TFE Hotels is continuing to ramp up its presence in Europe with the opening of Adina Apartment Hotel Geneva in Switzerland’s very first
international hotel hub. The Adina – TFE’s first hotel in Switzerland – together with precinct neighbours Intercity B&B, and the nearby Marriott, add around 1000 room keys to the lucrative local market.
Like its sister property Adina Munich, which was built in the former industrial area of Werksviertel and opened in late 2021; the 140-key Adina Geneva is part of an urban renewal project in, what has now become, the largest private real-estate investment in Switzerland.
Developer Claude Berda has spared no expense, investing 1.4 billion Swiss Francs ($2.27 billion AUD) to transform the 11-hectare former industrial site into a modern, mixed-use lifestyle precinct complete with several hotels, retail, restaurants, residential and mixed-use apartments, and vital infrastructure including a school and commercial offices.
TFE Hotels’ CEO, Antony Ritch, said the opening of Adina Geneva in such a prestigious neighbourhood heralded a new phase of expansion for our Australian International Hotel Company.
“We have opened eight international Adina hotels over the past two years and entered new global markets including Austria, Singapore, and now Switzerland,” he said. “So, Geneva – with its strong global financial, diplomatic, business and leisure markets – was a natural next step for us.”
“Geneva has a very low proportion of apartment hotels that can cater to these seasoned travellers. The fact that the market is not competitive in this space gives us an opportunity to position Adina Hotels as a long-term market leader in Switzerland, with Zurich, Basel, and Lucerne other potential locations in the future,” Ritch said. “We look forward to seeing what General Manager, Gabriel Urban, and his team can do in establishing and growing our Adina brand in Switzerland and delivering our Australian style of hospitality to a whole new market.”
With the opening of Adina Geneva, TFE’s European portfolio is sitting at 18 hotels – around 2760 keys – with plans to expand further throughout Europe in the coming year. Adina General Manager, Gabriel Urban, said whilst apartment-style hotels were still relatively new in the Swiss market, the Adina was perfectly positioned with the contemporary and highly functional room design, renewable energy for heating and cooling, and some of the best views the city could offer.
“At 10 storeys, we’re the tallest building in the Quartier de L’Étang precinct and one of the tallest buildings in Geneva, where typical commercial buildings stand around 7 storeys high,” he said. “Add in our East/West/South aspect and we have views to Mont Blanc and the Jet D’eau to the south; Mont Salève in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes to the West and the Jura Mountains to the East.
“Right now, the caps are white, so it’s a very, very beautiful view,” Urban said. “And if you book a corner room, you get the best alpine vistas all year round.”
Adina Geneva, like other buildings in the Quartier de L’Étang precinct, uses renewable energy to heat and cool the hotel.
“Water from 45m below the surface of Lake Geneva – Europe’s largest alpine lake – is essentially pumped, using hydrothermal technology, into the precinct buildings to keep the hotel cool,” Gabriel said. “The water is later released back into the lake. And best of all, it’s all done without creating any CO2 emissions.”
B Coffee Pods – another brilliant piece of Swiss engineering using a thin layer of biodegradable algae, instead of traditional foil – will be available at the hotel, ensuring coffee drinkers can recycle the beans and help fertilize the hotel’s garden without adding to landfill.
And in an architectural design element reminiscent of New York’s The Highline, the hotel and five buildings in the Les Atmospheres section of the precinct, share a common urban garden. And 10-storeys up, the traditional hotel rooftop garden has been reengineered into an entire green roof alive with local flora.
“Working with Geneva’s environmental guidelines for new builds, the Adina Hotel reduces energy consumption through external sun shading, magnetic window controls that automatically switch off power when the windows open; guest control of sunshades and super-efficient, high-tech building management systems to further reduce energy consumption without reducing guest comfort,” Gabriel said. “It all adds up to a clean and green stay.
With a passion for delivering Australian style hospitality to the world, the Adina also offers a few homegrown touches including interiors by Australian designer Andrew Parr, from SJB Melbourne, and in-room chairs by Melbourne designer Chris Connell. Likewise, Adina’s hometown of Geneva is celebrated with books in the lobby area and rooms curated by Alix Rippoll from Letu Books in the city’s charming old town.
