Grand Hotel Les Trois Rois

Character and identity

Perched on the Rhine in the heart of Basel, this riverside grande dame has been operating as a hotel since 1681, and the layered history shows in every public room: Neoclassical interiors, patterned wallpapers, thick curtains, polished wood, and a guest book that runs from Voltaire and Dickens to Napoleon, Picasso, and Bob Dylan. Rooms lean classical rather than contemporary, with quiet modern comforts like heated bathroom floors tucked in discreetly. Dining centres on an acclaimed restaurant honouring French haute cuisine, with a cocktail bar (and gin programme) under Chef de Bar Thomas Huhn, plus a cigar lounge. Service is precise, warm, and properly old-school.

Who's it for

Bottom line

What you are paying for here is continuity: three-plus centuries of hotel-keeping expressed through genuinely classical rooms, a serious kitchen, and service that still understands the small gestures. Book if you want Basel done formally, take a river-facing room, and build at least one dinner at the main restaurant into the stay. Shoulder seasons around Art Basel see the best value.