Jon Murray experiences the delights of a bio hotel with a very special ambience in the Alps

 

The move towards eating healthier, locally-grown food — a trend which has gathered pace following the horsemeat crisis — need not be restricted to home.

More and more people are looking for ecologically-sound criteria when booking a holiday abroad.

Bio hotels have been popular in several European countries for a number of years now, and one that is surrounded by stunning scenery while also being very accessible from the UK is the Naturhotel Chesa Valisa in the Alps.

With its wooden-built architecture and light-flooded new buildings, this 4-star hotel in the Kleinwalsertal, in Austria, beautifully combines the traditional and modern, and offers opportunities for holistic relaxation and pampering with a wide range of treatments, or activities on its doorstep in both summer and winter.

Guests can enjoy 100 per cent organic food, nearly all of it sourced from the valley. And it tastes fantastic. The enormous salad buffet, comprising 30-40 different items and available both at lunchtime and as a starter in the four-course dinner, is the best I have experienced.

The hotel’s concept is based on four principles: maintaining unspoilt nature around the hotel, healthy living, an informed approach to eating, and programmes to increase vitality, fitness and health.

The determination of owners Klaus and Sieglinde Kessler to go down the bio path, and to introduce other forms of sustainability within the hotel, has rubbed off on others.

Although, in terms of environmental consciousness, the Kesslers were the ones who took on a pioneering role, many others in the valley have taken up the baton. Few, though, been able to run with it so well.

The hotel’s exclusive demand on the supply of whole food products was the motive for local bakers, butchers and farmers to rethink as well as go for organic and environmental friendly food.

The hotel itself has a very special ambience, whether in its 500-year-old main building, or in the modern Alpine spa. Here you can soothe your body after a vigorous activity (skiing in winter, mountain biking in summer, or invigorating all-year-round walks), or go for rest and tranquility in the relaxation rooms.

There is yoga, tai chi and Qi Gong available, and all number of massage packages, but the hotel’s speciality are individual Ayuverda treatments, with herbal oils based on ancient recipes which are made in India under strict conditions. These oils rejuvenate the skin and have positive effects on the lymphatic and immune system.

And, as with a stay at this delightful hotel, they leave you refreshed and revitalised.

l The beauty of the Kleinwalsertal, a unique valley in Austria that is only accessible via Germany, is that it is only 90 km — or 50 minutes, from Memmingen airport — west of Munich. RyanAir has a regular service to Memmingen from Stansted.

l The Naturhotel Chesa Valisa was GEO-Saison’s 2011 winner in the category of Eco-hotels.

l Double rooms at the Naturhotel Chesa Valisa on its BioVital full board basis range from €88-173 (£74-£145) per night.

Contact details: www.naturhotel.at www.aaexpress.de www.ryanair.com