Michelin-Starred Dining At 30,000 Feet: SWISS Debuts New Inflight Menus

— Starting September 2nd, Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) will launch the newest edition of its renowned ‘SWISS Taste of Switzerland’ inflight dining program, spotlighting the culinary heritage of the Canton of Schaffhausen. Over the next three months, First, Business, and Premium Economy Class passengers departing Zurich and Geneva on long-haul flights will experience exclusive menus crafted by the culinary trio behind Michelin-starred restaurant Villa Sommerlust.

Situated on the banks of the Rhine just minutes from Schaffhausen’s historic Old Town, Villa Sommerlust is the canton's only Michelin-starred establishment. Operating out of a restored 17th-century villa, chefs Alejandro Perez Polo, Dan Rodriguez Zaugg, and Katiuska Villalba Paredes developed an inflight concept marrying Swiss regional roots with global culinary influences.

"Just like travel, culinary creations tell stories of their own. The culinary trio at Villa Sommerlust combines classic craftsmanship with fresh ideas, taking our guests on a culinary journey that begins in Schaffhausen and extends far beyond Switzerland’s borders. I am delighted that our guests will be able to experience their distinctive culinary signature on board over the next three months."

— Heike Birlenbach, Chief Customer Officer at SWISS

"Our cuisine thrives on the interplay of different ideas, cultures, and experiences. For our menus on board SWISS, we wanted to reinterpret regional ingredients and combine them with influences from around the world. It is a special honor for us to now serve these dishes to an international audience."

— Alejandro Perez Polo, Head Chef at Villa Sommerlust

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First Class Menu Highlights

In First Class, the culinary journey opens with a prawn salad accompanied by spicy corn soup, followed by a Catalan fish soup with clams, red snapper, and mojo rojo.

• Main Courses: Beef short rib bourguignon with mustard jus, fried bacon crumble, and truffled parsnip purée; or lobster and scallops served with goat cheese beurre blanc.
• Dessert: Caramel flan topped with caramelized popcorn and espresso ice cream.

Business Class Menu Highlights

Business Class travelers can begin their meal with a smoked salmon tartare paired with Andalusian gazpacho, kimchi mayonnaise, and quail egg.

• Main Courses: Beef short rib with mustard jus, mojo verde, Anna potatoes, and sautéed baby zucchini; or hake with green sauce, fried rice, and furikake.
• Dessert: Pistachio tartlet with berries and pistachio crumble.

Premium Economy Class Menu Highlights

Premium Economy offers a three-course menu centered on traditional Swiss comfort classics:

• Main Course: Fleischvogel (stuffed beef roulade with vegetables) served alongside polenta bramata and glazed chestnut.
• Cheese Course: Regional specialties including Holzhofer and Tannhütte Chäsli paired with traditional Swiss pear bread.
• Dessert: Chestnut cake served with vanilla whipped cream.

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About Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS)

Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) is Switzerland’s leading air carrier operating direct flights from Zurich and Geneva. A member of the Lufthansa Group and Star Alliance, SWISS combines premium service quality with ambitious sustainability commitments, including the expanded use of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF).

Switzerland Is About To Get Even Sweeter With A New Chocolate Destination

While the country is already home to the world-famous Lindt Home of Chocolate in Zurich, a massive new "chocolate paradise" is officially on the horizon.

Nestlé has unveiled plans for a major expansion of its historic Maison Cailler site in Broc, transforming it into the Parc du chocolat Cailler.

A 400 Million Franc "Chocolate Paradise"

Located in the Gruyère region, where chocolate has been produced since 1898, this project is stepping far beyond a simple museum. With a projected cost of 400 million francs, the Parc du chocolat Cailler is designed to be a "city within a city" for cocoa lovers.

The ambition is massive: developers are targeting one million visitors per year, which would put it on par with Switzerland's most popular tourist destinations.

What to Expect: The "Vertical" Cocoa Experience

The new park will span roughly 30,000 square meters and offer an immersive journey that could take up to five hours to complete. Highlights include:

Cocoa-Bean Greenhouses: Architecturally stunning glass structures shaped like cocoa beans where visitors can see real cocoa trees growing.

Sensory Tours: An expanded visitor experience focusing on the intense smells and tastes of traditional Swiss chocolate making. Enhanced rail links via the Broc Chocolaterie station, encouraging visitors to arrive by train rather than car.

Timeline: When Can You Visit?

While the Maison Cailler museum remains open during the transition, the full "Mega Destination" experience is expected to open in phases, with the first major completion goal set for 2030.

"The goal is to create an immersive experience centered on the taste and smell A "Chocolate Village": The plans include on-site hotels, restaurants, a wellness center, and a rooftop emporium.

Revitalized Heritage: Disused factory workshops will be restored and opened to the public for the first time in over a century.

Sustainability & Smart Travel

One of the most interesting aspects of the project is how you’ll get there. To protect the charm of the local village of Broc, the project includes:

A dedicated cable car to transport visitors from a new underground parking hub directly to the park.

Enhanced rail links via the Broc Chocolaterie station, encouraging visitors to arrive by train rather than car.

Skyscraper Height Of Rockefeller Center Planned For Remote Skiing Village In Switzerland

A new skyscraper proposed for Switzerland aims to transform housing in the mountain village of Zermatt in the Swiss Alps.

Matterhorn and swiss alps in Zermatt, Switzerland. | Getty

Renderings of the Lina Peak skyscraper shown on its website reveal a slender, rectangular glass tower. The building is designed to rise to 260 meters (just over 853 feet), placing it at roughly the same height as New York City’s Rockefeller Center, which stands 850 feet tall. The height of the tower could potentially change and be made taller or shorter if required, architect Heinz Julen, who designed the skyscraper, told New Atlas.

The Lina Peak website states that the tower is planned for plots no. 7223, 4716, 4708, and 7216 in the Biel area, around 800 meters (less than half a mile) before the entrance to Zermatt. The location has already been examined from a geological standpoint by Dr. Hans Rudolf Keusen, who concluded that the project’s basic feasibility has been confirmed but noted that more work remains.

“The Lina Peak project would be feasible from the point of view of natural hazards. Additional clarifications are needed to quantify the hazard and to dimension the necessary protective structures,” Keusen said, according to the website.

Julen has described Lina Peak as a kind of pressure release for Zermatt itself. “Lina Peak is a release valve for Zermatt–it creates space, relieves pressure, and gives the village back the peace it needs so that locals and guests will feel comfortable in the future,” he told New Atlas.

On the project’s website, the building is framed not merely as a striking tower, but as a “vertical village” that helps provide affordable housing for locals.

According to the website, the tower would include around 500 apartments ranging from 35 square meters (about 378 square feet) to 150 square meters (1,615 square feet), and offer a combined total of over 30,000 square meters of living space.

These apartments are intended to be available for sale or rent for locals and employees, and are described as “bright” units offering panoramic views of the Matterhorn and the wider Zermatt mountain landscape.

The project would be divided into two living areas. One area would occupy floors 2 through 32 and is described as providing “affordable first homes for locals and employees,” with a ban on price speculation and a commitment to fair pricing. That section would also include the possibility of renting supervised senior residences with preferential prices for Zermatt locals.

The second housing area would span floors 34 to 62 and would be sold on the free market in accordance with current Zermatt guidelines, with the intention of using those sales for cross-subsidisation of social housing. The website says this would result in “a model that combines social diversity and economic viability,” adding that “the upper floors make it possible for Zermatt to remain affordable living space downstairs–permanently and fairly.”

The proposal also seeks to address concerns about long-term affordability by setting limits on how the units can be priced in the future. The website states that 50 percent of apartments must remain as affordable housing and that price increases should be no more than two percent per year.

It argues that such measures are necessary in Zermatt, where, according to the project description, “market prices [are] often 50 percent higher than real value,” and “capped prices and fair financing ensure balance.”

Beyond housing, Lina Peak is also positioned as part of a broader system intended to relieve the village center from congestion. “The direct gondola connection to the Kumme cable car will make the project part of a new guest management system, so the village center remains relieved and Zermatt gains space to breathe,” the website says.

By Soo Kim

Travelore News: Key Swiss Rail Tunnel Damaged By Derailment Won’t Fully Reopen Until Next September

GENEVA (AP) — Switzerland’s national rail operator said Thursday the world’s longest rail tunnel won’t be fully reopened to train traffic until next September, again pushing back the target date for repairs of damage caused by a cargo train derailment.

The Swiss federal railway operator, known by its German-language acronym SBB, said the damage from the Aug. 10 derailment in the Gotthard tunnel, Switzerland’s main north-south rail thoroughfare, is “much more significant than first imagined.”

“The rail tracks need to be entirely replaced over 7 kilometers (4.2 miles). The work will take much more time than anticipated,” SBB said. The cost of the repairs is expected to be 100 million to 130 million Swiss francs (about $110 million to $140 million).

Limited passenger and cargo train traffic through the tunnel is continuing. Previously, SBB said repair work would continue through the end of this year.

No one was injured in the derailment, but the damage was considerable. Large swaths of track and an evacuation portal were torn up.

The tunnel is a crucial thoroughfare for goods and cargo, particularly between Germany to the north and Italy to the south. Last year, more than two-thirds of rail freight traffic through the Alps passed through the tunnel, according to the Swiss government.

Swiss Bask In Reopened Shops As COVID-19 Cases Drop

GENEVA (AP) — The timing couldn’t have been better for Michele Pesson for Swiss authorities to order a reopening of stores across Switzerland amid a recent drop in coronavirus cases and deaths: Her son’s birthday is coming up, and she wanted to get her hands on something special for him to read.

Pesson, a school teacher and administrator, was one of the droves of shoppers who turned out on Monday in a Geneva shop of well-known Swiss bookstore chain Payot to buy up magazines, books and other wares after a six-week shutdown that left only essential stores in Switzerland open because of the pandemic.

“Honestly, it does a lot of good,” she said. “You get the feeling that it’s something that’s not just the stores that are opening — but it’s a whole social aspect that’s reopening.”

Swiss authorities last week gave a go-ahead to what they called a “cautious” reopening despite a new, more-transmissible COVID-19 variant that first appeared in Britain that is increasingly circulating in the rich Alpine country.

In mid-January, authorities ordered the closure of stores except for supermarkets, pharmacies and other essential businesses — around the time that the country of 8.5 million was tallying more than 3,000 new coronavirus cases per day based on a seven-day average. That rate has gradually dropped in recent weeks, now to about 1,000 per day — or less.

The seven-day average of deaths has come in in the single digits in recent days, declining steadily from more than 70 on New Year’s Day and a plateau of over 80 per day in most of November and December.

The new measures don’t just affect stores: museums, zoos, library reading rooms and outdoor sports facilities like tennis courts and skating rinks can reopen. The government also is allowing more people to gather in public or private — 15 people, up from five.

President Guy Parmelin last week acknowledged public pressure for a faster reopening, but called for “discipline” in the face of the new variant’s spread. A reopening of restaurants and bars is planned for April 1, but that could be moved forward “if the situation continues to improve,” he said.

He cited rising vaccinations and COVID-19 testing in Switzerland as reasons to be confident.

Shop owners too expressed relief Monday that life was getting a bit closer to normal.

Nabil Slimani, manager of a Geneva store of snowboard, freeski, surf, skate and streetwear vendor Blue Tomato, said the closures last month and other forced closures in November “were really starting to weigh us as much as on the customers.”

He said more customers flooded into the store after a previous shutdown last year, and this time, “it’s been pretty calm ... it hasn’t been crazy.”

Ikea reported a few longer lines than usual. Spokesman Aurel Hosennen said Monday wasn’t nearly as busy as after a reopening from a longer lockdown last spring, when visits to reopened stores were nearly twice as much as on a normal day. On Monday, traffic was up about 30% from a normal Monday.

But the managers of the Payot bookshop said a combination of a back-to-school rush after university holidays and an eagerness to return to the feel of new books — after some online shopping in recent weeks — was driving up traffic on Monday.

“For a month and a half, people missed coming to bookstores,” said Christophe Jacquier, the Payot store manager. “There’s a real pleasure for people to come to hunt for and chose their books — it’s not the same thing as searching on the Internet.”

By JAMEY KEATEN

17 Sweet Travel Destinations For Chocolate Lovers, Wonderful Places To Consider After Travel Restrictions For Coronavirus Are Lifted.

1

Hershey, Pennsylvania

Gary Burke via Getty Images

Home to The Hershey Co., this destination in Derry Township, Pennsylvania, features Hershey's Chocolate World factory store and tour, Hersheypark theme park, The Hotel Hershey and its "chocolate spa," and many other attractions for lovers of all things chocolate.

2

St. Lucia

FREDERIC J. BROWN via Getty Images

The Caribbean island of St. Lucia is a popular chocolate tourism destination with its cocoa farms, chocolate-themed hotels, chocolate heritage month and more.

3

Barcelona, Spain

Museu de la Xocolata

Barcelona is a great city for chocolate lovers. In addition to the delicious cocoa cuisine (shoutout to churros dipped in chocolate), there are also chocolate walking tours and the famous Museu de la Xocolata, which covers the history and production of chocolate and houses impressive chocolate sculptures.

4

Switzerland

AGF via Getty Images

Switzerland is an obvious chocolate travel destination. Many of its famous chocolate brands offer on-site factory tours to visitors wanting to learn more about the production (and try some samples). Popular tours include Maison Cailler in Broc, Läderach in Bilten and Camille Bloch in Courtelary.

5

Bariloche, Argentina

Christian Ender via Getty Images

San Carlos de Bariloche, aka Bariloche, is a town in Patagonia famous for its Alpine architecture and chocolate production. Many chocolate shops and cafes, including the popular Mamuschka, line Mitre Street.

6

Vienna, Austria

ullstein bild via Getty Images

Vienna boasts a rich cultural history that includes the invention of Sachertorte, a delicious chocolate cake that's become an Austrian staple. You can sample this sweet treat at a variety of spots, including Demel pastry shop and Hotel Sacher.

7

Oaxaca, Mexico

Phil Clarke Hill via Getty Images

There are ample places where cacao lovers can taste delicious chocolate throughout Mexico, but the best destination is probably the Oaxaca area. Although it's not a major growing region, Oaxaca's gastronomical history centers largely on cacao. Popular specialties include champurrado (a hot chocolate drink) and mole sauce prepared with chocolate.

8

Brussels, Belgium

ullstein bild via Getty Images

Visiting the source of Belgian chocolate is another obvious move in the world of choco-travel. Brussels is home to the Choc-Story museum, as well as famous chocolatiers like Neuhaus, Pierre Marcolini, Mary, Wittamer and Godiva.

9

Birmingham, England

PAUL ELLIS via Getty Images

In 1824, John Cadbury began selling tea, coffee and drinking chocolate in Birmingham, England, and over time his business grew into the confectionary brand we know as Cadbury. Today, visitors to Birmingham can check out Cadbury World to learn about the history of the company, shop in the world's largest Cadbury store, sample Cadbury treats and participate in a variety of chocolate-themed activities.

10

Ecuador

RODRIGO BUENDIA via Getty Images

Ecuador produces world-renowned chocolate, and tourists can take farm and factory tours. Pacari Chocolate in Quito and the Guayas province-based Chchukululu offer popular tours.

11

Cologne, Germany

picture alliance via Getty Images

If you find yourself in Germany, consider checking out The Imhoff-Schokoladenmuseum aka The Chocolate Museum in Cologne. The scenic museum presents the global history of cocoa and a look at contemporary chocolate production, as well as a popular cafe and shop.

12

San Francisco

Smith Collection/Gado via Getty Images

Although the factory is no longer there, Ghirardelli Square still features a popular ice cream and chocolate shop from the brand. Visitors to San Francisco can also tour the Dandelion Chocolate factory and sample artisanal chocolates and cocoa treats throughout the city (special shoutout to Fog City News).

13

Vietnam

HOANG DINH NAM via Getty Images

Vietnamese chocolate has been described as "unlike any other." Tourists with a sweet tooth can explore the offerings from Marou or Azzan, which both offer tours.

14

Paris

Richard Bord via Getty Images

If you time your Paris visit right, you can experience the annual Salon du Chocolat trade fair, which includes fun events like a chocolate fashion show. Paris also has world-class chocolate offerings throughout the year, like the amazing chocolat chaud at Angelina and chocolatiers like La Maison du Chocolat and Jean-Paul Hévin .

15

Peru

Fotoholica Press via Getty Images

Peru has "ChocoMuseos" in Cusco and Lima, as well as popular chocolatiers like Roselen, and cacao jungle tours.

16

Ghana

Christian Science Monitor via Getty Images

Ghana is the second-largest producer of cocoa in the world, so the Ghana Tourism Authority recently launched its Cocoa Ecotourism Initiative to promote cocoa farms as a tourist attraction. Indeed, travelers can take tours to learn about the history and current practice of cocoa production in the country.

17

Tuscany, Italy

Amedei

Although Tuscany is probably best known for its wine, the region also has a lot to offer to chocolate fans. The so-called Chocolate Valley is a triangle between Pisa, Prato and Pistoia that boasts many small chocolate manufacturers, including Amedei.

Source: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/chocolate-travel-destinations_l_5db342ace4b05df62ebebfec

Lake Geneva Region News For Spring 2019

Visionary Gardens & Gastronomic Stars, Charlie Chaplin’s 130thBirthday and a Legendary Wine Festival

The Fête des Vignerons in 1999

The Fête des Vignerons (Winegrower’s Festival) July 18 to August 11, 2019 The Fête des Vignerons is an extraordinary theatrical spectacle that’s produced and performed once-a-generation by a cast of thousands in the Swiss lakeside city of Vevey. Recently named by UNESCO to its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage, the festival features local actors and musicians. Organized by the Confrérie des Vignerons (the Brotherhood of Winegrowers), which has roots going back to the Middle Ages, it was first celebrated in 1797 and last held in 1999. There will be 20 open-air performances in a temporary lakeside arena built for 20,000 spectators. Beyond the show, the streets of Vevey will be taken over by live music, food stalls and open wine cellars featuring the revered local white, chasselas. Running from July 18 to August 11, 2019, this pageant was a prime reason that Vevey was singled out as “One of the 52 Places to Go in 2019” by The New York Times. Tickets for the 2019 performances are on sale and available at the website of the Lake Geneva Region while accommodation info can be found at the Montreux Riviera website. While the festival occurs only every 20 years or so, the wine culture that it celebrates can be experienced every day of the year, in vineyard walks and cellar tours and tastings. 

La grande Pimprenelle, a Lausanne Jardins exhibit to be located on Promenade Jean-Villard-Gilles

Lausanne Jardins June 15 to October 12, 2019 The 6th Lausanne Jardins festival will take place in the summer and fall of 2019. Running from June 15 to October 12, 2019, this is a citywide cultural event as much as a gardening exhibit. Lausanne Jardins, which started in 1997, combines inventive and artful landscaping with reflections on the concept of a city. This year’s exhibition is dedicated to the topic of open ground, so each exhibit looks at urban areas have never been paved over and have remained in contact with the earth below. The 20 featured projects, chosen in an international competition, will cover the city from west to east on a themed walk. Each will celebrate open ground as a cultural event, combining landscape architecture with urban planning. Exhibit gardens will be embedded in various urban spaces, from streets and squares to neglected plots, roofs and building facades. Underlying the exhibits are reflections on the challenge of reclaiming free space in city developments and notions of how gardens can be integrated into an urban environment. There will be free 24 hour access to all of the gardens from mid-June to mid-October.

Narcissi in Bloom in Montreux Riviera April to June, 2019 Wild narcissi bloom between April and June in the Lake Geneva Region, transforming the meadows above Montreux and Vevey into white, perfumed landscapes. The flowers appear as soon as the snow melts, and the white flowers of the narcissi (narcissus radiiflorus) are locally known as “May Snow.” On theMontreux Riviera website, there is information about designated paths for visitors, guided tours and a forecast for peak viewing. Tulip Festival in Morges March 31 to May 5, 2019 A true sign of spring is the Tulip Festival at Parc de l'Indépendance in Morges on the shores of Lake Geneva. This free display lasts six weeks and offers more than 120,000 tulips of 300 varieties that bloom in succession, one of the most beautiful spring events in Vaud.

Chef of the Year Marie Robert of Café Suisse in Bex. Credit Gault&Millau

The Stars of Swiss Gastronomy in Vaud The renowned French gastronomy guides Gault&Millau and Michelin award the best chefs for the quality and originality of their cuisine. In 2019, 101 Vaud restaurants with a total of 1423 points are listed in Gault&Millau while 14 restaurants with a total of 19 stars are in this year’s Guide Michelin. Among the highlights: Chef Marie Robert of Café Suisse in Bex was named “Chef of the year 2019ˮ by Gault&Millau and awarded two additional points (16/20). She was also awarded one star by Guide Michelin. Chef Cédric Bourassin, holder of the award Meilleur Ouvrier de France, also received a Michelin star for his restaurant Berceau des Sens. This is the training restaurant of the l’Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (Lausanne Hotel Management School).   At the restaurant Hôtel de Ville in Crissier near Lausanne, Chef Franck Giovannini is the fourth celebrity chef in a row to manage the restaurant’s excellent cuisine. For 2019, he received 19 Gault&Millau points and three Michelin stars. He continues in the footsteps of his predecessors Benoît Violier, Philippe Rochat, and Fredy Girardet. Stéphane and Stéphanie Décotterd took over the management of the Pont de Brent in 2011 and have dedicated themselves to serving 100% regional cuisine local products, with ingredients that are rarely found anywhere else in the region. For their efforts, they’ve earned 18 points in GaultMillau and two Michelin stars in 2019 at a restaurant that is also a member of Relais & Châteaux and Grandes Tables du Monde.

Chaplin's World

Charlie Chaplin’s 130th Birthday   A little more than two years after it opened, Chaplin’s World by Grévin won the award for the best museum in Europe 2018 by The European Museum Academy. To mark the great actor, director and composer’s 130th birthday, Chaplin’s World has organized a series of events. Chaplin Personal is a photo exhibition from February 20 to May 5 by photographer Yves Debraine of Chaplin family photographs, many of them never published before. In the fall of 2019, a new wax figure will be introduced in Chaplin’s World, an upright figure of Chaplin with his typical cane and costume. The Chaplin’s World Cinema will also be screening a documentary on Chaplin from 1966, when he was interviewed by LIFE magazine reporter Richard Meryman. The film by Peter Middleton and James Spinney highlights the life and work of the pioneer of the silver screen. Visit Chaplin’s World for more details.

A Tasting at Open Cellars overlooking Lake Geneva

Open Cellars June 8 & 9, 2019 Stretching from Bonvillars to Chablais, from La Côte to Vully, and including the Lavaux and Les Côtes de l’Orbe, Open Cellars offers six wine regions, six varied climates and more than 300 wine cellars that will welcome visitors. The Open Cellars Pass is CHF 30 ($30.25) and gives visitors access to two days of tastings in the cellars of the canton of Vaud, free use of public transportation and the opportunity to discover the vintages from the 2018 harvest at a preview. It’s a unique opportunity to explore this wine region that’s rich in tradition.  Lausanne à Table April to December 2019 Lausanne à Table  is a public celebration of traditional and cutting-edge gastronomy in this vibrant city overlooking Lake Geneva. The celebration is back for the eighth year, from April to December 2019, with fondue dinners, street food and gastronomic experiments. There will be hikes, brunches with sports activities, cooking workshops, tastings of regional products, and samplings of artisanal beers and wines.   MIAM Festival June 8-10, 2019 The MIAM Festival is a crowd-friendly culinary event in Lausanne that will take place for the third year and runs from June 8 to 10 at the Place de la Riponne in Lausanne. It will bring together the crème de la crème from the culinary field: restaurants, caterers, food trucks, craftspeople, producers and purveyors who have been carefully selected by the Lausanne à Table association.

The Lake Geneva Region (Canton of Vaud) is located in the French-speaking part of Western Switzerland, a timeless, picture-postcard destination of classic mountain beauty, refined cuisine and legendary hotels. Visitors come for wine tastings in the Lavaux vineyards, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. They dine in celebrated Michelin-starred restaurants and local brasseries and visit lively farmers markets. Outdoor opportunities range from hiking and biking to sailing and swimming in Lake Geneva. Major ski resorts include Les Diablerets, Villars and Leysin. The region is famed for the Vallée de Joux, the center of Swiss watchmaking, and for such unforgettable museums as Chaplin’s World and The Olympic Museum. The Fête des Vignerons, an extraordinary spectacle that celebrates the region’s wine growing traditions, is performed once a generation by a cast of thousands in the city of Vevey and will run from July 18 to August 11, 2019. Visit the www.lake-geneva-region.ch for more information. @lakegenevaswiss