ZEITGEIST in ZURICH

摘要

When family-owned Michel Reybier Hospitality acquired Zurich's famed-but-faded Eden au Lac hotel in 2014, it became the fourth member of the developer's Victoria-Jungfrau Hotels brand. Despite its prime position on Lake Zurich, it was tired and lacked a strong identity among the city's 4- and 5-star hotels, says the group's CEO, Raouf Finan. As the team pondered the property's renovation, they realized it presented a real opportunity to offer Zurich something new and upgraded it to the La Reserve collection, joining those in Geneva and Paris designed by Jacques Garcia and in Ramatuelle, France, designed by Jean-Michel Wilmotte. After a two-year restoration by starchitect Phillipe Starck, the refreshed La Reserve Eden au Lac was reopened in January -just in time to close temporarily due to COVID-19. It reopened in May. According to Finan, Zurich's luxury and business hotels epitomize classic Swiss hospitality, but trendier, laid-back and more accessible destinations didn't exist. In addition, the city's "education mile" currently under development is part of a rebrand to show itself as more than just a financial hub. This cultural trail will link theaters, galleries and museums, including the 2021 debut of an extension to the Kunsthaus museum housing the world's largest collection of Dada art, the early 20th-century avant-garde movement that originated here.