For over twenty years, Palace Merano and Henri Chenot were inseparable. The biontologist arrived in the early 1990s and turned a grand Art Nouveau hotel in South Tyrol into a famous detox destination. When he left to build Chenot Palace Weggis in Switzerland, the question was obvious: could Palace Merano survive without its star?
The answer, several years later, is clear. Palace Merano did not just survive. It evolved.
The Chenot years
Henri Chenot fused Western medicine with Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurvedic principles. He called the result "biontology." At Palace Merano, this meant a daily rhythm of hydro-aromatherapy, phyto-mud wraps, energy massages, and a plant-based diet. The approach was radical for its time. Guests came from across Europe and the Middle East for what was essentially a medical fast wrapped in five-star hospitality.
The celebrity clientele grew. So did the reputation. For many people in the wellness world, "Palace Merano" and "Chenot" meant the same thing.
The split
Chenot's departure was not sudden. He had long wanted his own purpose-built facility, one designed from the ground up for his method rather than retrofitted into a historic hotel. Chenot Palace Weggis opened in 2020 on the shores of Lake Lucerne, and Chenot took his name, his brand, and his proprietary protocols with him.
Palace Merano kept the building, the team, and the treatment know-how accumulated over two decades. But it needed a new identity.
The Revital rebrand
Dr. Massimiliano Mayrhofer, who had been part of the medical team during the Chenot era, took over as Scientific Director. Under his leadership, the clinic rebranded its method as Revital.
The core DNA stayed. Hydro-aromatherapy, phyto-mud wraps, and bioenergetic massages remain the daily treatment backbone. The biological analysis laboratory on the fifth floor still processes blood work within hours. The plant-based detox diet still forms the nutritional foundation.
What changed is the range. Mayrhofer broadened the medical toolkit to include IV vitamin therapy, ozone therapy, and more detailed functional medicine diagnostics. He also pushed Palace Merano beyond pure detox.
New directions
The most visible addition came in 2024 with the opening of the Relax & Balance department. This is Palace Merano's answer to a growing demand for emotional and mental wellness. Flotation therapy, music therapy, breathwork, and mindfulness sessions now sit alongside the traditional detox treatments.
The Sport & Recovery department also expanded, adding a Sport Recovery Lab with advanced rehabilitation technology. Palace Merano now offers two sport programs. Sport & Remise en Forme starts at 3,900 EUR for 5 nights. Sport Performance starts at 6,150 EUR for 7 nights. This is unusual for a medical spa. Most competitors focus on detox and anti-ageing. Few offer a serious, medically supervised sport training program.
The nutrition approach also diversified. Instead of one diet protocol, Palace Merano now runs three tracks. Palace Detox Nutrition is the fasting-mimicking approach (roughly 800 to 1,000 calories per day). Palace Biolight Nutrition is a lighter alternative. Palace Sport Nutrition delivers higher calories and protein for active guests. The right track is assigned based on the guest's program and lab results.
The renovation cycle
The physical transformation has been steady. In 2020, the Rooftop Suites in the castle wing were redesigned. The spa underwent a renovation in 2023. The Relax & Balance department was added in 2024. In 2025, designer Michel Jouannet created the Panoramic Suite, which sets the design direction for a broader sixth-floor renovation in 2026.
Palace Merano now has 99 rooms across the main building and the castle wing. The 6,000 sqm Revital Center occupies the upper floors. The facilities include indoor and outdoor pools, saunas, a hammam, cold plunges, and the new Sport Recovery Lab.
Where Palace Merano stands today
Awards suggest the reinvention is working. Palace Merano received Conde Nast Traveller Wellness & Spa Awards in 2025 and 2026. The Luxury Spa Edit named it Best Global Spa Hotel.
More importantly, guests report the same calibre of results that made the clinic famous under Chenot. Deep detox, measurable metabolic shifts, and the kind of structured medical attention that separates a serious clinic from a luxury spa.
The difference now is breadth. A guest wanting a strict 7-day detox (from 4,550 EUR) stays alongside an athlete doing Sport Performance training. Down the corridor, an executive is in a flotation tank learning to decompress.
Chenot's legacy is the foundation. What Palace Merano has built on top of it is genuinely its own.
If you are considering Palace Merano and want to know which program fits your goals, reach out. We have tested the programs firsthand and can guide you to the right fit.