HUUS GSTAAD HOTEL

For a lot of folks, a trip is more about the area you are going to – the city, the surrounding area, the monuments – than it is the place you end up staying at when you decide to turn in for the day. That isn’t the case with the Huus Gstaad Hotel.

Just looking at photos of this place is enough to make us want to hop on a plane and set our course for the Swiss Alps and never leave. Despite its 136 rooms, the hotel has an incredibly welcoming feel to it. This, according to lead designer Erik Nissen Johansen, was part of the plan. Everything from the 500 book library to the fireplace, multiple bars, and four restaurants headed by an award winning chef are intended to give visitors the sense that they’re staying over at a close friend’s (or, you know, a friend who had a mansion in the mountains). In addition to all of the great amenities within the hotel, the resort also boasts well over 100 miles of hiking trails, skii slopes, and ample opportunity for cycling and rafting during the warmer months. Should visitors ever want to leave and go make the most of these amenities, the hotel equips them with hiking gear and top notch Zeiss Binoculars. You know. Standard practice. Prices are set at $200 a night.