The owner of Chesa Wazzau, Christian Kueenzi, talks about the first time he came across the place as though it was an epiphany. “About 30 years ago I was standing in the barn completely by chance. I hadn’t even set foot in the house and already knew: ‘This is it!’. The room was illuminated by golden rays from the sun which made their way through the carved wooden slats of the barn walls – the whole atmosphere and the light seemed almost sacred.” Blimey. But to be fair, you can see where he is coming from.
The 17th Century Engadine building enjoys a location in Switzerland which is just as beautiful in the summer as when cloaked in snow during the winter. Christian and his wife – who is the decoration mastermind – have spent decades renovating the building to its current standard, and the project is not (and never will be) finished.
The hotel has rooms of wildly different styles, from the whitewashed, vaulted ceilings of the kitchen and bedroom to the wooden chalet feel of the Jenatsch room, but although the parts differ, the whole is all chocolate box idyll. San Moritz is 10 minutes away if you want a bit more in the way of entertainment, but we’ll just settle for the village vibe and soak in some of the plentiful quaint Swiss charm.