be quite in the centre of things; L’Etrier is no different, and while it’s very near the main lift, it’s an eight minute walk (or two minute shuttle) to the centre of Crans, one of the two villages.

Rates: From 200 CHF  (approx. £150 /€200/ $200)

Book your stay: hoteletrier.ch

Darius Sanai

St. James’s Hotel and Club is tucked into a quiet corner of Mayfair

London might seem spoilt for hotels, but if you’re looking for small-scale, intimate luxury it’s not so easy to find – especially in Central. This is where St. James’s Hotel and Club comes in with a Michelin-starred restaurant and hands-on masterclasses

Tucked in a quiet residential street on the edge of Green Park, almost directly behind The Ritz, St. James’s Hotel and Club benefits from proximity to Piccadilly and Regent’s Street, whilst also offering a sense of relative seclusion. The building itself was originally a members’ club for travelling diplomats, founded in 1857 by English aristocrat and the Sardinian minister. It played host to the likes of Winston Churchill, Henry James and Ian Fleming, among others, until it closed in the 1970s. In 1980, the doors were reopened by Peter de Savary (owner of The Cary Arms in Devon) as a hotel and a club. Now owned by German hotel group Althoff, the hotel has been refurbished with contemporary touches, whilst still preserving a sense old-world charm.

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Our room is the Westminster Suite on the seventh floor. The ambience leans slightly towards the corporate side, but it’s elegantly furnished and features a private terrace, large enough to host a cocktail party. On a less drizzly evening than ours, it would be a very pleasant place for a warming glass of mulled wine whilst admiring the rooftop views. As it is, we have a chocolate masterclass to get attend.

Rooms are decorated with elegant, contemporary furnishings

The Westminster Suite’s private terrace

The masterclass is just one of the hotel’s offerings for guests, alongside cheese and wine pairing, and cocktail mixing. Our class is held in a smart basement meeting room and is led by the convivial pastry chef, who shows us how to make and roll truffles whist we sip on glasses of champagne. The class, unlike those at many five-star hotels, is very hands-on, and whilst our truffles come out oddly shaped (some collapsing completely) it’s a lot more fun making than watching. Better yet, our truffles are whisked away to solidify and then returned to our room in ribbon tied bags with a kit containing ingredients and recipes so that we can make more at home. White chocolate passion fruit truffles are a revelation.

Read more: Oceania Cruises’ Managing Director on luxury hospitality at sea

The hotel offers a series of masterclasses including chocolate truffle making with the restaurant’s pastry chef

Pre-dinner drinks are served in William’s Bar and Bistro – a cosy and eccentric cocktail bar with a particularly impressive collection of paintings. These are part of the Rosenstein Collection, which includes more than 450 artworks in total, many of which are portraits and can be found dotted around the hotel. We thoroughly enjoy discussing the work whilst sipping cocktails and nibbling on British tapas plates. Guests can also dine here if they choose.

Read more: Panerai x Bucherer launch their latest BLUE collection timepiece

Tonight, though, we have a table booked at the hotel’s Michelin-starred Seven Park Place restaurant. The dining room is comprised of only a handful of tables tucked into a curved room with elaborately patterned walls and soft velvet seats. The menu – here and in the bar – is overseen by Head Chef William Drabble with a focus on the best of British produce which means seasonal plates and locally sourced ingredients. During our stay, the emphasis is on fresh fish and seafood, which, as pescetarian diners, suits us perfectly. Our favourites include the poached lobster tail with a buttery truffle sauce, and the seabass with braised Jerusalem artichokes, wild mushrooms and a red wine and tarragon sauce. Since the wine menu is nearly fifty pages long, we’re more than grateful for the sommelier’s assistance who pairs our courses perfectly to suit our individual tastes.

The service, in general, is friendly and relaxed, which makes for a very welcoming atmosphere. It’s perhaps not the most family-orientated hotel as noise levels are kept to a low hum, and the property itself is small, but for a luxurious city-break or staycation, it ticks all the boxes.

Book your stay: stjameshotelandclub.com

Note: Seven Park Place restaurant closed for refurbishment after our stay, but has recently reopened with a new look. For more information visit: stjameshotelandclub.com/en/restaurant-seven-park-place

Once owned by renowned gardener William Robinson, Gravetye Manor is famed for its beautiful grounds

Why should I go now?

The English countryside is at its most beautiful in the final few weeks of summer; leaves are turning golden, mornings are bright and fresh, and the evenings are still long. Nestled within a thousand acres of lush fields and wild gardens, Gravetye Manor offers a serene escape from city life.

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What’s the lowdown?

Once the home of celebrated Irish gardener William Robinson, Gravetye is a grand Elizabethan manor house with gardens easily as beautiful and varied as those at the neighbouring estate of Wakehurst (Kew’s offshoot). It’s an hour from London by train and close by to several National Trust properties as well as a vintage railway. Unsurprisingly then, the hotel tends to attract an older crowd; most guests have been coming to the hotel for years, which gives the whole place a homely, relaxed feel.

Gravetye Manor sits amidst a thousand acre country estate

Times are changing though. Last year saw the opening of the hotel’s new, ultra contemporary  Michelin-star restaurant The Dining Room. The space, much like head chef George Blogg‘s menu, focuses on the natural surroundings with wall-to-ceiling windows and tables positioned right up against the glass. At night, the gardens are prettily light by bulbs.

Read more: Why we love Hublot’s ‘Cruise’ collection

The Dining Room, Gravetye’s one Michelin-star restaurant

The restaurant’s tasting menu follows the concept of ‘Time & Place’ with a series of small, delicate dishes inspired by the estate’s various locations such as it’s bountiful walled garden (in summer this garden supplies 95 per cent of the hotel’s fresh produce). Amongst our favourites were scallops cured in pickled elderflower, turbot with lobster bisque and caramelised white chocolate with apricot.

‘Walled Garden’, one of the dishes from tasting menu with a confit egg yolk, flowers and vegetables

Although facilities are somewhat limited, there’s a croquet lawn and several cosy lounge areas for relaxing with a book. Reception supplies laminated maps of walking routes varying from one to four hours (including suggestions of pub stops along the way) and the staff are refreshingly unstuffy.

Getting horizontal

Throughout the hotel, the style is classic grandeur with wood panelled walls, thick drape curtains, padded window seats and plush sofas. Our room, Holly, was at the front of the house with stunning views of the green, sloping countryside and a huge four-poster bed. The bathroom was spacious and understated with piles of fluffy towels, a bathtub and shower. The welcome bowl of freshly picked strawberries felt wholesome and down-to-earth.

Holly, one of the hotel’s Exclusive Deluxe Double rooms featuring a four-poster bed

Flipside

It’s a shame there isn’t the option of spa treatments, but that said, there is also something rather lovely about Gravetye’s homely, more grounded approach to luxury.

Rates from: £650 for an Exclusive Double Room during the summer months (approx. €700 /$750)

Book your stay: gravetyemanor.co.uk

Millie Walton

Le Negresco hotel is the epitome of the French riviera

Why should I go now?

July is the month the city of Nice, capital of the French riviera, comes alive. Beaches are lively but not yet as teeming as in August, the nightlife is in full swing, the weather is warm and the sea is blue. If only there were a place to rise above it all – oh, wait, there is.

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What’s the lowdown?

Le Negresco is the epitome of the French riviera, with art and glamour at its heart. Whether you’re a fan of Princess Grace or Niki de St Phalle, Dalí or Louis Armstrong, there is something in the hotel to touch you – the grand facade even hides a roomful of street art.

The hotel’s two Michelin-starred restaurant Le Chantecler

Meanwhile you can hone your Riviera as it suits you; there’s live music every night on the Terrace, which looks out onto the Promenade des Anglais, the classic curved boulevard looping along the Mediterranean seafront; or disappear into old-world elegance in the two Michelin-starred Le Chantecler restaurant, with its 18th century grandeur.

Read more: Ruinart x Jonathan Anderson’s pop-up hotel in Notting Hill

Getting Horizontal

There are different styles of room as well as different price-categories. Decor in the rooms is a blend of classical and super-contemporary with suitably artistic touches in fixtures, fittings and funky wall coverings; meanwhile a sea view junior suite transports you to a time when the French riviera was pretty much the only seaside destination for anyone wealthy enough to visit on their Grand Tour, with rich classical furnishings.

One of the luxurious suites at Le Negresco

Flipside

Nice is a city with a rich cultural programme, and teeming with restaurants, bars, museums, gardens and artisanal shopping. The Negresco is the seafront hotel literally at the heart of it all, so it’s not a place to be if you want to be away from the world. But for a few nights of summer living, we love it.

Rates from: €155 per room ($200/£150)

Book your stay: hotel-negresco-nice.com

Darius Sanai

Once the residence of the Grand Duke of Tuscany Leopold II, L’Andana sits amongst olive groves and vineyards

Why should I go now?

Long, bright days, undulating fields of wild flowers and balmy evenings. Tuscany is beautiful all year round, but many locals will tell you that June is when the landscape is at its most spectacular. You’re also ahead of the crowds. Come July the region is flooded with tourists, and temperatures are soaring – admittedly both are more urban issues, but if seclusion and romance is what you’re after, you’re best to avoid the height of peak season even in rural areas.

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What’s the lowdown?

L’Andana is located in the Maremma region of Tuscany, roughly a 2 hours drive from Pisa and Florence, and a 10 minute drive from the pretty seaside town of Castiglione della Pescaia, and the beach. If you’re keen to explore, it’s pretty much essential to hire a car, but there’s no real need to leave the hotel grounds; there are acres of fields, an outdoor swimming pool and a small, but lovely spa with a heated pool, sauna, steam room and jacuzzi.

There are lots of spaces for relaxing, such as the spa (above) and the reception lounge, a conservatory which joins the two villas

The main villa was once the residence of the Grand Duke of Tuscany Leopold II and the traditional Tuscan grandeur has been maintained to give the whole place an elegant, stately feel. There are lots of cosy corners for relaxing and enough space that it never feels crowded. The reception lounge is one of our favourite spots come six o’clock when the fires are lit and the barman takes up his position to mix cocktails.

Michelin-star restaurant La Trattoria Enrico Bartolini

The Michelin-star restaurant La Trattoria Enrico Bartolini is well-known in the area and reservations are a must even for hotel guests. The tasting menu is superb and creative; tables are treated like canvases with each course artistically arranged on a crisp linen table cloth. The Porto Santo Spirito prawns served two ways (raw and fried) is our highlight along with all of the various desserts. Guests can also take part in cooking classes here, whilst Restaurant La Villa offers casual dining in the gardens or conservatory at the front of the villa.

Read more: Masseto’s spectacular new underground winery

Bedrooms are decorated in traditional Tuscan grandeur with antique furniture

Getting horizontal

The rooms are simply, but beautifully decorated with vintage furniture and fine fabrics. The best are those on the top floor of the main villa for their sweeping views of the olive groves, vineyards and rolling hills. We loved lying with the shutters open, basking in the bright morning sunshine.

Flipside

At this time of year, there are a surprising number of mosquitoes buzzing around which rather spoils the bliss. By the pool there’s a little table with a bottle of repellent (and suncream) for guests to use, but still, it’s worth being prepared.

Rates from: €440 per night based on two sharing, including breakfast ($500/£400)

To book your stay visit: andana.it

Millie Walton

Grand Hotel Kronenhof in winter with its natural ice rink

Winter is here, and the world’s illuminati, glitterati and party-rati are agglomerating in mountain resorts, from Aspen to St Moritz, to see the year out, talk about next year’s business over magnums of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, and, oh, also do some skiing between breakfast and long lunch.
Nowhere has such an aggregation of grand hotels as the Upper Engadine valley in Switzerland, home to St Moritz and a string of other villages studded around lakes, forests and various ski mountains.

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The discerning luxury traveller, looking for both solace and exclusivity, might be drawn away from the town of St Moritz and its Masseto-sipping revelers, and towards Pontresina, a village ten minutes’ drive away in an adjoining valley, and specifically to the Kronenhof, its most luxurious hotel (and sister to St Moritz’s own celebrated Kulm).

Why go now?

Late December and early January are when a significant section of Europe’s aristocracy decamp to the area; snow is plentiful right now, and you’re bound to know people to drop in on.

The welcome

Draw up the courtyard, at the lower end of a long high street studded with sixteenth and seventeenth century buildings, and you feel you have arrived at one of Europe’s grand old hotels. Doormen and receptionists have that perfect (and hard to find) blend of courtesy, genuine enthusiasm, and professionalism, without the over-formality of some hotels in the area that always makes you feel like you’re wearing the wrong shoes.

The grand lobby area

Walk through the reception area and you are in a vast, beautiful, series of high-ceilinged grand reception rooms, all with picture windows out over the forest and valley below; to one side is the Val Roseg and the high glaciers of the Bernina peaks.

Getting horizontal

Our suite was lushly but refreshingly decorated in eggshells and taupes; drawing the curtains revealed the same stunning view down over snow-laden pine and larch trees, across to the mountainside beyond, and the edge of St Moritz in view by the mountain’s right hand ridge. There was a spacious balcony for those chilled-out late night Cognacs.

A Deluxe Premium double room

A quick trot down a couple of marble staircases takes you to the Kronenhof’s piece de resistance, a vast spa and pool area carved into the mountainside at the bottom of the hotel. The huge pool, with windows all round, has a mesmerising panorama across the Engadine valley, to the mountains separating this beautiful and isolated region from the rest of Switzerland. From the spa pools, indoor and outdoor in the snow-covered garden, you can see the Corviglia ski mountain above St Moritz with crystal clarity; we liked melting into the spa pools and looking at the mountain we had been skiing on.

Read more: Model and actress Adrianna Gradziel on female solidarity

The hotels dining options include the Grand Restaurant (pictured here) and Kronenstübli

Anything else?

The Kronenhof’s restaurant, the Kronenstubli, is based in the original owner’s house above what were the hotel’s stables in centuries gone by.  There is also a grand dining room where very thorough Swiss breakfasts (including just about every herb, nut and seed going) and lavish dinners are served, and a beautifully laid out children’s dining room, a miniature version of the same, next door.

After dinner, stroll along the town’s ancient high street, taking in the views – it’s on a ledge above the valley floor – and steeling yourself for the next day’s skiing. As classy as it gets, without the crowds.

Winter rates: From CHF565 for two sharing a double on a half-board basis (approx. €500/ $600/£450)

To book your stay visit: kronenhof.com

Darius Sanai