Fairmont Le Montreux Palace

A lovely hotel in an idyllic location. Everyone is so welcoming and Le Montreux itself is so beautiful! I want to say a special thank to Alena Warner who is one of the loveliest, most attentive people I’ve ever encountered in the hospitality industry. She made us feel very welcome and was so happy to engage with us. Thank you for being so wonderful!

Started off with reservation agent struggling to change reservation dates (could not be done online) no mention of renovations at the time of booking, room was dated and dirty, staff was sparse, had the sense that they were understaffed at the front desk, concierge/bell desk and spa as many times there was no one at the desk, spa employee couldn’t keep up with the number of guests. Breakfast buffet was a bit disorganized and some of the staff needs a more refined/elegant level of service. Who wants to hear the staff complain about the chores they have to do on their day off? Good location but service and amenities were not commensurate with pricing. Not a 5 star experience.

We were fortunate to be upgraded to a junior suite on our arrival and were able to have great views of the lake and enjoy a wine and food sitting out on the balcony. The room was large and luxurious, with the only complaint from my wife was the quality of the hair dryer. Breakfast service was quick and efficient although we did find the quality of some of the offerings way below the standard expected in such a hotel.

First the location to the station and tram stop makes this a perfect hotel for a short stay in Montreux. The hotel is going through a full refurbishment so half the front was coverd in scaffolding as is the Conference Centre opposite so some of the initial beauty is lost but as soon as you walk in the palatial lobby you are greeted with the original opulence. The Reception staff were super friendly and check in was quick and easy. We had been very fortunate to be upgraded from the back town view room to a lake view but had to wait 20 minutes for it to be serviced, again no drama as we had a wonderful cocktail at the Jazz Cafe and soaked up the atmosphere. We were shown up to our room only to find out the upgrade was to a very very spacious corner suite with 3 balconies and one amazing coverd terrace overlooking the lake. We were told this was a side of the hotel that had just recently be renovated. The hallway down to the room was super wide and this was because when the hotel was originally built the women had the wide skirts on their dresses so it had to be that wide to allow them to pass. We were also booked in for breakfast and this was one of the best I have had the room overlooked the lake and had everything you could want and all cooked to perfection and served by efficiency and charm. I can't thank the hotel staff enough for making this shirt break one of the best we have had. Even with all the building work the hotel managed this without compromising the luxury you expect. Six stars out of five for this historic hotel.

This hotel is very large and very fancy. The story is that the author they wrote Lolita lived there after fleeing Russia and leaving the United States. The bar in the lobby is really nice and feels old and cool. The staff that I encountered were all quite nice.