Travel
Inside The Alpina Gstaad: “a biohacking Alpine wellness retreat”
Tim Samuels visits The Alpina Gstaad in Switzerland – for a luxurious mix of wellness, skiing and sensational gastronomy
There’s discretion – and then there’s discretion that secretes a hotel entrance inside an actual mountain. Welcome (if you can find it) to The Alpina Gstaad – the epitome of understated opulence in a town that’s coolly been welcoming the great and glamorous for decades.
Arriving at The Alpina Gstaad has something of the feel of stumbling upon the hidden lair of a Bond villain (rather aptly, Sir Roger Moore lived for a number of years in Gstaad) – sweeping up a winding road into a tunnel that cuts into the mountain and emerges at the hotel’s secluded entrance.
Stepping inside – under the gaze of painted cherubs adorning the cavernous Sistinian ceiling, past a giant sculpted face (part of an extensive permanent art collection) – I sensed this wasn’t going to be remotely like any ski breaks I’d been on before. But that was very much the point of heading to the serenity of the Swiss Saanenland.
I rarely return from ski trips feeling healthier. Mysterious muscles that lay low throughout the year emerge with aching urgency; the body sluggishly becomes weighed down by days of carb-heavy overindulgence. Shlepping to the slopes – forlornly trying to replicate the hedonism of non-knee creaking days – was losing its appeal.
Then I came across an Alpine destination that houses its very own Six Senses Spa. Where cutting-edge wellness lies at the heart of the experience. Where a Michelin-starred chef has crafted locally-sourced, nutritional gourmet of national repute. And, where the local town has more cows than people.
The Alpina Gstaad beckoned.
Inside The Alpina Gstaad
Opened in 2012, The Alpina Gstaad is the first newly-built five-star hotel in Gstaad in more than a hundred years. This is one discerning town. Julie Andrews called Gstaad, “the last paradise in a crazy world” – and this enclave works hard to maintain its distinct character. Courchevel this ain’t. It’s an elegance – coupled with discretion – that has attracted the likes of Elizabeth Taylor, Grace Kelly and Peter Sellers over the years.
Nestled on the Oberbort hillside just above the centre of town, The Alpina Gstaad fuses traditional Swiss design – incorporating reclaimed rustic timber from local chalets – with modern luxury. The hotel houses 56 rooms and suites, four restaurants, and the first Six Senses Spa in Switzerland. This is where my ‘Biohacking Ski Performance & Recovery Package’ would be delivered. The place to vanquish even the mere thought of achy legs and stiff shoulders.
How can I biohack my performance?
The programme has been designed “to ensure peak performance and swift recovery,” says Spa Director, Bernadette Negri. “This is the ultimate wellbeing boost for serious skiers or hikers.”
Rather than doing the usual pre-skiing rudimentary stretches, I was greeted in the spa by a specialist therapist – and an array of reassuringly-baffling machines.
A PEMF mat pulsed electromagnetic fields my way to “bathe low energy cells in pure, raw energy supporting the body’s natural abilities”, according to Negri. A HyperMax Oxygen workout gave the Nitric Oxide levels a boost. A PBM (photobiomodulation) session helped promote “cellular vitality and reduce inflammation”. All followed by a stint in the cryotherapy chamber to drive down the oxidative stress.
I’d never been fitter for the slopes.
How was the skiing?
As a passable-but-rusty skier, there was plenty of choice amongst the 160 miles of slopes in the region – which range between 1,000-3,000 metres above sea level.
I hadn’t been back on the slopes for a couple of years so took a refresher lesson with an instructor from a local ski school – who patiently but effectively reprogrammed the quite bizarre turning method I was deploying.
The runs were wide enough – and without hordes of people – to leisurely pootle around and drink in that Alpine scenery. It’s a landscape which, in the summer, opens up to lakes and cow-laden meadows to explore.
Away from the skiing?
Hours can blissfully be willed away at The Alpina Gstaad itself. The spa boasts exquisite indoor and outdoor pools – along with a hammam, salt room, saunas, plunge pools, fitness studio and the like. Yoga and Pilates classes are also on offer.
The town itself is easily walkable – or the hotel can lay on a shuttle car should the limbs somehow be sore (if so, there’s always a restorative Normatec Boots session on hand – to sort out that lactic acid).
Designer boutiques – Prada, Louis Vuitton, Hermes – snuggle amidst cute coffee stores on the shortest shopping street in Switzerland. To explore the wider area, I took a horse-drawn carriage tour – trotting past glistening streams, dairy farms that still drive the local economy, and stunning chalets where various rock stars are reputed to have sought refuge.
The bedrooms themselves at The Alpina Gstaad are supremely peaceful. Each of the spacious, wood-panelled rooms has its own terrace from which to melt into a stunning view of the Alps – whilst wearing the cosiest, fluffiest hotel slippers known to man.
What about the food?
Sure the skiing is nice, yes the spa is lovely, the biohacking is indeed next-level… but the food is so incredible. So much so that many guests who come here don’t even bother to ski. They come for the genius of Michelin-starred chef Martin Göschel.
Göschel locally sources fresh, sustainable ingredients for the three core restaurants at The Alpina Gstaad: Megu – an innovate Asian/Japanese that elevates asparagus to new, breaded heights; Swiss Stübli – a twist on classic ski fare with a cheese fondue to rival any in the Alps; and Sommet by Martin Göschel – the palette for the chef to showcase a Swiss tasting menu that has to be one of the most outstanding meals I’ve ever tasted. A seven-course foray through tempeh, truffles, ravioli, chutneys – all infused with local herbs – before landing on a cheese plate that defies adjectives. The ten thousand local cows are the true celebrities in Gstaad.
How to get there
Fly to Geneva – about an hour and 40 minutes from London – then board the charming GoldenPass Montreux-Oberland Bernois (MOB) train. Sit back, for about an hour and a half, watching through giant windows as Lake Geneva gives way to Alpine valleys. The train goes right into a tiny station in the heart of Gstaad – replete with its own cheese vending machine.
Train travel was kindly provided by Swiss Travel System. Gstaad Tourism is a great resource for ski lessons – and other activities in the town.
Tim Samuels is an award-winning documentary maker and author
