This Hotel Lets You Decide If You Want To Sleep In Switzerland Or France. Confused?

How many two-star cozy hotels do you know in the world which, after you check in, will ask you which country you would like to sleep in? If you’re just as confused as I was when I read about this, let me give you a small introductory tour to a small hotel in the French village of La Cure called Hôtel Arbez Franco-Suisse.

Hotel Arbez lies bang on the Franco-Swiss border, the international border that divides the countries of France and Switzerland in Europe.

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When Switzerland agreed to cede the Dappes Valley to France in 1863, a long-time border dispute was settled with the Treaty of Dappes. The village of La Cure then became bisected on the border, and a local businessman saw this as an opportunity to open a business there. M. Ponthus built a bar and grocery store in the prime location, hoping to attract customers to this unique and historical place.

 

Jules-Jean Arbeze bought the land and the building from the Ponthus family in 1921, and built the Hotel Arbez as we know it today. It has equal parts Switzerland and France in it, and various points in the hotel are divided.

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In some rooms, guests sleep with their heads in France and feet in Switzerland. The dining room is divided by the border, hence having the cultures of both countries in it. In one room, most of it is in Switzerland, but the washroom is in France, so you’d have to go to France to pee. Thankfully, you don’t need a passport every time you do so!

 

The Honeymoon Suite is also neatly bisected into the French and Swiss sides, so you can boast to your friends that you both slept in different countries when you had a fight!

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The Treaty sure helped the hotel, and their business is always in bloom, as people come to experience a dual culture and lax border laws when they visit the little alpine village of La Cure.

*adds Hotel Arbez in my European Travel bucket list*


News source: Condé Nast Traveller
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