Dear Guest,

Welcome to Haus Mannenberg.

Before you settle in, we’d like to tell you a little about the house around you. Not because every old building needs a story, but because understanding this place helps explain why we chose to open it to others.

When Maria and I returned to the Saanenland after almost a decade in England, we weren’t searching for a guesthouse or even a renovation project. We simply wanted a small apartment where our family could spend weekends and holidays close to the mountains we had always loved. Instead, we found an old chalet standing quietly above the valley in Mannried.

At first glance, it was difficult to imagine what it had once been. Years of neglect had left the building in a poor state, parts of it had deteriorated significantly and many people would probably have walked away. Yet, from the moment we first stood in front of the house, we both felt exactly the same thing. There was a quiet sense that this place still had a future. We couldn’t explain it then, and perhaps we still can’t today, but we knew we had found something worth caring for.

The intention was never to stay. With Maria’s background in interior design and my work in property development, we had restored buildings before, and Haus Mannenberg was meant to become another carefully completed project before passing into new hands. Construction began in 2020 and continued over the following three years, shaped by the challenges of the pandemic and by countless hours spent working alongside skilled local craftsmen and the Bernese heritage authorities.

Throughout the restoration, our ambition remained remarkably simple: to preserve the soul of the house while quietly rebuilding everything that time had taken away. Much of what guests experience today is centuries old; much of what allows the house to function has been thoughtfully renewed. Behind the original timber structure lies an entirely modern home, carefully rebuilt with new services, heating, insulation, roofing and infrastructure, ensuring that Haus Mannenberg can continue welcoming generations to come without compromising its historic character.

Many of the details that guests notice today are the result of that philosophy. Original timber was painstakingly restored wherever possible, historic features were retained with great care and the house’s remarkable smoke chamber—once used to preserve food through the long Alpine winters—remains an enduring reminder of everyday life here centuries ago. Rather than adding unnecessary luxury or decoration, we invested in craftsmanship, honest materials and the quiet confidence that comes from building something intended to last for generations.

Somewhere during those years, our plans quietly changed. What had begun as a restoration project slowly became our family home. When the work was completed in 2023, we moved in and spent the following years living here exactly as the house was intended to be lived in: watching the seasons change through old windows, sharing slow breakfasts around the kitchen table and discovering that the greatest luxury this place offers is not found inside its walls, but in the rhythm of life beyond them.

By the time another restoration project found us in 2025, selling Haus Mannenberg was no longer something we could seriously consider. The house had become too important to us. Instead, we began asking ourselves a different question: how could we allow others to experience this place without changing what made it so special?

The answer was not to create a hotel, but to continue treating Haus Mannenberg as what it has always been—a home. Following a further renovation in 2026, we opened its doors to others, inviting couples, families and friends to experience the house much as we had ourselves. For a few days at a time, Haus Mannenberg becomes entirely theirs—a place to cook, gather, retreat, spend long mornings around the table and find their own rhythm in the mountains.

More than anything, we hope staying here feels less like checking into accommodation and more like being entrusted with a home that has been thoughtfully cared for over many generations.

The name Haus Mannenberg is borrowed from the medieval castles whose ruins still overlook the hillside above the chalet. For centuries, this landscape has been shaped by those who lived, farmed and travelled through the valley, while archaeological discoveries nearby remind us that people have called this place home for thousands of years. We often think that we are simply the latest custodians in a much longer story, and it is a privilege to play a small part in its continuation.

As you settle in over the coming days, we hope you’ll take time to enjoy the simple moments that first made us fall in love with this place. Walk slowly through the garden in the early morning, watch the changing light across the Rinderberg, listen to the distant cowbells carried on the breeze and allow yourself to settle into a gentler pace. More than anything else, we hope Haus Mannenberg gives you the rare feeling of having found somewhere that feels both entirely new and strangely familiar at the same time.

Thank you for becoming part of its story.

We hope, in return, it becomes a small part of yours.

Warmly,
Maria and Max

Mannried, Summer 2026