Tignes has been described as one of the most unappealing resorts in the Alps, the “ugly duckling” of the Tarentaise valley. It was indeed built before the French learnt that purpose built ski resorts can also be pleasing on the eye and it is definitely more functional than charming but is it really that bad?

Tignes Le Lac is often said to be a bleak, stark village with apartment block after apartment block with a distinct lack of atmosphere, and I’ve once even heard the Palafour building in Le Lac compared to a cruise ship that has just barged in and parked up in front of the Lake. However I think the benefits of this world famous resort massively outweigh the negatives of the “unattractive treeless bowl”.

The appeal is in fact simple. The resort is one of the highest and snow sure in the Alps.  Tignes is highly likely to have one of the longest, if not the longest, seasons in the entire Alps. The resort is part of the extensive Espace Killy ski area meaning it’s difficult to become bored on your ski holiday as there are plenty of runs to play about on. Tignes also has a fantastic glacier, the Grande Motte allowing year-round skiing. Not too many resorts can offer such a luxury. The lifts are fast efficient and large queues are rarely a problem.

Tignes has long been overshadowed by its famous neighbour Val d’Isere. Val d’Isere is known as the “good-looking” and more “popular” of the two, but the prices to stay there reflect this. Tignes is a lot better value for money and can also be a lot less congested. Most of the Chalets in Tignes are ski in-ski out as access to the slopes is right on your doorstep, wherever you are staying in Tignes. There is accommodation for every type of holiday maker and the range of luxury catered chalets in Tignes is ever increasing.

It is unfair when people say the villages in Tignes lack charm and life entirely. There is a scattering of beautiful French restaurants around Le Lavachet, Le Lac and Val Claret which are all very traditional and welcoming. The night life is not as “crazy” as Val d’Isere but there is enough in Tignes to cater for most people’s idea of “apres-ski”. If you want a few beers on a sunny terrace you can, and if you want to dance the night away until the early hours in the morning you can do that too.

Tignes has obviously taken note of people’s criticism and is currently undergoing a facelift. Old purpose built hotels are being renovated to match the Alpine style most other resorts boast and the new builds are following suit. Over the last couple of years the resort is slowly becoming more and more attractive. Hopefully, this means Tignes will eventually gain some of the credit it undoubtedly deserves.

For more information on chalets, hotels and holidays in Tignes, take a look at the Alpine Answers website or give us a call on 020 7801 1080.

One of the upsides to working in the ski industry, and especially to being involved in chalet sales, is that I’m often invited to go out to some major resorts and look around some of our top end luxury ski chalets. After all, you can’t be expected to make sales without an extensive knowledge of the properties you’re trying to flog! If a chalet owner/operator is really out to impress, then they’ll offer a few nights’ accommodation with catering and wine thrown in. Quite a perk, and without wanting to make you feel too jealous, I’d like to run through some of the most incredible chalets I’ve seen and stayed in.

Luxury Ski Chalets I’ve Visited

Remember, this list is anything but exhaustive, it’s nothing more than my own personal experience, but these are 5 of the best luxury ski chalets I’ve ever visited.

chalet nyumba, verbier

If you look closely enough, you'll spot a couple of fox-furs!

Even more amazing is the pool. Not just that a chalet for 14 has its own pool, which is rare enough. This pool has a moveable floor, which can travel all the way up through the water until it sits flush with the surrounding tiles and turns the entire room into a dancefloor. Really handy if you fancy an impromptu party with your mates up at your chalet!

chalet les anges, zermatt

Not far off the Nyumba in terms of quality is Les Anges in Zermatt. It is on a simply epic scale. The double height lounge and dining area features a grand piano, the bedrooms are big enough to land a microlight in and the whole thing is over four floors. This much space for just 10 people, or 12 if you’re prepared to squeeze a couple more in somewhere, I’m sure you’ll find space… My favourite feature in this chalet is again water-related. In the wellness area, between the entrance and the sauna and steamroom, the owners have had a little waterfall and stream installed. You have to cross this stream to reach either the steam room or sauna and in order to do this there are stepping stones. That’s right, first they installed a stream indoors, then they put stepping stones to help you cross it!

chalet grace, zermatt

Although I never had the chance to stay in either of the first two, I was lucky enough to have a few nights in chalet Grace a couple of seasons ago. If your budget allows it, the Grace really is a fantastic chalet for your ski holiday. A simply huge chalet, with great big bedrooms, one huge lounge, separate TV lounge, pool table and bar, not to mention fantastic catering. My favourite touch here was the glass-walled sauna with giant TV on the wall opposite. One night we stayed there was a match we wanted to watch and thanks to this feature we didn’t have to miss out on either our after-ski sauna or the big game!

Chalet Grace and its spectaular lounge

bellevarde lodges, val d’isere

There are loads of luxury ski chalets in Val d’Isere, too many to mention them all so don’t fret if I don’t mention your favourite. Don’t forget, I’m just going from personal experience here. The Bellevarde Lodges rate as my favourite luxury ski chalets in Val d’Isere for a number of reasons. They’re far enough from the town to miss out on the drunken crowds pouring in and out of the main nightspots, but close enough to be walkable. The chalets are superbly fitted throughout and are genuinely ski-in ski-out, with a piste running behind them. All the normal trimmings, like terrace and hot-tub for each chalet, plus a driver service. The real reason the Bellevarde Lodges get my vote is value. The previous three choices I made will probably set you back £1,500pp excluding transport during a low season date and could be over £4,000pp at Half Term or New Year. Bellevarde Lodges come in under £1,000pp including flights on some low season dates. For a true luxury chalet in a top resort like Val, that value is hard to beat!

valdez suite, morzine

For my final luxury ski chalet idea I’ve gone a little into leftfield and plumped for the Valdez Suite in Morzine. For me, it’s always disappointing when articles about luxury ski chalets focus on the same old resorts. I felt as though I might be going down the same road but Valdez has saved me! It’s a rare thing, being a chalet that’s run entirely seperately for four guests. It’s a superb little place, probably big enough for 6 or 8 if the designers had seen fit to squeeze four bedrooms in. The chalet is right in the middle of this charming destination, with lifts and pistes a few minutes away. Morzine is a proper working French town that oozes character and the Valdez Suite is the perfect little chalet for a family to base themselves in to explore.

It’s nigh on impossible to write a piece like this. I could have listed ten or fifteen chalets in Zermatt alone that are simply off the charts in terms of luxurious furnishings, amazing catering and jaw-dropping views. Ditto Verbier, Val d’Isere, Courchevel, Meribel, the list goes on. But I’ve made my choices and I’m sticking to them. If you’ve got any suggestions for any you think I’ve missed out then please let me know!

For more informaiton about any of the chalets featured in this article, or if you’d like to discuss other luxury ski chalets, please call our sales office on 020 7801 1080.

Chalet Atlantique, Courchevel 1850

It is an obvious understanding that the World never ‘sits still’. In our modern life everything is constantly re-inventing and improving itself. Businesses, their products and their services have to evolve in order to survive in a competitive market place. Take the mobile phone for example – in ten short years we have gone from the simple ‘brick’ to a hand-held multi tasking device with enough computing power to put man on the moon. In pretty much the same way the humble ski chalet has evolved as tastes and consumer demands have exerted their pressures. I remember when I first got involved with the ski holiday market in the mid 80′s that a chalet with a nice balcony and valley view was considered luxurious. The 1990′s saw the rush to present chalets with all ‘en-suite bedrooms’ and post millennium the hot tub was introduced as the ultimate chalet luxury. More lately new luxury ski chalets had to have surround-sound, Wi-Fi and MP3 docks.

Chalet Sommet, Verbier

The new luxury ski chalets for this season are a long, long way removed from the luxury chalets of the 1980′s. Today the very best ski chalets in the Alps offer over 1,000 square metres of living space; have indoor swimming pools, spa areas, dedicated cinema rooms, wine cellars and even libraries. Of course they also have state of the art sound systems, enormous flat screen TVs, chefs, hostesses, maids, drivers and ski guides. It’s hard to know where the next generation of luxury ski chalets might take us…heli landing pads perhaps?

Chalet Zermatt Peak, Zermatt

Today we are in a global market place and the product range we offer reflects this. At the very top end of the scale the humble British catered chalet with accompanying cheerful ‘chalet girl’ (first brought to us by the likes of Supertravel and Bladon Lines) has evolved into a product where only multi million pound, international jet set properties will do. Amen to change.