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The low-down on chalet hotels

27th August 2009, by Chris Gill

Happy lodging, happy faces [OT Chamonix / Mont Blanc]

If the chalet formula sounds a bit claustrophobic for your taste, the chalet hotel may be the solution …

The catered chalet holiday is as popular as ever, especially with families. Since en suite bathrooms and comfy sofas became the norm rather than the exception, the attractions of the chalet – more private and less formal than hotels – have increased considerably. Now, more people are discovering the merits of the chalet’s bigger cousin, the chalet hotel.

Chalet operators have for years set the pace in childcare. It was a natural extension of hiring British gels as cooks and housekeepers to hire a few as nannies, too; then all they had to do was identify a suitable room in a suitable chalet, and bingo – a crèche was born. For British parents reluctant to submit their beloved to the brutality of French nurseries, the chalet was the obvious solution.

Chalet hotels are a larger version of the same thing, with some additional advantages. Some are purpose-built, but usually they are based on buildings that have operated as proper hotels. As a result, bedrooms typically are more generous than in chalets. Facilities are often better – there is likely to be a bar (with moderate prices if you’re lucky), and there may be a swimming pool, spa or gym, for example. There may be a menu choice at dinner.

Two of the most long-established chalet operators dominate the family chalet hotel market, between them offering a wide range of top resorts. Mark Warner has always focused on chalet hotels, and has crèches in 9 of their 14 properties. Esprit Ski was the original family chalet specialist. Its programme is still dominated by chalets, but it now includes seven chalet hotels.

Moira Clarke, Esprit’s head of marketing, says chalet hotels are proving increasing popular with their guests. ‘This is not only because of the better facilities but also because of the communal versus private balance. Guests can choose to be as sociable or as private as they wish, either dining with other guests or just by themselves, or with their own friends. In traditional chalets, guests do have to all get along together, and this doesn’t suit everyone.’ Esprit’s flagship chalet hotel is the super-cool Deux Domaines at Belle-Plagne, which we had a wander around just after it opened for the 2008 season. It has a decent pool and spa (young children not allowed in the latter), and a good ski-in/ski-out
location on the edge of the village.

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