The Luxury Experience of driving a Porsche 911 Carrera S in Switzerland.

I may have trouble with one horse power (horseback riding), but give me 355 horses and I am on my way. I had the luxury experience to drive a new 2006 Porsche 911 Carrera S while in Switzerland, which was made available from the hotel Palace Luzern. The Palace Luzern, in conjunction with Porsche, makes available, for the price of the gas, a Porsche for guests staying at the hotel. You only need to provide your signature, acknowledging the insurance responsibility, and you are presented the keys and a map for your drive around the breathtaking area surrounding Lucerne, Switzerland.

Edward F. Nesta and 'his' Porsche 911 Carrera S

As any good race car driver or actually any driver would do, I had to check out all the features available to me for my drive. So, what did I have to work with? A 6 speed manual transmission, a 6 cylinder 355 hp engine at 6,500 rpm with 295 lb-ft torque at a compression ration of 11.8-1; translated, I was not going to be riding behind any cars during my drive. To balance out the ride there is a 4-piston aluminum monobloc fixed calipers, vacuum servo, ventilated, and drilled, ABS braking system, as though I was going to need this feature, but it was nice to know that it was there. I made sure to kick each of the 19'' Carrera S light alloy wheels as I walked around "my" RED (of course it had to be red, what other color equates power and speed for a car) 911 S (I was now on a first name basis). I familiarized myself with the plush interior starting with the 3-spoke sport leather covered steering wheel, eyed the on-board gauges for mileage, time and speed, and the on-board navigation system, which conveys direction via the voice of a beautiful woman (ok, I am not sure what the woman looks like behind that great voice, but this was the only time that I listened to a woman when she gave me directions) directing me throughout my journey, and of course there was all the other great toys such as a 9 speaker Bose surround sound system that delivered the "beautiful woman's" voice to me during the navigational requirements, a sunroof, and on and on, but let us stay focused, this is a 911 S we are talking about. The only thing I was missing was a 3 point harness for the seats, a flashback to my racing days. So, with the beautiful Debra C. Argen beside me, and the unknown woman navigating, I was off to the races, so to speak.

The weather was favorably warm for a late October journey through Switzerland, so of course we had the sunroof open and we enjoyed the beautiful sunshine. Lucerne is located in such a beautiful location with the mountains and the lakes surrounding it, although having traveled a bit of Switzerland I guess that this statement would fit most of Switzerland. It was a bit hard taking in the scenery when most of the surroundings are a blur, but we did slow down as we passed through the many charming towns. Short shifting and powering through turns, downshifting for speed so we could watch the cars in our rearview mirror; I believe that Debra had wished we had a 3 point harness for a seatbelt. We cruised a few hours north of Lucerne before doubling back to meet with a friend in the town of Willisau where we went on a tour of the Diwisa Distillery where they make Xellent Swiss Vodka (read the Liquor Cabinet for articles on Xellent Swiss Vodka, and The Making of Xellent Swiss Vodka). I, being of sound mind, body, and remembering the insurance note I signed regarding the Porsche, did not partake in any of the samples. We enjoyed the educational and informative tour of the Diwisa Distillery, but alas it was time to fire-up the engine and cruise back to Lucerne, though we did take a few turns to extend our seat time.

Recalling my physics classes, "two objects cannot occupy the same space at the same time," translated, that is what the accelerator pedal was for; I used this feature to its proper functionality. The navigation system worked to perfection as it told me in a calm and engaging voice ‘where to go,' and I enjoyed it. I did notice that people stare at you when you pass them in a red Porsche, and I noticed that people like to show you how fast their car could go as they try to pass you, but Debra and I dealt with this situation in a professional manner, we smiled and waved. Again, recalling the insurance note I signed, I drove in control and within the designated speed limits, most of the time. I did test out the various numbers on the digital speedometer readout, it was our special experiment as I yelled out 130, 140, 145, ..., and Debra noted how smooth the ride was regardless of the speed, so our experiment was a success.  The navigation system came alive, so to speak, when I made a few wrong turns; it was great as it calibrated the change in location and then proceeded to inform me what I needed to do to return to my proper course, and there was no one telling me to get out of the car and ask for directions. I had an exceptional time driving around the back roads and byways around Lucerne, Switzerland, and you could do the same when you stay at the incredible Palace Luzern.

Debra Checking out the Porsche

Read other articles on the Palace Luzern in the Destinations, Hotels and Resorts, Restaurants, Chefs' Recipes, Spas, and Adventures sections. The Palace Luzern is part of the VICTORIA-JUNGFRAU Collection, www.Victoria-Jungfrau-Collection.ch.  

Palace Luzern  
Haldenstrasse 10  
CH-6002 Lucerne  
Switzerland  
Telephone:      +41 (0) 41 416 16 16  
Fax:                 +41 (0) 41 416 10 00  
Email:              This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it   
www.Palace-Luzern.ch     

Read other articles on Switzerland in the Destinations, Hotels and Resorts, Restaurants, Chefs' Recipes, Spas, Liquor Cabinet, Wine Cellar, and Adventures sections.  

For information on Switzerland, please visit: www.MySwitzerland.com. For information on Lucerne: www.Luzern.org. For information on Interlaken: www.InterlakenTourism.ch.  For information on Bern: www.BernInfo.com. For information on Zurich: www.Zuerich.com. For information on Swiss International Air Lines: www.swiss.com. For information on Swiss Pass: www.SwissTravelSystem.ch.   

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