On 26 December, Mürren’s Palace Hotel will reopen its doors after 15 years of closure.
An investment of CHF30 million (c. £27 million) has funded a complete reconstruction, renovation and refurbishment of this historic landmark. The building’s exterior, dating from 1911, has been preserved and restored. The interior has been gutted and modernised – except for the listed Ballroom which has been meticulously restored. The result is a four star hotel of 49 bedrooms and suites.
Adjacent to the hotel and linked via an underground tunnel, a new low-impact six-storey tower called Palace Ellipse houses 14 suites. These include three senior suites, each with a whirlpool, on the penthouse floor. All benefit from fabulous views of the surrounding mountains.
On the ground floor a Body & Mind room provides a flexible space for yoga, social activities and events, and the lower ground floor has a boutique spa with two saunas, a cold water plunge pool, and steam and treatment rooms.
It was from his base in the Palace that British ski pioneer Henry Lunn’s son Arnold (below) made Mürren’s reputation as the cradle of Alpine ski racing in the 1920s, inventing the Slalom and campaigning successfully for the official recognition of the downhill sport.
In January 1928 Arnold Lunn was one of the 17 British skiers who walked up to the Schilthorn and raced down to Lauterbrunnen in what was then, and remains, the world’s longest downhill race.
One hundred times that number of amateur racers now make the annual pilgrimage to Mürren for the Inferno, which is the climax of a four-day festival (22-25 January 2025) with cross-country and Giant Slalom races before the Downhill, followed by an uproarious after-party going deep into Sunday morning.
In the newly restored Palace, guests will take meals in the magnificent Ballroom (open 7am to 1am) and relax in the convivial bar or on the terrace looking across the valley at the Eiger.
The hotel has a direct link by covered walkway to Mürren’s well-appointed sports centre, with its vast heated swimming pool, gym, spa, alfresco whirlpool, skating and curling rinks and tourist information centre.
(Images credit: Mürren Tourist Office except picture of Arnold Lunn at the Eigerjoch in May 1924 credit Kandahar Ski Racing Club)