In one, we found a painting of the Maharaja of Patiala, Yadavin-
dra Singh, which was offered the Mayer family by the Maharaja
himself, after staying in the hotel for the Geneva Convention
in the 1920’s. We can see the Maharaja pictured in all his glo-
ry, with a diamond covered turban, crown and necklace. “The
diamonds were used as a form of protection. So, the Maharaja
believed that the more diamonds he wore, the more protected
he was”, Mr. Nickbarte explains, adding that there was a lot of
expectation when the Maharaja arrived - “the staff was expect-
ing to see him dressed in his grandeur but he arrived dressed in
a completely normal European fashion for the time. Everybody
was a bit disappointed” he laughs.
But the Maharaja is not the only celebrity to have experienced
the Beau Rivage over the years. Empress Elisabeth of Austria,
and Queen of Hungary, famously known as Sissi, along with
numerous other crowned leaders, heads of state and individuals
of international notoriety have left their imprint on the history
of the hotel. We can see it not only through memories like the
Maharaja’s hanging on the walls but also through small treasures
like the big check-in book from the beginning of the 20th cen-
tury, very well preserved with hand written records of all the
guests who stayed at The Beau Rivage. The proveniences are as-
tonishing! Distinguished guests from all over the world, the five
continents, favoured this hotel as their home away from home,
in Europe, which is something of great importance, since, at that
time, it took several days to travel from one side of the Atlantic
to the other.
The hotel is full of history, for sure, but it’s beautiful to see how
the past was so well preserved and perfectly merged with the fu-
ture to be able to always correspond to the guests’ needs, which-
ever the era. In 1873, for example, Beau-Rivage installs the first
elevator in Switzerland, one of only three existing in the world.
After four years of the enclosure during the Second World War,
the hotel reopened and made the first renovations of the post-
war and contemporary era.
Fast forward, and 2017 arrives with eight brand new top-floor
unique suites, including six duplex apartments ranging from 100
to 150 square metres and two apartments of 150 and 250 square
Salon suite Sissi
