Lost Beauty: The Story of the Abandoned Hotel Belvédère in the Swiss Alps

The Abandoned Hotel Belvédère, it was this awesome Swiss hotel near the Rhone Glacier. It was built back in 1882 by a young hotelier named Josef Seiler. The hotel was nestled in one of the hairpin bends of the Furka Pass, which is known for being one of the snowiest areas in Switzerland. People loved staying there because of the incredible panoramic views.

Back in the early 1900s, the hotel industry in Switzerland was booming, and Hotel Belvédère became even more popular when new railway lines were opened. But things started to change in the 1960s. With faster and more powerful cars, people could make the trip through the pass in just one day instead of staying overnight. As a result, the number of guests at the hotel and other Alpine hotels started to decline.

It’s really sad to say, but the hotel closed down a couple of years ago, and it doesn’t seem like it will ever reopen. It’s a shame to see such an iconic place fade away.

The Hotel Belvédère wasn’t just any old hotel, it was a total movie star! You won’t believe it, but this place actually made an appearance in the famous James Bond film, Goldfinger, back in 1964. The hotel’s stunning location on the Furka Pass in the Swiss Alps caught the attention of filmmakers, and they featured it in a car chase scene with an Aston Martin DB5 and a Ford Mustang. Can you imagine how cool that must have been? They even named one of the curves on the east side “James Bond Strasse”!

It’s really sad to say, but the hotel closed its doors in 2016, marking the end of an era. The once lively restaurant, known as The Rose Hall, is now a pretty gloomy sight with broken windows and old chairs and tables all piled up in a corner. And get this, the Rhone Glacier, which used to be right at the hotel’s entrance, has been shrinking by 10 centimeters every day! That’s crazy! The ice tunnel that used to be a big tourist attraction, where even famous folks like Pope John XXIII and Sean Connery visited, can’t even be safely carved into the glacier anymore.

Running a business up in the high Alps wasn’t a piece of cake, let me tell you. Rosemarie Carlen, the manager of Hotel Belvédère Rhonegletscher for a whole decade, explained the challenges they faced in such a harsh environment. Every winter, they had to basically put the whole place to sleep, shutting off the water and electricity, and moving everything out that wouldn’t survive the extreme weather. And when spring rolled around, they had to fly in by helicopter to get ready for the season, even when the road leading to the hotel was still closed. Talk about dedication!