By Everett Potter

This year marks the 150th anniversary of the Grand Hotel du Lac, an 1868 dowager set along the shores of Lake Geneva in the quiet Swiss city of Vevey. Across the lake are the snowcapped Dents du Midi, the most noteworthy peaks in this part of the French Alps. By day, sailboats tack and forth between Switzerland and France, while at night, you can see the lights of Evian in the distance. You can imagine exiled royals encamped for months in this hotel, back in the days when royals did such things. Deeply atmospheric, it was the setting for Anita Brookner’s novel, Hotel du Lac.

When my wife and I stayed here two decades ago, it was all faded charm, yet still a romantic delight. The current owners closed the property in 2005 and spent a couple of years restoring it.  When we returned in 2008, the hotel … continue reading