In 2017, the Null Stern project, meaning “zero star” in German, by hotelier Daniel Charbonnier and conceptual artists Frank and Patrik Riklin opened their first “room,” a single bed under the Swiss sky overlooking the Safien Valley in Grisons and Appezellerland. After two successful summers and a waiting list of more than 4,500 reservations, Frank and Patrik Riklin’s concept is back under the name Zero Real Estate. Today, the hotel has seven “rooms” (up four this year), each equivalent to a bed, with no bathroom, no walls, and no ceiling, scattered across eastern Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein.
Burst Suite at the foot of Alpstein
Panoramic view of the Toggenburg valley from the Stump Suite
Schwendi Suite with view of Schwendi Lake
What travelers get from renting these rooms, according to their creators, is the experience. A night here can be spent taking in breathtaking views of the Alps or sunsets over a hillside vineyard. “Let’s turn the Swiss landscape into walls,” says one of the three co-founders. Charbonnier, Frank and Patrik work with local tourist offices to create and select the spaces when they start building the rooms.
Lüsis Suite in Heidiland
The rooms are set in picturesque surroundings, with a local butler always on hand to assist guests when needed and provide information about the area if they want to participate in experiences such as climbing, hiking, etc. Butlers are trained to be able to make beds in strong winds, or walk across creeks with a tray of food in hand. If the weather is bad, the butler will take guests to a dry room for shelter. And importantly, the butler is always close to the guest, but far enough away to give them privacy.
Zero Real Estate Hotel is set to reopen in July and will start at $310 a night. In just one day, three of its rooms were sold out for the rest of 2020, and there are 9,000 people on its waiting list.
