When people hear Six Senses, they think contemporary rooms, its Earth Lab tutorials and a puritanical organic philosophy woven into everything, from spa treatments to headboard materials. Which is precisely what they’ve delivered, in the Crans side of Crans-Montana, perched high above its little lake, parks and boutiques.
The anti-waste, anti-consumption ethos is (somehow) reconciled with high octane, angular interiors, wildly delicious local food and the spa to end all spas, worth whooshing down the slopes for.
Where is it?
It’s in the Crans side of Crans-Montana, high above the town to ensure its ski-in-ski-out promise is honoured — as long as there’s ample snow. Six Senses’ decision to set up Alpine shop in this unpretentious resort was a curious one, particularly as the designer-hoodie wearing crowds they draw in feel a little out off kilter with the British contingent who drive the kitchen sink here from London or the fur-coated old timers pacing the main drag. Also, as this is hearty fondu and raclette country, few are here for the salads. But take a little flick through Crans-Montana’s history and it all makes sense.
This resort is no stranger to glamour, or gloss. In its 1980s heyday, it was considered a tasteful, low-key spot for beau monde types. Charlie Chaplin dined here, Roger Moore moved here from Gstaad and celebrities and royals have long roosted here, away from the paps and any flashy fanfare. It’s reached by train from Geneva, then via a funicular up the mountain, or via an airport transfer, which is typically a lot smoother (particularly if travelling with children) andmeans you’re guaranteed a seat.
Style
Imagine a sprawling, Bond-esque chalet, rising from the snow-dusted pines, one that swallows blacked-out Mercedes whole through secret subterranean doors and is far enough up the mountain to be both vast and invisible. Six Senses Crans Montana is an architectural marvel, no matter your taste or design predilections, and its medley of luxe restaurants and bars gives you enough reason to stay piste or poolside for the entire week.
The cavernous indoor spaces are warmed with thick rugs and brooding lighting, and nature is yanked inside (and given the contemporary treatment) at every corner, from the glass-cased forest floor (open to the elements) that lines the hallway, to the vast balconies with dazzling Rhone Valley views. Summers here flash emerald green in all directions, winters are enveloped in pillowy white, whether inside this behemoth of an Alpine hotel, or soaking in the sunshine on its terraces.
Aesthetic highlights include the indoor-outdoor pool, reflecting a contemporary wooden art installation suspended above it, then spilling outside into a brutalist, cubic space lined, to minimalist effect, by orderly birch trees. Then there’s the salon-like reception space, with striking patterned rugs underfoot, cool circular light installations seemingly scribbled into the air above, and low-slung sofas, all choreographed into one highly instagrammable spot.
Food & drink
Six Senses’ wellness cachet too often eclipses the food, which, on the whole, is really good. So good that you’d be forgiven for staying put all week, foregoing the hearty raclette haunts in town to work your way through the menus. Wild Cabin’s is radically seasonal and fairly global, with a Swiss leaning. It hits all the right notes for the high-end palate in a laid-back setting. Alpine light spills in through a glass wall, illuminating the patterned rugs and open-kitchen, where chefs whip up grilled asparagus and miso cream, rosti and salmon tartare starters, and generous, juicy pork belly with seasonal roots and seabass in Champagne sauce.
Every dish is unctuous, saucy, glossy beneath the moody lighting. Lunches often spill onto the sunny terrace and breakfast is a feast of Alpine delights, with a Six Senses twist) – think freshly foraged berry juices, thick Swiss yoghurt lathered in local honey and baked-nut granola. A real perk of this hotel is the absence of punitive breakfast times – guests can saunter down for Negroni Valaisans and eggs after the lie-in all hotels should cater to.
A few will slump in, jaded from last night’s saké cocktails at Byakko, Six Senses’ metropolitan-style Japanese joint, serving up spanking fresh sushi alongside favourites such as the black cod and wagyu beef. A DJ could well dial up the evening before you’ve even made it to the Blue Crystal shrimp, and by the time the black sesame mochi show up, most of the table will have located the cigar room or be dancing by the bar.
Facilities
This is where Six Senses really outdoes itself. The spa feels both cavernous and cosy, with a centre piece glassy pool rippling beneath a MOMA-worthy wooden art installation – with hundreds of timber stumps jutting from the ceiling. This mass of water spills outside through a glass partition wall, into a Brutalist-style courtyard that slices the light. And this is only the subterranean part. Upstairs, a large terrace level pool is perfectly juxtaposed with the piste, inviting Après shenanigans – no boot thumping, but a few rounds of herb-infused cocktails by the pool, sure. Its open-air cinema is a thrilling spot, particularly when night envelopes the hotel and pine wafts through the cold air.
Inside, weary ski legs can head for the treatment rooms, where therapists will manipulate muscles, while energy flows and cortisol leaves the body thanks to a heavenly edit of treatments and an ancient-meets-modern science approach. One the menu are an intensely moisturising Swiss Chocolate Wrap and the anti-aging, sleep-inducing body ritual with Valais region grapes. Plus guests have full run of the biohack recovery lounge – where far from limited to thigh-busting afternoons on the slopes, healing techniques target all levels of physical and psychological stress (think compression boots, red-light LED face masks and Therabody loungers with guided meditations). Young children are sensibly separated from the zen with a splash pool and fixed main pool times.
Families
Surprisingly, this sultry, grown-up hotel welcomes children — well-mannered ones with parents who can read the room (aka head to the splash pool and leave the slumbering couple by the main one in peace). The GROW by Six Senses programme will keep children from three entertained with a whole raft of activities, from finger painting sessions to outdoorsy activities, such as foraging and sleigh rides. Families can hunker down in the cinema room with a decadent array of snacks, and those hoping their children find their ski legs can ask the hotel for ski school advice.
Extracurricular
Six Senses’ health is wealth philosophy feels right at home in Crans-Montana, whose year-round appeal takes the pressure off the snow forecasts. Skiing in sunny Crans is dreamlike and relatively uncrowded — though you’ll need to take the gondola up for more powder and bracing descents, which is conveniently just below this ski-in, ski-out hotel. Adrenaline junkies can clamber up to the legendary Plaine Morte Glacier, and skiers of all levels can look forward to wide, cruisey pistes with high altitude haunts such as Buvette de Pepinet, or Cabane Violettes, which are worth clicking off skis for.
The ski concierge is superb, ensuring guests’ kit is as bespoke and as comfortable as it can be, and that they’re embarking on the right scribble of pistes for their level (or with a pre-arranged ski guide). When snowglobe Crans-Montana begins to thaw, guests can hop onto e-bikes, following pretty trails along mountains and lakes, hike to summits for a morning sun salutation or even refine their swing on the golf course. Gourmands can settle into a Valais cheese making workshop, while thrill-seekers take to the skies, paragliding over The Sound of Music countryside.
Which room?
Rooms are carved from granite, marble and wood with dark gnarled oak and larch cupboards, brow-raising techy touches and masculine, dimly lit bathrooms. Showers are designed to warm you at every angle, baths are deep enough to soak weary ski muscles (with delicious smelling salts) and, in some rooms, guests can sweat out all the Glühwein in their own private sauna.
Six Senses take their sleep seriously — beds are the paragon of comfort: crisp, pillowy and hard to wrench yourself from for breakfast. Ultimately, it’s space you’re paying for, when you begin to climb the room categories. No one loses out on a terrace or the high design. Side note: the ski storage design is outstanding — with clever compartments for all the paraphernalia.
Best for…
A spoiling ski and spa weekend, where fresh mountain air, phenomenally good food and biohacking treatments are the order of the day.
Details
Rates at Six Senses Crans Montana, part of IHG’s luxury and lifestyle portfolio, start from CHF 730 (approx. £653) for a Superior Terrace Room. sixsenses.com
