Switzerland

For a wellness-led Alpine stay, Six Senses Crans-Montana — ski-in access, a vast spa with altitude-adapted and biohacking programmes, and a sun-facing balcony position above the Rhône Valley. It is one of the few Alpine addresses equally worth booking in ski season and high summer.

Both are first-rate, which is unusual for the Alps. December–March is ski season (January and March are quieter than the holiday peaks); June–September brings hiking, wildflowers and the lakes at their finest. The scenic trains run year-round and are spectacular in either season.

Yes — it is the benchmark scenic rail journey in Europe, crossing 291 bridges between Zermatt and St. Moritz through the high Alps. We book Excellence Class seats and often use one leg of it as the transfer between a lake city and the mountains, so no day is 'lost' to travel.

Train, nearly always. The network is fast, punctual and reaches valleys the motorways never bother with. Several of the best villages — Zermatt, Wengen, Mürren — ban cars outright, so you would leave the hire car in a valley garage and take the mountain railway up regardless. A car earns its keep only if you are touring the wine terraces or want early starts in the hills. For most itineraries the Half Fare Card, which halves ticket prices on trains, buses and boats for a month — some mountain railways discount less — works out cheaper than the unlimited Swiss Travel Pass. Swiss stations will also forward luggage between hotels.

Different animals. Zermatt is a mountain village organised around one view, with the Matterhorn standing at the end of the high street, and it is car-free, so you park at Täsch and take the shuttle train up. Compact and walkable, and everyone there is there to ski. St Moritz sits high in the Engadine, drier and brighter, with a frozen lake in winter and a social season to match. Cars are allowed, the valley is broader, you move about more. First Alpine trip: Zermatt. Want glamour and people-watching: St Moritz.

Nearly, but not quite. Most Swiss resorts add a visitor's tax on top of the room rate — a few francs per person per night, set by the commune and settled at checkout. It buys you something, though. In many resorts it comes with a guest card covering local buses and sometimes cable cars, so ask for it at check-in rather than paying twice. The other thing to check is half board. Alpine hotels frequently quote rates including dinner, which reads as expensive beside a room-only rate elsewhere. Compare like with like.