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Sorell Boutique-Hotel Speer Rapperswil
Rapperswil-Jona, Switzerland · Sorell · Near Luxury
Eugen Hämmerle opened Konditorei Speer, pastry shop and restaurant, in 1921, after buying two buildings on Untere Bahnhofstrasse for the foot traffic his main-square shop was missing. His son turned the confectionery into a hotel in the early 1950s. Urs Hämmerle, then 27, took over in 1981, and on January 3, 2017 the family handed the keys to Sorell. Virginia Maissen redid the 56 rooms in 2025, with wall fabrics printed from old Rapperswil copper engravings. You are across from the station, a short walk from Lake Zurich.
- 56 rooms
- Neighborhood: Rapperswil
- Interiors: Virginia Maissen
About Sorell Boutique-Hotel Speer Rapperswil
- Sorell's May 2025 reopening called this the only four-star hotel in Rapperswil. The work stayed open through the job, added an honesty bar, and brought in Sayori, an outside Asian restaurant, as the kitchen.
- On January 3, 2017 Marianne Bucher, long the front-office manager, became general manager. She had also worked at the Victoria-Jungfrau in Interlaken and the Waldhaus in Sils Maria.
- The wooden pedestrian bridge over the Seedamm, which Sorell calls the longest of its kind in Switzerland, is the walk from here toward Pfäffikon.
History
Eugen Hämmerle's Konditorei Speer, with a restaurant, opened in 1921 on Untere Bahnhofstrasse, in two buildings he bought for better foot traffic than the main square gave him. His son turned the shop into a hotel and restaurant in the early 1950s. Urs Hämmerle took over in 1981 at 27, when his parents could no longer run it. On January 3, 2017 Cécile and Urs Hämmerle handed the keys to Sorell Hotels, part of the ZFV cooperative. Virginia Maissen redesigned the 56 rooms in a 2025 renovation that kept the house open, using Rapperswil copper-engraving prints on the walls.
The setting
The hotel stands opposite Rapperswil station, on the Rapperswil side of the merged municipality Rapperswil-Jona, a short walk from the lake promenade, the old town, and the castle. The long wooden pedestrian bridge over the Seedamm starts nearby and walks you toward Pfäffikon SZ. The door is the Rapperswil station side of the merged town.
Restaurants and bars
- Honesty Bar — Bar
- Sayori — Restaurant · Asian specialities
Experiences
- Rapperswil Castle — Castle with three towers offering views of the Glarus Alps and Lake Zurich; renovated in 2022, reopened in winter 2024.
- Enea Tree Museum — Tree Museum by Enzo Enea over 75,000 square metres, mixing botany, architecture and design.
- Lake Zurich boat trip — Round trips and adventure cruises from Rapperswil harbour; winter fondue boat.
Amenities
- Complimentary water, coffee and tea on each floor
- Choice of pillows
- Yoga mat
- Soeder toiletries
- Mini Changemaker Shop in the lobby
- Complimentary Sorell bikes available free of charge at reception
- Sorell breakfast buffet with sustainably sourced local produce
Open Sorell Boutique-Hotel Speer Rapperswil in the atlas for live weekend rates, photos, and the full folio.