After a long day of travel from Badenweiler via Deutsche Bahn and Swiss Federal Railways high-speed rail, we finally made it to Montreux. We headed over to the hotel to get settled in and begin our stay.
Booking
We booked our two night stay at the Grand Hotel Suisse Majestic directly through Marriott.com. We could have redeemed points for this stay but the cash rates were pretty reasonable and we booked a Deluxe Queen room with a balcony and a view of Lake Geneva for around $300 per night.
Location
The hotel is conveniently located directly across the street from the Montreux railway station. Simply exit the station, cross the street, turn left, and you will see the hotel entrance on your right. The entrance is clearly marked with a large sign over the door and a tile inlay on the sidewalk.
The only downside to the hotel’s location is that there is no entrance/exit on the lake side of the property. You have to exit through the front doors and walk around the block to get to the waterfront. While you may not be able to enter the hotel from the lake side, you’ll definitely be able to see it. The hotel, along with the similarly designed Hotel Fairmont Le Montreux Palace, tower above the surrounding buildings with their distinctive yellow awnings.
Check-In
Upon entering the hotel there is a large lobby area directly ahead of you with numerous seating areas. Behind that you’ll see the hotel restaurant and Lake Geneva.
Reception is to the right and with multiple agents to help guests there was no wait. The friendly receptionist greeted us, took our passports, and provided our room keys. She also gave us a list of recommendations for restaurants and attractions. One interesting aspect of this property is the transport card that is included in your room rate. The card is good for the duration of your stay and provides free rides on local buses, funiculars, and trains. The passes were in a folder along with a map of the area.
The elevators were located to the right of reception and we headed up to our room. Though the capacity plate said 6, it was a tight squeeze with Mrs. ATX Jetsetter and I plus our luggage.
Room
We were assigned a room on the sixth floor in the middle of the hotel just past the elevators. The hallway was lined with old photographs of the surrounding area and was light and bright.
Upon entering the room, there was a short hallway with a closet and luggage storage on the left and the entrance to the bathroom on the right. In addition to hangars and a luggage rack, there was a yoga mat and umbrella available for use.
Upon stepping into the bedroom, the queen sized bed was on the right, flanked by a couple of nightstands.
Across from the bed there was a flat screen TV mounted to the wall as well as a decent sized desk. While most people aren’t working during their visit to the Swiss Riviera, this desk would be a comfortable place to do so.
There was a small chair with a lamp overhead in the corner of the room near the windows. The nightstand was also within reach and a small plate of sweets was waiting for us upon check-in.
The bathroom was a decent size and well lit. It featured a sink, storage shelf, toilet, bidet, and a tub/shower combo.
The vanity was on the smaller side but the additional shelf provided extra space for our toiletries.
The shower/tub combo was one of the odd ones where the glass only protected the front half of the tub. When showering, you had to be careful not to let the water spray out. Toiletries were by L’Occitane and came in reusable bottles mounted to the wall.
Finally, our favorite part of the room wasn’t even in the room itself. The balcony had a couple of chairs and a small table with great views out over the lakefront. We found ourselves out here having coffee in the morning and cocktails at night.
The awning was automatic and would open and retract at a set time each day based on sunrise and sunset. This helped to keep the room cool during the day.
Food and Beverage
The hotel has two food and beverage outlets on the property and both are located adjacent to the lobby on the third floor. The first is the bar which consists of a small, indoor bar with some booth seating and an expansive outdoor terrace overlooking the lake. Almost nobody was sitting inside as the weather in Montreux was fantastic, outside was the place to be.
We ended up having drinks here each night during our stay, out on the terrace of course. Prices were in line with what you would expect from a high end Swiss hotel on the lake.
Adjacent to the bar was the main restaurant, located across the lobby from the hotel entrance.
While we didn’t eat lunch or dinner here, the hotel does set up their breakfast buffet here each morning which was an impressive spread. It featured a selection of pastries, cold cuts, fruit, hot dishes, yogurts, cereal, and coffee machines.
Gym
On the top floor of the hotel was the gym area. While it wasn’t expansive, it did feature a few workout machines including treadmills, ellipticals, and workout bikes, some with views over the city.
The gym area also had a couple of lounge chairs as well as a small sauna which we utilized during our stay.
Summary
We had an amazing stay at the Grand Hotel Suisse Majestic, Autograph Collection in Montreux. The staff and service were amazing everywhere we went. Our room was well appointed and had an absolutely amazing view of Lake Geneva. The hotel also had a great location in the heart of Montreux. We would absolutely stay here again and recommend it to anyone with plans to visit the area.
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