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Eden au Lac: Paradise on Lake Zurich
Overlooking the beautiful Lake Zurich in Central Switzerland, the luxury Eden au Lac hotel boasts an unparalleled location in one of Europe’s most attractive, cleanest and desirable cities.
With Zurich's picturesque Old Town a mere 20 minute walk away, and attractions such as the opera house and the trendy Seefeld quarter even closer, everything the city has to offer is within easy reach.
The hotel itself is an art nouveau gem, housed in a grandiose building that functioned as a hospital in its former life. Today it offers all the trappings of a five-star hotel, including a high level of personalised service, a gourmet restaurant and superb views across the lake.
Many of the hotel’s 50 individually-designed rooms and suites offer lakeside views, but if you find yourself in one of the back-facing rooms, you will certainly want to make use of the hotel’s roof terrace, which provides a full 360 degree panorama of the entire city. A chic rooftop bar, serving ice cold beer, champagne, cocktails, soft drinks and snacks, combined with relaxed, stylish seating make it ideal for kicking back in the evening after a tiring day.
But Eden au Lac’s greatest trick is in creating a boutique experience whist retaining its old world charm. This atmosphere is dictated by the staff, who are impeccably polite and helpful, from the doorman to the reception staff to the concierge - the latter being on hand to offer advice on local attractions as well as the numerous excursions that are within reach of the city (mountain trips by cable car being the most popular).
As a tourist, you simply cannot ask for more, but the hotel also caters superbly for business travellers, with three fully equipped business suites at your disposal.
The only facilities that the hotel lacks are a spa and swimming pool, but even this is amply compensated by the clean, blue waters of the lake just footsteps away, where locals swim freely amongst pedallos, sailing boats and swans. Furthermore a myriad of sunbathing spots - should you be lucky with the weather - including cabanas and perfectly manicured patches of grass, are dotted along the lakeside, representing a master class in urban leisure planning.
As well as being perfectly positioned for exploring the city, Eden au Lac is also just 12km from Zurich Airport, with train connections available a ten minute walk away from the hotel.
Rates at Eden au Lac hotel begin at around £272 per night for a single room and rise up to approximately £1,190 for a deluxe suite, depending on the time of year.