“I still remember how it all began. Several years ago I crossed the pass into the famous Engadine Valley for the first time. Suddenly, I saw the hotel’s distinctive turrets and sky-blue shutters and the bright-yellow signage, matching the colours in the coat of arms of St. Moritz. These impressions still have the same effect on me today.”
The Austrian-born manager of a five-star hotel and Regional Vice president can draw from the experience of many years at Kempinski Hotels. His last position was at Kempinski San Lawrenz Resort & Spa in Gozo. Full of vigour, Simoner took the challenge of St. Moritz. And the success proves him right. Today, the hotel is positioned as a sportive and exclusive High Alpine Spa & Resort with an exceptional wellness, sport and recreational offering.
While the managing director of Kempinski San Lawrenz Resort & Spa on Gozo, Rupert Simoner was also instrumental in opening the Kempinski Giardino di Costanza Resort & Spa in Sicily in March 2005. The young hotel manager can look back to an international hotel career. After graduating from the Institute of Tourism and Management in Salzburg in 1990, he found a position as Food & Beverage Assistant Manager at the Marco Polo hotel group in Hurghada.
Subsequently (1992 to 1995) he completed an international trainee program of the Hilton hotel group. In 1995, Simoner began at Kempinski Hotels as Revenue Manager at Kempinski Hotel Beijing and was part of the opening team at the Ajman Kempinski Hotel & Resort in UAE. In 2000, he began a study at the Reims Management School and successfully graduated in 2002 as Master of Business Administration.
His motivation: “This is my home. Early morning, when I walk through the mostly empty corridors of the hotel I observe with a critical eye and ask myself: Why would I want to be a guest at this hotel? During the day I see the interplay of my team with the guests. I observe the quality at our restaurants which, by the way, are my “dining rooms” too. And finally, when I take in the atmosphere in the lobby, at the bar and spa – this is when I get my answers. To keep it this way I won’t hesitate for a moment to introduce innovations and push forward changes. And some of my best ideas I get high up in the mountains where simply nothing bothers you and where the really important things become plainly obvious.”
In 2006, the vigorous hotel manager with a sure taste for style was awarded the title BILANZ-Hotel Manager of the Year 2006 by the Swiss economy magazine BILANZ.