Johannes Baur founded the hotel in 1844 on the shore of Lake Zurich, on the remnants of the former war harbour, and placed it to frame the view of the Alps. Empress Elisabeth of Austria spent a whole summer here,. Management passed to Baur's son, then in 1889 to his daughter Emmy and her husband Karl Kracht, and the hotel is now in its seventh generation of the same family. The park gives views across Lake Zurich to the Swiss Alps, keeps 80,000 honey bees and hosts an open-air art programme that has run since 2007.
Rooms and suites are individually designed, with handcrafted furniture from fine ateliers. A Double Room is about 35 square metres and a Junior Suite about 50. The Lakeside Junior Suite and City Suite are about 60, the River Suite 65, the Lakeside Suite 70, and the Lakeside Corner Suite about 90 square metres with panoramic views of the park, the lake and the Schanzengraben. Up to seven rooms can be connected.
The family's own art collection hangs throughout the hotel, with works by Fernando Botero, Pablo Picasso, Louise Bourgeois, Nicolas Party and Annie Leibovitz, among others.
Marguita serves Mediterranean dishes on the water. Baur's Brasserie and Bar is open for lunch and dinner, Le Hall is the all-day lobby restaurant, where afternoon tea runs from October to April. Baur au Lac Vins, the hotel's wine merchant, is selected by Managing Director Marc Almert. The hotel also has a fitness area with views of the lake and the Alps, and a historic electric saloon boat, the Tugenia, on Lake Zurich. Le Petit Palais, the main event space, holds up to 300 guests.
It suits travellers who want a central address in Zurich's financial district with the quiet of a private park. Bahnhofstrasse and the Old Town are a few minutes' walk, and the hotel arranges transfers from Zurich Airport.
