Christmas magic

Christmas in a hotel has an image problem — it feels too impersonal, too functional, no Christmas tree, no “at home with us”. The Oswald family solves that through presence: on 24 December they welcome the guests themselves, then comes the six-course gala dinner in the restaurant Galerie, and the evening winds down at the fireplace bar with mulled wine and live piano. Three nights are room enough for that — a day before Christmas Eve for the spa and a walk, Christmas Eve as the anchor, and a standing day in between with no obligation to any programme.

The hotel is a family-run four-star-superior house, a member of Relais & Châteaux, in Kaikenried on the Bavarian Forest Nature Park. Around it: hiking trails in the snow, the heated outdoor pool under the stars, a spa surface of around 4,000 m², and in the nearer surroundings the Christmas markets in Regen and Viechtach. For guests who don't want to miss their own living room at Christmas — but do want to leave the cooking to someone else.