Have you ever imagined you could sleep in two different countries at the same time while staying in a hotel? This one-of-a-kind stay is offered by the Hotel Arbez Franco-Suisse, which has the unique distinction of being located right on an international border
The Hotel Arbez Franco-Suisse (also known as «L’Arbézie») is one of the most distinctive and «unusual» hotels in the world. The reason has nothing to do with any quirk in the decor or the hotels services, but with its unique location. «L’Arbézie» sits literally on the border between France and Switzerland -so literally, that in some rooms guests sleep in both countries at the same time!
The hotel split down the middle by two countries
The Hotel Arbez Franco-Suisse is asmall, family-run hotel set in the small village of La Cure, 45 minutes north of Geneva. The building that houses the hotelwas built in 1862, just before the delineation of the new bordersbetween the two countries, with the result that roughly half the hotel lies in France and the other half in Switzerland. The border bisects the restaurant as well as several of the hotels rooms.
As CNN reports, this situation «is an unintended consequence of the 1862 Treaty of Dappes, by which France and Switzerland agreed to a small territorial exchange, in order to allow full French control of a nearby strategic road. The treaty stipulated that all buildings along the border would remain in place, a fact that a local entrepreneur took advantage of to open a shop and a bar, in order to benefit from cross-border trade. The hotel opened in 1921».
Inside the hotel, decorative elements and symbols from both countries abound. «Mirrors and windows are not just decorative elements, but also symbols connecting neighboring worlds and realities», Alexandre Peyron tells CNN, the hotel’s manager whose family has run it for many generations.
The hotel has two addresses, two postal codes and two phone numbers. In fact, there are rooms where one side of the bed belongs to France and the other to Switzerland! The restaurant operating within the hotel is also in tune with this uniqueness, as it serves traditional dishes from both countries, such as Swiss fondue and French foie gras.
