SWITZERLAND SCORES HIGH


By Viviane Vogels

After an uneventful but early (7 am!) flight from Brussels to Geneva, our small party arrived in Geneva Airport from where we proceeded on a small walk to the train station conveniently located in the airport.

We may joke about Swiss trains and watches, but it is a fact that taking a train in Switzerland is a painless experience: they run on time, they are scrupulously clean and surprisingly comfortable. The trip along Lake Geneva to the city of Lausanne was scenic and puts the traveler straight in the mood for what Switzerland is all about: picture postcard views of the great lake with snow-covered mountains in the background and a series of small villages and towns such as Montreux to distract from those magnificent vistas.

FIRST STOP: LAUSANNE
45 minutes later we arrive at our first destination: the city of Lausanne.
The city was founded on 3 hills and, although just a small city, Lausanne is on first impression a bit of a ‘Grande Dame’ nestling in splendor on the border of the lake with the mountains in her back. The pace is not very hurried, the feeling is one of quiet opulence, the living is definitely good in Lausanne. It is a city that can woo its visitors with its medieval city centre, beautiful shops, numerous museums and galleries, restaurants and cafés.

Lausanne is a city of many aspects: not only the city has a rich cultural history, but today it hosts many festivals and large events. Lausanne has a University, many Professional schools such as the famous ‘Ecole Hôtelière de Lausanne’ and many others. But Lausanne also profiles itself as a business travel and convention city. With over 40 hotels offering more than 5,000 beds, the Beaulieu-Lausanne convention centre and many other venues, the city is ideally situated for meetings, conventions and incentives and the perfect starting point for many excursions and cruises on the lake.
www.lausanne-tourisme.ch

Last but not least Lausanne is also the city of sports. Consecrated Olympic Capital in 1994, Lausanne is home to the IOC (International Olympic Committee) and of the main institutions linked to the Olympic Movement. It also boasts more than 300 sports clubs and associations offering a vast variety of sports to the visitor.
The Jewel in the Crown, in my opinion, is the Olympic Museum situated on the borders of Lake Geneva. It gives not only an overview of the history of the Games but with its collection of memorabilia, pictures, movies and exhibitions it brings the great moments of the Olympic Games back to life in a very attractive, pro-active and especially interesting way. An excellent restaurant and its modern lay-out make this an outstanding venue for the organizer looking for something out of the ordinary. Marvel at how little Jesse Owens’s feet were, how old fashioned the first ski’s were or the evolution of the spikes over the decades. The Olympic Museum brings out the child in you and for me it was definitely a trip down memory lane, I only wished we had more time to explore although the excellent guide managed to show us the highlights in a very short time.
www.olympic.org

SWISS VINEYARDS
A short ride from Lausanne, in the middle of the vineyards that are hanging perilously from the mountain flanks, we found out how good the different Swiss wines can be. The Domain du Daley produces excellent wines and has even started exporting some of its wines such as the Sushi wine(!) to other countries.

Situated high on the slopes of the mountain, the Domain du Daley has a nice little salon where small groups can taste the different wines whilst admiring the great views. And even though the lunch had been first class the selection of cured hams and old gruyere cheese went down a treat with the tasty wines!
www.daley.ch

OLD WORLD CHARM
That evening we were in for a treat: a night at the Beau-Rivage Palace Hotel.
As a hotelier I must say I reveled in the quiet comfort (with a Capital C!) and highly efficient service of this superb hotel which exudes old world charm. One cannot fault the attention to detail both in the rooms and the public areas, all done in excellent taste and with an eye for hassle-free service to make the most demanding travelers’ stay a pleasure.
The hotel was recently renovated and now offers a wide variety of function and meeting rooms for meetings and banquets going from 10 to 600 participants ranging from the ultramodern to the authentic old rooms as they were created over a century ago.

The views of the gardens and lakes, the great terraces, the marble lobby and staircases, the cosy lounges and the attentive staff are a pleasure to behold. During our visit the best was kept for last: the ‘Spa 5 Mondes’, an oasis of Zen calm and relaxation with an indoor and outdoor pool, many treatment rooms and great views of the 4 acres park surrounding the hotel.

The hotel offers 169 rooms including 26 junior suites and 7 Executive suites. Fine dining is also a must, that evening we were treated to a delicious meal in the bustling Café Beau-Rivage where especially the famous desert trolley caught all of our attention! Rest assured, we did it proud!
It was a most pleasant ending and an excellent night’s sleep after a full and interesting day.
www.brp.ch

DAY TWO: VILLARS-SUR-OLLON

Another easy train ride and a short coach trip later we climb up the mountain and find ourselves in the lovely little village of Villars-sur-Ollon. The biggest advantage of Villars is its proximity to the main towns and airport. Villars is a typical mountain village, nestled on a natural flat roc formation looking to the South and thus guaranteeing good sun exposure. Villars has more than 700 beds in four 4-star hotels and looks forward to the opening of 2 new 5-star hotels with wellness facilities.

We are staying at the Hotel Bristol and even with the low clouds, fall immediately in love with the great views from all the rooms. Each room has a balcony facing south and giving a full frontal view of the ‘Dents du Midi’ mountains. When later on the sun comes out, I even glimpse the Mont Blanc in the distance. www.bristol-villars.ch

The resort, whilst reflecting the pristine natural splendor of its setting, has the amenities to provide for an ideal stay in summer as well as in winter. The list of potential activities is long and, especially as far as the MICE sector is concerned, offers an unexpected variety for a fairly small destination.  Winter is nature at its purest state and a world of exhilaration in the pristine snow with over 220 km of marked trails easily accessible by train or gondola: the most beautiful summits of Europe are at your fingertips!
In summer Villars is the place to leave your daily stress behind and admire the beauty of nature created 40 million years ago. The majesty, charm and serenity of the landscapes allow you to take full advantage of the true alpine zen.

Our group split up in skiers, snowboarders, walkers and ’Après-skiers’ like myself. We all met up for a splendid luncheon in the clubhouse of the Villars Golf Club. A place where I can imagine in summer it must be special to hit long drives whilst looking at the Mont Blanc!

TYPICAL SWISS HOSPITALITY
That evening we all piled in the little train that took us up the mountain where we enjoyed a typical Swiss evening with the inevitable cheese fondue to the tunes of Alpine horns and music. A relaxing evening full of laughter and discovery of local tradition to do with addressing a goats head (sic!) whilst drinking a good local wine and ‘trying’ to coax a sound out a mini horn…fun guaranteed!

Guy Chanel, Marketing Manager of Villars-Gryon, explained in detail how his office makes life easy for the event organizers as they centralize all requests and save time and energy, one-address shopping!
promotion@villars.ch
www.villars.ch

THE RETURN
Under the bluest sky and the sun reflecting like a thousand diamonds on the snowy mountains – yes, one becomes poetic when looking at such beauty! – we took a little train back down the mountains and eventually the same efficient train back to Geneva.
A short but very instructive and efficiently organized ( La Suisse, 12 points! ) fam trip, marred only by the total lack of service and information due to a strike on the Brussels Airlines flight back to Brussels, and this on their very first day, shame on you! That hiccup was certainly no reflection what so ever on the Benelux Switzerland Convention and Incentive Bureau’s friendly and professional support spearheaded by Myriam Winnepenninckx!

Myriam Winnepenninckx
Manager Meetings & Incentives Benelux
Switzerland Convention & Incentive Bureau c/o Switzerland Tourism
P.O.Box 1600 B-1000 Brussels
Direct ++ 32 (0)2 345 83 57
Fax ++ 32 (0)2 345 35 52
E-Mail myriam.winnepenninckx@switzerland.com

Switzerland. Where the world meets.
www.MySwitzerland.com