Elite Traveler Winter 2024/25

GUIDETO STMORITZ It all started with a bet. In 1864, as

year), the town and Pension Faller lay empty, much to Mr Badrutt’s despair. Unable to refuse, the four Brits returned and are said to have been so captivated, they stayed until Easter. With that, the world’s fi rstwinter resort was born, and St Mortiz cemented its place as the cold weather playground of the elite. Mr Badrutt’s legacy lives on today and, in some ways, little has changed. The hilltop town remains one of the world’s most exclusive ski resorts — a place where discretion and elegance

Johannes Badrutt waved o ff the last of his English summer guests at Pension Faller in St Moritz, he put a proposal to them: return in December. If they didn’t like it, he would pay their travel expenses. If they did, they could stay for as long as they liked. Up until then, St Moritz and the Upper Engadin Valley had been a popular summer destination for wealthy Europeans. Yet in winter, despite snowcapped landscapes and mild temperatures (St Moritz averages 322 days of sun a