Innere Enge

Hotel review

You could be forgiven for thinking you’ve landed in an Alpine meadow. The hotel’s Swiss-chalet looks and wooded surrounds suggest you’re a long way from a bustling city. Yet it’s just 10 minutes to the center of Bern, and there’s a bus-stop outside. So you get the peace of this semi-rural area and stunning views over the city and (on a clear day) the Alpine skyline beyond. The large rooms, most with huge windows, some with open beams, are comfortably traditional with thick pelmetted curtains, soft carpets, padded headboards and bright stripy sofas. All bathrooms have bath-tubs. But the real treat, is that half the rooms are jazz-themed. Named after international musicians - including Louis Armstrong, Dizzie Gillespie, Oscar Peterson - you’ll find photographs, letters, framed vinyls, LP covers, original scores and, in some cases, real instruments. Soft jazzy music plays quietly in the background, a refreshing change from international musak at breakfast, the latter - like dinner - taken in the wonderful, hexagonal-shaped dining room with its globe chandeliers, red banquettes and city views. Breakfast is beautifully presented - perhaps poached plums alongside excellent cheeses and meats, home-made preserves, and eggs how-you-like. Dinners are traditional French; maybe calf’s liver with Madeira sauce or perch and sour cream. There’s also a Pavilion café for lighter breakfasts, lunches and afternoon teas. In the evening, head down to Marian’s, the darkly cozy basement jazz club; hugely popular with the Bernese for its visiting international jazz musicians. You could be in New York, London, Berlin… certainly not the Swiss countryside.

Helen Pickles