Fabulous Alpine Hotels – The Cambrian Adelboden and Its Welsh Connections
A Touch of Wales in Switzerland at The Cambrian Adelboden
The other week I was lucky enough to enjoy a stay at the beautiful hotel The Cambrian in Adelboden. It really is a touch of Wales in Switzerland with sweeping mountain views and lots of trees and greenery. In fact the name Cambrian means Wales in Latin and the hotel definitely has its Welsh connections!
The scenery here a bit like the Welsh countryside – just that the mountains are a lot bigger! The views are simply gorgeous and I learned that owners, Grant and Craig Maunder are in fact Welsh. After spending their Winters skiing in Adelboden in the 1980’s they revisited the region 20 years later and discovered a hotel they had once wanted to stay at, was on the market. Long story short, they bought it and turned it into The Cambrian Adelboden. In true Welsh style this Design Hotel, is decorated with lots of natural materials and lots of Welsh green. In fact, to extend the Welsh Connection even futher, their Executive Chef, Bryn Williams is also from Wales.
Chefs Bryn Williams and Will Gordon
Bryn Williams’s famous restaurant is Odette’s in London, but you may not know, that he also has a lovely restaurant in North Wales. In fact, I have probably visited the restaurant Porth Eirias in Colwyn Bay around 25 to 30 times over the years, as it was one of my mother’s favourite restaurants. It has great food, as well as beautiful views over the beach and the Irish Sea. Fun fact: Bryn originally comes from North Wales, (as do I) and it turned out we were both born in the same hospital in St Asaph in North Wales! It’s a small world! 🙂
To get to The Cambrian we arrived by train in Frutigen (it’s just around 2 hours from Zurich) and were picked up by the owner’s son Joel and taken to The Cambrian where we enjoyed a delicious late breakfast on the hotel’s beautiful terrace.
We then headed up the mountain where we were going to enjoy a barbeque picnic prepared by non other than Bryn Williams himself, and his head Chef at The Cambrian, Will Gordon. We took the gondola up to the mountain restaurant Sillerebüel where we discovered that there were Trotinette scooters awaiting us and we were going to use them to scoot downhill to the picnic!
Trotinettes are great fun and even if like me you don’t have great balance, they are very easy to use. All you need to do is head downhill and use the brakes to keep your speed as fast or slow as you want.
After a very scenic downhill journey, we arrived at the picnic venue to find that Bryn and Will and the Cambrian team were all ready for us. We sat down in the middle of the forest and enjoyed a delicious picnic lunch served in Swiss Army ration trays!
I loved the mix of savoury and sweet ingredients and the crunchy hazelnuts. We also had barbequed salmon, chicken and local mushrooms to complete the lunch.
The Cambrian can arrange these special outdoor picnics if you are travelling as a group.
The Cambrian Team
Whilst we were in the picnic area, we could hear the sound of the Alphorn being played. Curious to find out more, we discovered a Swiss gentleman by the name of Alois Kuster who practices his Alphorn every day in the woods hear while his wife listens on from a bench nearby.
After lunch, we continued downhill with our trotinettes and were able to scoot all the way back into Adelboden, almost as far as The Cambrian’s front door!
Next it was time to check into our rooms and go for a swim in the beautiful infinity pool with its stunning mountain views. The hotel encourages you to “Rejuvenate, Revitalise & Relax” and it was perfectly possible to do this as I went for a swim in the indoor and outdoor pool.
Next I checked out the wellness area with its Finnish sauna and steam bath before enjoying a simply blissful spa treatment at the hands of Noemi, before relaxing in my room before dinner.
Bedrooms at The Cambrian Adelboden
My room was large and spacious with a very comfortable living area and a fabulous view over the mountains. The décor was created in conjunction with Welsh company, Melin Tregwynt, based in Pembrokeshire and a Swiss design company. It was chic, cosy and very relaxing and I just loved the Welsh touches!
Oona Caviar Apero On The Terrace of The Cambrian
In the evening we were lucky enough to enjoy a special Oona Caviar apero on the terrace. With the backdrop of the mountains and the Engstligen waterfalls (the second highest falls in Swizerland) it was a perfect end to the day.
We enjoyed some wonderful cocktail size delicacies, prepared by Bryn Williams and Will Gordon, all featuring Oona Caviar. In fact the next day we went for a trip to the Tropenhaus in Frutigen to find out more about this Swiss caviar.
It all comes from sturgeon bred in the naturally warm mountain spring waters in Switzerland. You can find out all about Oona Caviar here.
For dinner, Bryn Williams and Will Gordon had created a special menu based all around Oona Caviar and it all highlighted what a versatile ingredient caviar can be.
It was simply delicious and with each course we had a matching wine. Next morning it was time for a group yoga lesson which was both energizing and relaxing.
I really felt ready for the day and as the weather was fine and sunny we were able to enjoy an alfresco breakfast in the garden underneath some beautiful shades. I went for a little stroll in the charming village where amongst other things they have a wonderful bakery and lots of cute little shops.
There was just time for a last dip in the pool before heading back to Zurich.
I simply loved my stay at The Cambrian Adelboden and felt wonderfully refreshed and relaxed and was really intrigued to learn all about this Welsh Connection in Switzerland. If you’re looking for a break to recharge your batteries, why not give it try?
The Cambrian Adelboden
Address: Dorfstrasse 7 CH-3715 Adelboden
Tel: +41 33 673 8383
Visit The Cambrian Adelboden website here
Email: info@thecambrianadelboden.com
Check out our Instagram reel of our stay at The Cambrian here:
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