Geneva, Sept 23 (AFP/APP): Behind its deep-red awnings, Richemont’s blinds have been closed since July, after the coronavirus pandemic left the usually bustling five-star Geneva hotel starved for high-paying customers. Now, after a “catastrophic” summer, other luxury lodgings in the Swiss city — which boasts the highest hotel density in the world — are struggling to avoid the same fate. “We are in a profession that is truly in intensive care, and the condition is life-threatening,” a stoney-faced Thierry Lavalley, who heads the Geneva hotel association and runs the five-star Fairmont Grand Hotel, told AFP. Before the pandemic hit, hotels in the city — a hub for diplomatic and international business activity — had been surfing on a wave of growth, with 3.2 million night stays annually for the past two years. The sector was then struck by an “economic tsunami”, Lavalley said. Switzerland, which has counted 50,000 coronavirus cases and nearly 1,800 deaths, dodged strict confinement measures seen in neighbouring countries. But travel restrictions, event cancellations and months-long closures of restaurants and museums have taken a serious toll. By the end of July, Geneva hotels had booked just 693,000 night stays and they expect no more than 1.3 million … Continue reading Luxury Geneva hotels face ‘life-threatening’ corona crunch