TFE Hotels has opened its first hotel in Switzerland, Adina Apartment Hotel Geneva, located in the country’s first international hotel hub.
The Geneva hotel has an Australian flair with interiors by Aussie designer Andrew Parr, from SJB Melbourne, and in-room chairs by Melbourne designer Chris Connell.
The opening brings TFE’s European portfolio to 18 hotels – around 2760 keys – and the company has plans to expand further throughout Europe in the coming year.
“We have opened eight international Adina hotels over the past two years and entered new global markets including Austria, Singapore, and now Switzerland,” said TFE Hotels’ CEO, Antony Ritch.
“So, Geneva – with its strong global financial, diplomatic, business and leisure markets – was a natural next step for us.
“Geneva has a very low proportion of apartment hotels that can cater to these seasoned travellers. The fact that the market is not competitive in this space gives us an opportunity to position Adina Hotels as a long-term market leader in Switzerland, with Zurich, Basel, and Lucerne other potential locations in the future.
“We look forward to seeing what General Manager, Gabriel Urban, and his team can do in establishing and growing our Adina brand in Switzerland and delivering our Australian-style of hospitality to a whole new market.”
The 140-key Adina Geneva forms part of a modern, mixed-use lifestyle precinct which has become the largest private real-estate investment in the country. The development features several hotels, retail, restaurants, residential and mixed-use apartments, as well as a school and commercial offices.
“At 10 storeys, we’re the tallest building in the Quartier de L’Étang precinct and one of the tallest buildings in Geneva, where typical commercial buildings stand around 7 storeys high,” said Adina General Manager, Gabriel Urban.
“Add in our East/West/South aspect and we have views to Mont Blanc and the Jet D’eau to the south; Mont Salève in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes to the West and the Jura Mountains to the East.
“Right now, the caps are white, so it’s a very, very beautiful view,” Urban said. “And if you book a corner room, you get the best alpine vistas all year round.”
Like other buildings in the Quartier de L’Étang precinct, Adina Geneva uses renewable energy to heat and cool the hotel.
“Water from 45m below the surface of Lake Geneva – Europe’s largest alpine lake – is essentially pumped, using hydrothermal technology, into the precinct buildings to keep the hotel cool,” said Urban.
“The water is later released back into the lake. And best of all, it’s all done without creating any CO2 emissions.”
The hotel and five other buildings in the precinct share a common urban garden, while the traditional hotel rooftop garden has been reengineered into an eco space full of local flora.
“Working with Geneva’s environmental guidelines for new builds, the Adina Hotel reduces energy consumption through external sun shading, magnetic window controls that automatically switch off power when the windows open; guest control of sunshades and super-efficient, high-tech building management systems to further reduce energy consumption without reducing guest comfort,” Urban said.
“It all adds up to a clean and green stay.”