An independent guide to luxury ski chalets
From £10,700 exclusive chalet per week
Chic contemporary property
in exclusive part of resort
usp
Chalet Gemini is a rare thing in Zermatt – a large, free-standing 5-star chalet. It belongs to the Mountain Exposure portfolio, a small local company consisting of ski-enthusiast Brits that specialises in high-end chalets solely in Zermatt.
location
Gemini is fairly removed from the main throng of things, up a steep 200m climb from the Matterhorn Express lift. Access is through a street level tunnel which leads to a lift built inside the mountain, but there is still a bit of a climb once out of the lift at the top. Skis and boots can be left in the ski tunnel boot room, thankfully.
style
Sleek alpine chic. Gemini is a brand new build, and as such has none of the appeal of old properties but all of the amenities of new, as well as pukka green credentials such as geothermal heating. Lots of contemporary wood and stone, as well as traditional soft furnishings. ^
rooms
The rooms are cosily furnished and are a good size. They are all quite different, some tucked into the eaves, some with double aspects. Each comes with lovely Elemis toiletries. The linen has a 400 threadcount and comes from Welsh specialists Mitre, Hall & Letts; the duvets are 100% down; and the beds are fitted with the highest spec German Nordstern mattresses. The best room is South East 1. It's on the first floor and has views in two directions over the village to the mountains (although, unfortunately, you can't quite see the Matterhorn). There are terraces on both sides. South East 2 on the second floor is nearly as good, but higher to walk to. ^
food & drink
The food is pretty fancy gourmet quality, prepared by a professional, experienced chef. Fantastic canapés particularly, while typical dishes included fillet of pork wrapped in roast prosciutto with apple calvados jus and horseradish mousseline potato. The highlight of the mealtimes was possibly the specially selected rare local wines – Donald, one of the Mountain Exposure partners, is a bit of a connoisseur. These included some surprisingly fabulous Swiss whites and even local reds. The chalet eschews the big name champagne houses, too, in favour of Bonnaire Grand Cru Brut, a wonderfully light and delicate champagne from one of the last independent small houses. ^
service
Friendly and experienced -- a sense of being in one’s own home, but with staff. Mountain Exposure will do the usual, such as sort out ski rental, pick up passes in advance and book restaurants, but they also offer a genuine insider’s knowledge so guests can get the best out of the resort. The team makes a point of sharing an apparent combined 100 years of experience, tips and tricks with those staying in its chalets. ^
spa facilities
There is a sauna on the first floor and a hot-tub which is located outdoors on the terrace affording spectacular views across the resort to the mountains. ^
children
It’s worth noting that in Zermatt kids under the age of 10 ski entirely for free, and up to age 16 only pay half-price for ski passes. Mountain Exposure's concierge service will supply babysitters, nannies and special children’s baby food on request. Separate meals are often requested and happily catered for, enabling the adults to park the children and have dinner sans enfants. High chairs and cots are also available, while baby listening devices and baby baths can be supplied on request.
Individual or group lessons for children are available on request, as are ski school bookings. The Mountain Exposure bookings team will actively advise on ski school bookings that need to be made at the time of booking the holiday, particularly for half term and holidays when ski school fills up rapidly.
Zermatt has a very good full service guest Kindergarden called Kinderparadies which Mountain Exposure works with. It takes kids from three months up to 5 or 6 years. It has a large indoor and outdoor play area, including a small conveyor belt ski-lift and they offer introduction to skiing sessions for 3-4 year olds. The major ski schools such as Stoked and the Swiss Ski School will then take kids from the age of 4 and up, to special dedicated ski playgrounds. ^
extras
An excellent, totally free extra service is Mountain Exposure’s gourmet ski guide. This is one or other of the team who will take you to some of the best mountain restaurants on offer in Zermatt (and there are many, it being, possibly, the gourmet ski capital), securing priority booking and preferential tables. They are happy to ski with guests for as long as they like, or just offer a more leisurely ‘ski to lunch’ experience. The chalet also has its own electric baggage cart to transport your luggage up the hill on arrival, plus all rooms have flat screen LCD TVs and code-free DVD players. The main unit in the living room has a home cinema surround sound system, and the audio component has an iPod dock. ^
for skiers
Mountain Exposure works closely together with the Summit ski school in Zermatt and the concierge team makes all the necessary advance bookings for clients. They are asked their requirements on booking, especially for peak times (New Year, half term etc). ^
for non skiers
For the fair-weather skier, or non skier, there’s a huge collection of classic books, daily newspapers, a DVD library, English TV channels and board games, as well as the outdoor hot-tub, the sauna, the large sunny terrace and the snowy garden, perfect for making snowmen or having snowball fights. And of course there are the numerous activities that Zermatt has to offer such as curling and ice-skating, the Alpine Museum, groomed walks to mountain restaurants, tandem paragliding, sledging and a trip on the mountain railway to Gornergrat. ^
best thing
The team – they are delightful. ^
worst thing
Possibly the climb up to the chalet – tough after a hard days’ skiing, plus enough to put you off a trip into town of an evening. ^
getting there
The nearest airport is Geneva, although this is a four hour train ride or 3hr30min drive away. Chalet Gemini can organise airport pick-ups by taxi, minibus or helicopter (all of which cost extra), but a lovely way to arrive in car-free Zermatt is by train, because the journey has such breath-taking views. From Geneva (where the train departs from right beside the airport), you’ll need to change trains once, but the quickest route is to often to change twice (journey times vary from 3hr 38mins to 4hrs 7mins). ^
bottom line
Chalet Gemini sleeps 10 and prices start from £8000 per week. ^
bookings & enquiries
If you would like to make an enquiry or a booking, please email enquiries at chicchaletguide.co.uk. Remember, we have visited all the chalets we feature so can give you totally unbiased, independent advice on all of them. The prices we quote are also the list prices quoted by the chalets themselves, so there is no advantage in going to the chalets direct.
Chalet - 8
Service - 9
Room - 9
Food & Drink - 8
Luxury - 7
Be sure to try out some of the excellent local wines that the chalet stocks – and pick Donald’s brains because he is an expert.
Quickfinder
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Bookings and enquiries: enquiries at chicchaletguide.co.uk Telephone:
+44 (0)7772 853996
guestbook
"Arranging 7 days of bright sunshine and 2 metres of snow was your first accomplishment. But having achieved this, we were amazed at the effort and attention to detail put in by Mountain Exposure to ensure we had a good holiday. I’ve skied around the world at countless ski accommodation venues, but we’ve never before received such service – from booking restaurants, to being ski guides, to taking ski photos, to organising luggage. Thanks very much, and we’ll be back to Zermatt and Mountain Exposure as soon as we can."
Alastair Lucas, Goldman Sachs, Australia
"Mountain Exposure Team rating: PhD with Honours!"
James Olcott, New York
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