HILLS ALIVE

For a clue about what to expect of Grand Resort Bad Ragaz, look to the name. Not the “Bad” bit, rather the “Grand”. This Swiss wellbeing and medical resort in the foothills of the Alps enjoys a setting that reinvigorates purely by sight. Wooded peaks slope down towards vineyards, while the fresh mountain air is a revelation after London’s diesel-saturated streets. Add to that the presence of a natural thermal spring in the Tamina Gorge, a 15-minute drive from the village of Bad Ragaz, and you have all of the ingredients for a world-beating spa resort.

Benedictine monks discovered the spring in 1242, and the first bathers had to endure a 70-metre descent means bath in German). Then, just over 150 years ago, the Grand Hotel Quellenhof was constructed, accepting its first guests on July 10, 1869.