An independent guide to luxury ski chalets
So you have decided you would like to organise an ultra luxurious, fully catered ski chalet for your winter holiday this year? You have come to the right place. There is everything here, at your fingertips, to help you arrange it all – from which luxury ski chalet to book, to how to arrange a helicopter transfer from the airport.
Firstly, how to choose your luxury chalet. The main thing is to decide on which resort you would like to go to. Have a good look through our resort reviews (which you will be able to access over the coming weeks), to see which destination suits your group, whether you are a collection of hard-core off-piste experts (Chamonix and Verbier would both qualify here) or there are lots of beginners and timid intermediates among you (most resorts are good for these). Then decide how many there will be of you, and then have a look through our chalets – select the resort from our list right – to see which would suit the size of your group. Bear in mind that most of our luxury chalets can only be booked out exclusively, rather than on a room by room basis. Many might be negotiable on price if you do not fill the property totally, however.
Maybe you can't decide on a resort, so why not look through our list of luxury chalets, in summary format for easy comparison, to see if there are any in particular that would suit your group. Once you have selected one or two chalets then consider whether the resort where they are located is the right holiday destination for you.
Once you have decided on dates, get in touch with us and we can find out about availability and price for you from the chalet owner or operator straight away. And please remember that it is no cheaper if you go to the chalet owners or operators direct: we quote the list price, which is what they will quote you if you speak to them directly. Indeed, we can sometimes negotiate discounts for you because we have more buying clout.
The next thing to sort out is how to get there. Each chalet review and resort review on the site carries details on which is the nearest airport, and most of our chalets will help advise on flights -- but you might like to do all this yourselves. See right for a list of the major airports in the Alps and the airlines which run scheduled direct flights to them throughout the ski season.
If you prefer to fly privately, see right for a list of useful private jet companies. Most will fly to Sion in Switzerland, which is an excellent gateway for many Alpine resorts.
You may prefer to travel by train to the ski resort. You can get direct trains through to all the Tarentaise resorts (Val d’Isère, Tignes, Sainte Foy) but have to change trains at Paris and sometimes elsewhere to reach other resorts by train. For more information on traveling by train contact any of the companies listed right.
As for transfers to resorts, most chalets will lay on their own private transport to pick you up at the airport – in most cases for an extra fee – but you may prefer to arrive by helicopter. See right for a list of helicopter companies which specialise in resort transfers from the main Alpine airports.
One crucial thing to sort out before you go is travel insurance. This is key, and you need to make sure that you are covered for everything you intend to do – whether it is off-piste skiing with a guide, off-piste without a guide, or any other more dangerous winter sport activity (not all policies may cover you).
When dealing with foreign websites they often insist on quoting in their own currencies, so here is a good currency converter to help you work out the price.
All food, drink, transportation around resort and accommodation needs will be more than looked after by our gorgeous featured luxury ski chalets – and talk to them, too, about ski and boot hire, as well as ski school arrangements, private lessons and mountain guides before you go.
Any other queries about luxury ski chalet holidays, the dos and don’ts, what to expect and what not to expect, do please get in touch with us. We are here to help.
Have a great chic chalet holiday!
The Chic Chalet Guide
Major airports in the European Alps, plus airlines which run scheduled direct flights to them throughout the winter ski season:
GENEVA (for Chamonix, Trois Vallees, Tignes,
Val d’Isère, Les Gets, Zermatt, Portes du Soleil)
• Swiss International Airlines
• British Airways
• Lufthansa
• EasyJet
LYON (for Tignes, Val d’Isère, Trois Vallées)
• British Airways
• EasyJet
ZURICH (for Laax)
• Swiss International Airlines
• British Airways
• EasyJet
• Aer Lingus
CHAMBÉRY (for Val d’Isère, Méribel, St Martin de Belleville, Tignes les Brévières, Sainte Foy)
• Snowjet
SION (for Verbier, Zermatt, Chamonix)
• Snowjet
If you prefer to fly privately here is a list of some of the private jet companies, most of which will fly to Sion, Switzerland:
• Air Partner
• Net Jets
• Tag Aviation
• Jeffersons
If you are thinking of travelling by train to the ski resort, here are some useful websites for information and booking:
• Eurostar
• Rail Europe
• Swiss Rail – an excellent website which even includes platform details
You may prefer to arrive into the ski resort by helicopter. Here is a list of companies which specialise in resort transfers from the main Alpine airports:
• Helialps
• Air Zermatt
• Air Glaciers – specialise in transfers from Sion and Geneva
• Les Cerniers
• Chamonix
• Courchevel 1650
• Les Gets
• Laax
• Méribel
• St Martin de Belleville
• St Moritz
• Nendaz
• Sainte Foy
• Tignes les Brévières
• La Tzoumaz
• Val d'Isère
• Verbier
• Veysonnaz
• Zermatt
Les Cerniers | Chamonix | Courchevel 1650 | Les Gets | Laax | Lech | Méribel | St Martin de Belleville | St Moritz | Nendaz | Sainte Foy
Tignes les Brévières | La Tzoumaz | Val d'Isère | Verbier | Veysonnaz | Zermatt