Hôtel de Sonloup and Hôtel Seeburg in Switzerland

I enjoyed a 2-week trip to SWITZERLAND in September ’05 and recommend the following places to stay. They are each a great value in a country where a small bottle of water sells for $4 and mailing a postcard costs $1.44.

• Hôtel de Sonloup (1833 Les Avants sur Montreux, Switzerland; phone 011 41 21 964 34 31, fax 964 34 80 or visit www.sonloup.com) is perched on a knoll; your room will overlook either the Alps or Lake Geneva. My single room with bath cost CHF90 ($72) per night, with breakfast. Swiss hotel prices include tax and tip.

At the hotel, lunch of perch, sole, rice, ratatouille and a drink was CHF28.30 ($23). Dinner (veal scallopini) cost CHF51.80 ($41).

• The location of Hôtel Seeburg (3852 Ringgenberg, Switzerland; phone 011 41 33 822 29 61, fax 822 95 03 or visit www.hotel-seeburg. com) near Interlaken is unbelievable. It is right on the shore of Lake Brienz. I awoke every morning of my stay there to a view in blue — mountains, lake and sky. Several of the guests there during my stay had been returning to the hotel for years.

My single room with balcony and bath cost CHF95 ($76) per night, including breakfast; half board was CHF23 ($18.50) per day.

Hôtel Seeburg has been in the Michel family for four generations. Peter and his lovely wife are genial hosts. When I lost my wallet, they did everything they could to help me. (I suggest you have a plan for such trouble — I did not.)

Lake steamers dock in front of the hotel. Bus and train stops are up the steep hill. Trains, however, weren’t running at the time of my stay because of floods and landslides. In fact, I had planned my trip after reading about the Unspunnenfest in ITN (April ’05, pg. 21). Only on arrival did I learn it had been canceled. Do look for publicity about this event, which in 2006 is to be held Sept. 1-3 (visit www.unspunnenfest.ch). It will include a procession in traditional dress, demonstrations of regional customs, a Bernese folklore evening, a Swiss folklore evening with dancing until 2 a.m., yodeling, folk music and the throwing of the 83.5-kilogram Unspunnen stone, which gives the festival its name.

JON LaFLEUR
Kent, CT