Claudio Laager, photographed by Isabella Sheherazade Sanai

Claudio Laager is the General Manager of the Grand Hotel Kronenhof in Pontresina. A local to the Engadin valley, Laager brings a personal perspective to luxury hospitality, blending tradition with a hands-on approach that connects guests to the natural beauty surrounding the hotel. LUX speaks to him about the unique stay offered at the Kronenhof

LUX: How would you characterise the Kronenhof and Pontresina compared to the Kulm and St Moritz?

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Claudio Laager: Whereas St. Moritz attracts the international, lifestyle-focused set, Pontresina is a more typically Swiss holiday destination. People come here because of the beautiful nature and the original charm of the village. In St. Moritz you can buy luxury handbags in almost every store. Here in Pontresina, people are perfectly happy with the sports shops selling hiking and cross-country skiing equipment.

A view of the Grand Hotel Kronenhof from the surrounding snowy alps

LUX: What changes have you brought in under your management?

CL: When I took over the management in 2023, I decided to get closer to the guests and help them discover the beautiful landscape surrounding the Grand Hotel Kronenhof.

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As a local who grew up here, I know the best spots, and I regularly take guests out on excursions. Every Friday at dusk, for example, I take guests to the Val Bever for wildlife watching. It’s a different, authentic way to experience the Engadin valley.

LUX: Is summer in the Alps becoming more appealing for more people?

Hotel Kronenhof’s neo-Baroque Grand Restaurant, dating back to 1872

CL: Yes, summer in the Alps has so many advantages, not least the very mild, comfortable temperatures, especially compared to southern Europe at that time of year. It’s never crowded and wonderfully relaxed. Autumn is also a personal favourite of mine. During foliage season the forest takes on a golden glow and it’s quite something. We are one of the only five-star properties in the area to stay open in autumn, and we’re seeing more and more bookings and returning guests who have discovered the special allure of this time of year.

LUX: There are lots of luxury chain hotels opening now in the Alps. How is the Kronenhof able to compete?

CL: Well, I’m pretty sure it comes down to the uniqueness of the place itself, one of the oldest and most beautiful “Belle Époque” structures in the Alps, in a perfect location with breathtaking mountain views. That’s very hard to replicate. And then there’s the service element too. We strive for excellence, but we also look for personality in our staff. There has to be room for individuality.

A view of the alps from the lobby lounge

LUX: Is discreet luxury going to be lost with the rise of the social media generation?

CL: Not really. We’re actually seeing quite the opposite here. Guests come to disconnect and rediscover more analogue pleasures. For example, once guests are in-house, we prefer to communicate through handwritten notes. It’s a small detail, but it’s becoming an increasingly rare one.

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LUX: What is your exact favourite moment of the day, week, month and year to have a drink in your bar and what would you drink?

CL: My daily schedule doesn’t often allow me to wind down at work and have a drink. On my day off I usually enjoy simple beer or a good red wine.

kronenhof.com

Exterior view of the 19th-century Grand Hotel Kronenhof in the Swiss Alps

In a high valley near St Moritz, the Kronenhof in Pontresina combines Swiss culture with a Mediterranean mountain vibe. Who needs Portofino?

One of the drawbacks of being in the mountains is that you are at the bottom of a valley, in the shade, when all around you is bathed in sun. This is not a problem that the Kronenhof, in Pontresina, will ever have. The village of Pontresina is located on a south- facing shelf, above the bottom of the valley that connects St Moritz, in Switzerland, with the Bernina Pass over to Italy.

The entrance of the Grand Hotel Kronenhof

The Kronenhof, in prime position on this shelf, feels like it is floating above the forest coating the valley floor (and dropping into a precipitous gorge, if you look closely enough). And from the lawns outside its swimming pool area in summer, you can see the Alps lined up, facing you, glowing gold-green in the sun.

The whirlpool inside the hotel’s spa

It’s a strange and wonderful feeling, being here in summer. On the one hand, you are 1,800m (about 6,000ft) up in the mountains; the air is very precise, very pure, and will leave normal people puffing if they try to run.

The whirlpool inside the hotel’s spa

But on the other hand, this is the southern side of the Alps, contiguous with northern Italy and the South of France.

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The mountains to the north hold back the wet northern European weather and this is one of the sunniest parts of the continent, meaning you can sunbathe most days during the summer, while gazing up the valley, opposite, at the glaciers of the Bernina mountain range.

The luxury Bellaval suite, offering the most spectacular views in the hotel

If it does rain, just step inside. The pool, possibly the best in Switzerland, has a glasshouse view of the scenery, as well as a very therapeutic series of vitality pools and spa, above.

The Kronenhof Bar

Upstairs, the newly refurbished bar has brought a little urban chic to this mountain outpost, but, above all, this is a classic Alpine luxury retreat. The bars and clubs of St Moritz might be just a 10-minute drive away, round the forest, but you come to the Kronenhof, with its contemporary-chic bedrooms and light and views, to be in the centre of the high Alps, and also away from everywhere.

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Hike up the mountain and to the Segantini Hut with its views across half of Switzerland, visit the Alp Languard panoramic restaurant for a lunch of local roesti and meats, and be back for an apero in the bar. And then there’s the 200-year- old Kronenstübli restaurant with 16 Gault Millau points…

Find out more: kronenhof.com

This article appears in the Summer 2022 issue of LUX

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.

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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