The Mandarin Oriental Savoy, Zurich is technically one of the city’s newest luxury hotels. It opened in December 2023 following a complete renovation. But its story actually begins nearly two centuries earlier.
On Christmas Eve in 1838, Austrian-born hotelier Johannes Baur opened the Baur en Ville on Paradeplatz. Baur had arrived in Zurich years earlier and went on to become one of the pioneers of the city’s luxury hotel scene. His new hotel was Zurich’s first grand hotel, bringing a level of hospitality to the city that was still relatively novel at the time.
Over the decades, the hotel became part of the fabric of Zurich, welcoming guests including Charles Dickens, Franz Liszt and Richard Wagner. Even its rooftop has a history: back in 1838, the hotel’s Belvédère was among the world’s earliest rooftop bars, complete with orange trees and a system that allowed orders to be sent down to the kitchen through a speaking tube.
Nearly two centuries later, the hotel began another chapter. In December 2023, it reopened as the Mandarin Oriental Savoy, Zurich following an extensive renovation.
And I think that history is essential to understanding what makes the hotel so special.
This doesn’t feel like Mandarin Oriental simply opened a new luxury hotel in an old building. There is a constant conversation between old and new. Historical details have been effortlessly incorporated into the contemporary interiors rather than separated or treated like museum pieces. You notice them as you move through the hotel—from preserved clocks to the dramatic chandelier behind the lobby—alongside contemporary furnishings and design, including a rotating art collection featuring artists from Art Basel.
The result feels fresh, but with nearly two centuries of history behind it.
And despite being part of one of the world’s best-known luxury hotel groups, the Mandarin Oriental feels surprisingly boutique. There are just 80 rooms and suites, and that intimacy completely changes the experience.
It has the polish and service of a Mandarin Oriental, but the character and intimacy of a historic European hotel.
Location & Setting
The location is about as good as it gets in Zurich.
The hotel sits directly on Paradeplatz, one of Zurich’s most famous squares and the heart of the city’s financial district. It is also one of the city’s major tram hubs, so getting almost anywhere in Zurich from here is incredibly easy.
Just off the square is Bahnhofstrasse, Zurich’s famous shopping boulevard and one of Europe’s best-known luxury shopping streets. The mile-long avenue stretches from Zurich’s main train station toward Lake Zurich and is lined with everything from Swiss watchmakers and international fashion houses to cafés, restaurants and department stores.
Staying at the Mandarin Oriental puts all of this quite literally outside your front door. The Old Town and Lake Zurich are also within easy walking distance, which means that for a short stay in particular, you can experience a huge amount of the city without spending much time in taxis or cars.
But what I loved most was the contrast between the location and the atmosphere inside.
Paradeplatz is one of the busiest parts of central Zurich, yet the moment you step inside the Mandarin Oriental, the pace changes. The hotel feels quiet and intimate. There isn’t an enormous lobby or the constant flow of people you sometimes find at city grand hotels. Instead, it feels almost residential.
Accommodations
If the history was what initially drew me into the Mandarin Oriental, the rooms were perhaps the biggest surprise of my stay.
Space is a luxury anywhere, but particularly in Zurich, where so many hotels are small and boutique. At the Mandarin Oriental, the rooms and suites feel almost unexpectedly large.
Our suite was incredibly spacious and pampering, with huge closets, a generous living area and enough separation between the different spaces that it felt more like an apartment than a typical city hotel room. We could properly unpack, spread out and actually spend time in the room without feeling on top of one another.
And when you’re traveling with children—and all the luggage that comes with them—that extra space completely changes a stay.
It’s also what makes the Mandarin Oriental such a great option for families. There are connecting rooms as well as two-bedroom and larger suite configurations, so families can have the space to stay together. That’s surprisingly difficult to find in the center of a European city, particularly at a hotel that still feels this intimate.
But it wasn’t only the size of the rooms that stood out. It was how pampering they felt.
Beautiful Japanese-style kimonos hang in the closets, gorgeous bathrooms are stocked with Diptyque toiletries, and the complimentary minibar comes with Swiss chocolates and an assortment of nuts—including truffle cashews that are addictive! Then, at turndown, slippers are placed by the entrance, including tiny panda slippers for children.
It’s the kind of attention to detail that makes coming back to your room at the end of the day feel like part of the hotel experience itself.
And that’s perhaps what I liked most about the accommodations. You get the intimacy and personality of a small, historic hotel without having to compromise on space or comfort.
For families, this is a rare combination.
Dining
For such an intimate hotel, the Mandarin Oriental has an impressive dining scene, ranging from Michelin-starred Italian cooking to a rooftop bar overlooking the city.
ORSINI is the hotel’s Michelin-starred Italian restaurant, helmed by chef Dario Moresco. The restaurant also holds 17 GaultMillau points, making it a destination in its own right rather than simply the hotel’s fine-dining option. I didn’t get a chance to experience it as it was closed, but I interviewed the chef, and I think he has some of the best Zurich recommendations I’ve come across, so ORSINI is definitely at the top of my list for next time.
Savoy Brasserie & Bar is the restaurant you’ll probably interact with most during a stay. Breakfast is served here, and throughout the day it shifts into a French-inspired brasserie serving international classics alongside Swiss dishes, including Zurich’s classic Zürcher Geschnetzeltes.
I had dinner here, and the risotto was my personal favorite dish. I feel like many restaurants get it wrong, making it too soupy or soft, but here it was perfectly cooked, and you could actually taste the different ingredients.
If the weather is nice, I definitely recommend asking for a table outside on the Savoy Terrasse. It’s a great spot to linger over lunch or dinner and people-watch.
For something quieter, Mandarin Lounge is built around a fireplace and serves cocktails, light bites and afternoon tea during the cooler months. It has the same intimate quality as the rest of the hotel—the kind of place you can settle into for a drink after coming back from a day in the city.
Upstairs, 1838 is the hotel’s rooftop bar, named for the year the original hotel opened. Today, the rooftop looks out across Zurich and toward the surrounding Swiss Alps, with cocktails, wine and Asian-inspired dishes.
What I like about the dining here is that there is real variety without the hotel feeling like a collection of restaurants. You can have a destination dinner at ORSINI, an easy breakfast or lunch at the Brasserie, stop for a drink in the Lounge or head upstairs to the rooftop at sunset.
Service
As beautiful as the hotel is, the service is what stayed with me most.
It was incredibly personal and attentive from the moment we arrived. Staff members knew my name, greeted me as I walked through the lobby and seemed to pay attention to what we might need rather than simply waiting to be asked.
But there was one moment that summed it up better than anything else.
During a meal, my baby was sitting on my lap while I was trying to eat. Our waitress noticed me juggling the two, came over and offered to hold him so that I could eat in peace.
I have stayed at many luxury hotels, and I can’t remember experiencing that level of personal service before.
It wasn’t some elaborate gesture. She simply saw that I could use a hand and offered one.
Another time, we were heading outside when someone at the front desk noticed that it was chilly and immediately offered us a blanket for the baby.
Those are the moments I remember from a hotel.
There is polished service, where everything is delivered exactly as it should be, and then there is hospitality that feels instinctive. The Mandarin Oriental falls into the latter category.
I also think the hotel’s size plays a role. With only 80 rooms and suites, you don’t disappear into it. People remember you. By the time you’ve been there for a little while, there is an ease to the interactions that feels closer to staying at a great independent boutique hotel than at an international luxury brand.
For me, that level of attention was one of the highlights of the entire stay.
Who It’s Best For
The Mandarin Oriental Savoy is for travelers who want to experience Zurich from the middle of everything, but still want their hotel to feel intimate.
For a first visit to the city, the location is hard to beat. Bahnhofstrasse is outside the door, the Old Town and lake are within walking distance, and you can spend much of your stay exploring Zurich on foot.
It’s also an excellent choice for couples who gravitate toward smaller, design-driven hotels but don’t want to give up the service and comforts of a major luxury property. The Mandarin Oriental Savoy manages to deliver both.
But I think families may be the hotel’s sleeper audience.
This isn’t a resort or a hotel built around children. There is no kids’ club or sprawling pool complex. Instead, what it offers families is something that can be far more valuable on a European city trip: space, connecting accommodations and a staff that genuinely welcomes children. The hotel offers connecting rooms and dedicated family configurations, alongside child-friendly touches such as kids’ menus, slippers and other in-room amenities.
You can travel with your children without feeling as though you’ve chosen a children’s hotel.
Parents still get Michelin-starred dining, beautiful interiors, rooftop drinks and a sophisticated atmosphere. The kids simply fit into the experience.
And finally, I think the Mandarin Oriental Savoy is for travelers who care about where they’re staying as much as where they’re going.
Zurich has plenty of luxury hotels. What sets this one apart is that the building itself tells part of the city’s story. You are staying somewhere that has been welcoming travelers since 1838, but in a hotel that, after its 2023 reopening, feels entirely of the present.
That combination of history, intimacy, space and incredible personal service is what makes the Mandarin Oriental Savoy such a special place to stay in Zurich.