Bellevue Palace

During the Second World War, guests from the Axis powers would gather in one half of the La Terrasse restaurant, while those from the Allied forces sat in the other. The bar, meanwhile, became a legendary meeting point for spies and diplomats — Allen Dulles, the OSS station chief who would go on to run the CIA, was a regular. John le Carré is said to have written his espionage novels here, which surprises no one who has sat in that bar. Owned by the Swiss Confederation and situated next door to the Federal Parliament, the Bellevue is Switzerland's official guesthouse for visiting heads of state. Built in 1913 as the country's first reinforced-concrete hotel, it has 126 rooms and a terrace with a staggering view of the Bernese Alps across the Aare.