17 JANUARY 2020: Grande-dame bastion of Alpine innovation, Badrutt’s Palace, is delighted to announce the launch of its own branded plane next month offering direct flights to St. Moritz from London.
The 30-seater Dornier 328 jet – which will run as a carbon neutral aircraft – will take its inaugural flight on the 14 February, departing from London’s Biggin Hill Airport to Samedan St. Moritz, running on selected dates in February thereafter.
Cabin crew will be joined by legendary Badrutt’s Palace staff and in-flight catering provided by the Palace’s celebrity chef partner, Jason Atherton of King’s Social House. Curtailing journeys to the Palace to just 1 hour 45 minutes, the launch comes exactly 100-years after Swiss pilot and aviation pioneer, Alfred Comte, completed the first ever flight from Switzerland to London taking off from the iconic frozen lake opposite the hotel.
To time with the UK half term holidays, additional flights from London to St. Moritz will take place on the 15th and 16th February with return flights scheduled to leave Samedan on 22nd and 23rd February respectively. The flights signal the start of an on-going trial by the hotel to potentially offer further direct flights from key destinations during peak times for both guests of the hotel and visitors to the wider Engadin region. The easy check-in process – available up to 45 minutes prior to departure – short flight time and seamless experience make it a stress-free journey to the iconic Swiss resort.
The launch comes as the approach to the Samedan St. Moritz regional airport shifts from IFR (instrument flight rules) to VFR (visual flight rules) making landing in bad weather and low visibility safe and easy; an essential component for regular, scheduled flights. The new flights will operate as carbon neutral meaning emissions will be offset by investing in a range of global carbon reduction projects such as rainforest protection and reforestation programmes.
Upon announcing the launch, Richard Leuenberger, Managing Director of Badrutt’s Palace Hotel said “Badrutt’s Palace has been pivotal in making St. Moritz the legendary destination it is today and we want to continue to support the resort town and region through the introduction of direct flights on our own branded plane”.
To book: flights start from CHF 1,600 return/ CHF 890 one-way including transfers to Badrutt’s Palace. Rates at Badrutt’s Palace start from CHF 1,125 per night over these dates, including daily breakfast, tax and service.