Skip to content
Left arrow
FOUR Magazine logo
Search icon

Authentically Crafted Experiences in Glorious Gstaad

New Hotel Openings
|
09 Feb 2022
|
5 min read

With environmental and community development at its heart since its inception in 2012, The Alpina Gstaad aims to be a global platform for creativity and cultural innovation, a place where guests are inspired by spectacular nature, fascinating visual art, architecture and stimulating cultural exchange. FOUR finds out more about how this luxury hotel is putting the planet first while maintaining the highest standards of hospitality for its guests…

Set in the Oberbort area of Gstaad with the majestic snow-dusted Swiss Alps towering in the backdrop, The Alpina Gstaad brings together first-class dining with exceptional facilities and sublime service, all tied together with a sustainability-focused vision. Regarded as one of the region’s most superb hotels, this 56-key Alpine retreat has been ahead of the curve in sustainable practices since it opened its doors a decade ago. Built by local craftsmen using recycled materials and locally sourced indigenous wood and stone, the property honours its locale and the natural environment at every turn.

From the outside in, the dedication to sustainability sees no end – the hotel is powered with a mix of ecological sources, and reduces yearly consumption through hydroelectric strategies, central heating generated from the Saanen community plant fueled by wood chips, sensor-driven air conditioning and heating systems and pools partially heated with reclaimed energy. Throughout the hotel, it aims to reduce plastic waste by encouraging recycling, using glass water bottles, minimising plastic use in the kitchens and opting for felt slippers in the rooms. To ensure that it upholds the highest standards of sustainable practice, The Alpina Gstaad also works closely with two industry-leading organizations, EarthCheck and NOW.

NOW, a global community spearheading a force for good for people and the planet, promotes accountable travel and its transparency. As part of this organisation, The Alpina Gstaad joins an inspiring collection of properties that provide sustainable travel experiences and take responsibility for their impact on communities and the environment. Taking it a step further, the hotel also provides concrete evidence of its sustainability efforts through annual independent audits by EarthCheck, the world’s leading scientific travel and tourism certification and advisory group. The Alpina Gstaad was awarded a silver certification from the organisation in 2017. In January 2022, The Alpina Gstaad was upgraded to a gold certification, the only company in Switzerland to receive this honour. This is an incredible achievement that spotlights the hotel’s ongoing 5-year commitment to a holistic sustainability approach, supported by rigorous assessments and external audits.

The hotel’s unwavering devotion to the health of people and Mother Earth has also seen it gain numerous laudations, including being named the no. 1 sustainable 5-star hotel in Switzerland by NZZ am Sonntag and the no. 1 holiday hotel nationwide by BILANZ in 2021.

Interview

FOUR sits down with the hotel’s General Manager Tim Weiland to find out more about The Alpina Gstaad’s stellar offerings and sustainable outlook.

What does luxury mean to you and your team, and how is this incorporated into guests’ experience at The Alpina Gstaad?

Luxury is the ability to take time: time to understand and enjoy the experience from start to finish, to stop and smell the roses, to understand the nature of things deeply and holistically. It also means to revel in the world’s beauty and cultivate personal contacts for the good of others.

What are the main aspects of the hotel that make it stand out against others in Gstaad?

The effortless amalgamation of art, nature, architecture and heartfelt hospitality coupled with environmental and social awareness

Tell us more about Gstaad through your eyes – what are the truly special aspects of the area that make it a must-visit destination?

The beauty of Gstaad is the pleasant pace of life. Time seems to have stopped here. While we seamlessly embrace technology and innovation, nature remains our source of motivation.

What do you think it is about the hotel that makes guests come back time after time?

It is home, it is discreet, and it is a sanctuary for many who seek to reconnect with themselves and reset for what lies ahead.

What emotions and memories do you hope guests will leave the hotel with, and how do you and the team foster this?

We hope they leave feeling refreshed, energized and inspired as they return to their place of residence. We weave in small but meaningful experiences and information that, together with our serene atmosphere, create a source of inspiration for them.

Sustainability is important to the hotel – can you share why this is important and give us details on some of the hotel’s sustainable practices?

We feel privileged to be able to call Gstaad, the Saanenland, home. At The Alpina Gstaad, we would like to share this unique platform that we have created with all travellers – both local and international, friends and family. We aim to plant a seed that will spark a call to action – each in their own way, according to what they feel compelled to do. All while being non-invasive.

Guests only see a small fraction of all of our sustainable practices. A lot is happening in the background. Ultimately, we strive to create awareness by educating our hosts (front and back of the house) about recycling and rearranging the kitchen procedures to ban vacuum plastic bags completely – this leads us to save over 1000kg of plastic waste per season. More evident are our complimentary local transfers by our Tesla fleet and our electric vehicle charging stations. In summer, our guests can experience the workshop around The Alpina Gstaad Bees, conducted by our local beekeeper. In the rooms, our guests may cuddle and warm up with one of our amenities, which has now become a best practice – we banished the common hotel slippers (largely made of plastic) and replaced them with plastic-free felt slippers. Not only are they more sustainable and comfortable – they are the perfect souvenir to take home while extending the product life cycle.

The hotel’s design incorporates local and recycled materials – tell us more about what materials are used and why?

We chose to go local to celebrate the abundance of the Saanenland and the local architecture while offering support to local businesses. The main materials used are Ringgenberg, a brown natural limestone that comes from a small quarry in the region, original firwood from Swiss farmhouses that are hundreds of years old (some over 300 years old) and quartz.

Tell us more about the EarthCheck certification and its significance to the hotel?

EarthCheck brings the knowledge and experience of sustainable progress and the world’s leading scientific benchmarking background in the travel and tourism industry for over 30 years to our table. They not only advise us and certify us but send us an independent auditor every year and encourage us to keep the path of improvements that are good for the planet. EarthCheck keeps us on track for a holistic sustainability approach to measure our status and act from different angles.

How do you see the future of the hospitality industry, and how does sustainability factor into this?

Sustainability has sometimes been misused as an expression, but we will continue to focus on awareness and mindfulness for people and the planet. This is, and will continue to be, an integral part of any business in the future. Travellers are now choosing where to travel and stay based on the environmental and social impact their trip has on a destination. On the other hand, travellers are looking for places that are filled with inspiration so they may go back home with a sense of calling to care for people and the planet within their own realities.

–

To find out more, visit The Alpina Gstaad’s website. The hotel’s winter season runs from 10 December 2021 to 13 March 2022, click here to book. Not to be missed this season is the Tibetan Healing Retreat, find out more about this here.   

World’s best winner 2014     |     World’s best luxury lifestyle media brand 2022

About

|

Editions

|

Contact

|

Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 Four magazine

|

All Rights Reserved

About

|

Contact

|

Editions

|

Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 Four magazine

|

All Rights Reserved

four-magazine.com use cookies to deliver an optimised experience. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of all cookies used.
Cookie settingsaccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.

CookieDurationDescription
__cfduid1 monthThe cookie is used by cdn services like CloudFare to identify individual clients behind a shared IP address and apply security settings on a per-client basis. It does not correspond to any user ID in the web application and does not store any personally identifiable information.
_abck1 yearThis cookie is used to detect and defend when a client attempt to replay a cookie.This cookie manages the interaction with online bots and takes the appropriate actions.
bm_sz4 hoursThis cookie is set by the provider Akamai Bot Manager. This cookie is used to manage the interaction with the online bots. It also helps in fraud preventions
cookielawinfo-checbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement1 yearThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Advertisement".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
ts3 yearsThis cookie is provided by the PayPal. It is used to support payment service in a website.
ts_c3 yearsThis cookie is provided by PayPal when a website is in association with PayPal payment function. This cookie is used to make safe payment through PayPal.
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

Functional

Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.

CookieDurationDescription
akavpau_ppsdsessionThis cookie is provided by Paypal. The cookie is used in context with transactions on the website.
nsidThis cookie is set by the provider PayPal. This cookie is used to enable the PayPal payment service in the website.
tsrce3 daysThis cookie is set by the provider PayPal. This cookie is used to enable the PayPal payment service in the website.
x-pp-ssessionThis cookie is set by the provider PayPal. This cookie is used to process payments from the site.

Performance

Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

CookieDurationDescription
YSCsessionThis cookies is set by Youtube and is used to track the views of embedded videos.

Analytics

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

CookieDurationDescription
_ga2 yearsThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to calculate visitor, session, campaign data and keep track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookies store information anonymously and assign a randomly generated number to identify unique visitors.
_gid1 dayThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to store information of how visitors use a website and helps in creating an analytics report of how the website is doing. The data collected including the number visitors, the source where they have come from, and the pages visted in an anonymous form.

Advertisement

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.

CookieDurationDescription
_fbp3 monthsThis cookie is set by Facebook to deliver advertisement when they are on Facebook or a digital platform powered by Facebook advertising after visiting this website.
fr3 monthsThe cookie is set by Facebook to show relevant advertisments to the users and measure and improve the advertisements. The cookie also tracks the behavior of the user across the web on sites that have Facebook pixel or Facebook social plugin.
IDE1 year 24 daysUsed by Google DoubleClick and stores information about how the user uses the website and any other advertisement before visiting the website. This is used to present users with ads that are relevant to them according to the user profile.
test_cookie15 minutesThis cookie is set by doubleclick.net. The purpose of the cookie is to determine if the user's browser supports cookies.
VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE5 months 27 daysThis cookie is set by Youtube. Used to track the information of the embedded YouTube videos on a website.

Others

Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.

CookieDurationDescription
_gat_gtag_UA_120081375_11 minuteThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to calculate visitor, session, campaign data and keep track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookies store information anonymously and assign a randomly generated number to identify unique visitors.
_gat_gtag_UA_83740222_11 minuteThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to calculate visitor, session, campaign data and keep track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookies store information anonymously and assign a randomly generated number to identify unique visitors.
_mcid1 yearNo description
ak_bmsc2 hoursNo description
CONSENT16 years 9 months 2 days 6 hoursNo description
ec_store_chameleon_fontsessionThis cookie is provided by Ecwid and it is used to save the font utilised in the website's online store.
enforce_policy1 yearNo description
l7_az30 minutesNo description
LANG9 hoursNo description
x-cdnThis cookie is provided by Paypal and is used in context with shopping transactions on the website's store.