Hôtel du Port

Nestled on the shore of Lake Geneva, the tiny walled medieval village of Yvoire is positively captivating—almost too quaint to be real. Its allure is even more enchanting in summer when every available bit of land is a flower garden and every house draped with red geraniums. Making everything perfect, there is a gem of a small hotel here—the 200-year-old Hôtel du Port, which absolutely oozes charm with a stone façade almost totally covered with ivy, brown shutters, and red geraniums spilling out of windowboxes. It is just next to the dock where ferries flit in and out all day, making their circuit around the lake. The main focus of the hotel is its restaurant, which has a summer dining terrace stretching to the edge of the water. Although the majority of guests come just for lunch, for a lucky few there are seven sweet bedrooms available. If you want to splurge, request one of the five with a romantic balcony overlooking the lake (an elevator takes you to the upper floors). The moderately sized, spotlessly clean guestrooms are simple and attractive, with built-in wooden furniture and matching drapes and bedspreads. Each has a modern bathroom, air conditioning, telephone, TV, and mini-bar. As in so many of our favorite hotels, the gracious owners, Jeannine and Jean-François Kung, are also the managers, always keeping an eye out to be sure the hotel is impeccable in every way.