We’re avid travellers ourselves, so we know how you feel: holiday travel planning on the internet can be daunting, made up of an overwhelming amount of information. How are you supposed to decipher what each hotel, destination or experience is really like, which is best adapted to you and your style of travel and where are the type of gems you’re looking for?
After all, your aim is to capture the real essence of Switzerland. There’s nothing worse than feeling like a tourist, following the tour buses, right?
And to top it all off, your most precious asset is your time, so you want to delegate the travel planning to someone you can trust and who has first-hand experience.
And that’s basically what we deliver.
We are your local Swiss travel experts here to design bespoke holiday itineraries and insider tours in Switzerland that will give you a view of our country that reaches far beyond the tourist map. You know, the type you’ll want to talk about time and time again. Ready for your most memorable holiday yet?
Our discerning luxury travellers come from all over the world, with different backgrounds, ages and cultures. From adventurists to city explorers, we welcome families, couples, honeymooners and even travelers journeying alone. But one key aspect brings them all together: the desire to connect to the real spirit of Switzerland. To travel off the beaten path and see the best of our beautiful country, but also what lies behind its façade.
Our hand-picked selection of Swiss boutique hotels ranges within the 4 and 5 star level, with some exceptions to the rule if they offer a unique experience and are up to the level you deserve. After all, it’s not always a big brand name that guarantees the best holiday, right? Within this range, our properties vary in style, from modern to more traditional, without bypassing the relaxing R&R properties.
We know each of our hotels personally to be able to best advise you on what you are looking for (and which rooms to book for you to have the best views!)
In most cases, we do recommend exploring Switzerland by car – while our trains are efficient, they will not always take you off the beaten path in the most flexible way. On the other hand, if you hire a car or a personal driver, you can stop whenever, wherever to take photos… and believe us, you’ll want to!
You’ll find more information about this question on our “Switzerland For First Timers” article.
For a seamless journey, we prefer to take care of everything for you, including the accommodation and the experiences. This is due to first-hand experience, to ensure that everything runs smoothly, and there are no “gaps” in the organization.
The only exclusion to the rule are Max’s Private Custom Day Tours and Multi Day Tours. We plan these not only for our travelers, but also for those who like to do the travel planning themselves and would just like to enjoy a really unforgettable guided day tour.
In terms of payment, we kindly ask for a CHF 500 down payment before we get started on your itinerary, which will be deducted from the total when you confirm your trip with us. This deposit is to have access to our expertise, as well as for the hours we spend designing uniquely-crafted itinerary options for you.
Once we have finalised your bespoke itinerary and you’re excited about it, we ask for a first down-payment to guarantee all of the hotels and activities for you. The second down-payment will be made a few weeks before your arrival. For these payments, we accept both bank transfers and credit cards.
Please note that due to the pandemic, these conditions are flexible and adjusted case per case.
Our planning fee comes as a percentage of your journey that is calculated based on the number of hours we spend designing and planning your journey, its length and its complexity. It is directly included in the budget we typically work with (see next question).
As our professional service and continual availability is the company’s DNA, we do not want charge our work by the hour, as it goes against our service philosophy and our fee would skyrocket to other dimensions.
Why do we implement a fee? To compensate for the time we spend planning and customizing your trip, our undivided attention while you’re here in case you need anything and for access to our valuable expertise – we’ve slept in the beds, tasted the restaurants, hiked the hikes and toured each destination in detail. These three ingredients will guarantee your peace of mind and an easy, seamless journey that you’ll want to talk about time and time again. That is why we only take a limited number of trips per year.
Our secret recipe for a successful trip you’ll want to talk about time and time again is a mix of the best properties and the country’s finest local guides, topped off with uniquely-crafted experiences, and sprinkled with our insider knowledge and travel planning to the smallest detail.
To give you a general price estimate, our tried and tested accommodation start on average between CHF 750 and CHF 1’100 per room, per night. Our private hosted experiences and guided tours average around CHF 950 – CHF 1’600 for two, per day.
Yes: not only are we familiar with the neighbouring French region, but we also work with like-minded and high-quality local experts in a selection of countries in Europe, including Italy and the Netherlands. Please enquire for more details.
No worries, we’re here for you faster than you can say “Swiss Cheese”! We’re your safety net while you’re here in case of any problems and we’re never more than couple of hours away. Plus, we’ll be in the same time zone as you, making communication all the easier.
Yes! Once you have chosen the itinerary you love and that you’re excited about, we will send you our recommended restaurants per destination that we can book in advance for you. If you typically prefer to play it by ear, that’s fine too – you’ll have our restaurant suggestions in your personal travel booklet along the way in case you need them!
No, we don’t reserve any flight tickets at this time.
Of course we do – our services have helped several private offices, concierge companies, travel agencies and other business in the past. Local expertise is our craft, and we’re happy to share it with those who share the same work philosophy as us.
Being based onsite, we can best advise you as to the current conditions and restrictions both in terms of travel and within the country.
In terms of reserving, we have become much more flexible with our payment conditions and cancellations. Each trip is treated on a case by case basis. Please email us for more details.
By booking your free consultation call with us! During this time, we can answer any preliminary questions you might have (i.e. what season is best, is Switzerland a good match for families, etc…). This is also YOUR chance to get to know us, and if we’re a good match for you. If so, we’ll get right to designing your custom itinerary!