An independent guide to luxury ski chalets
From £9,000 for the smallest apartment per week
Fabulous super-chalet
in heart of top resort
usp
Sagittaire looks like a huge chalet from the outside, but inside is a cleverly designed combination of two two-floor chalet apartments and one single floor ground level chalet apartment. Gentianes, the top floor penthouse, sleeps 12 in six bedrooms, Fontanet is the middle apartment and sleeps 13 (including a triple bunk room), while the ground floor apartment, Les Esserts, is the smallest and sleeps just six.
location
The super-chalet is perfectly central, around 10 minutes from Place Centrale and Verbier’s shops, bars and restaurants, and directly below the main lift station at Medran which is just a five minute walk uphill or three minute drive. Savoleyres is about an eight minute drive away.
style
Exquisite. The whole property has employed the services of two interior designers from London, and there are fabulously unusual pieces everywhere, from antique mirrors to gorgeous Andrew Martin bedside trunks, designer lamps, ancient oversized dining tables and squishy low-slung sofas.
Each apartment is differently furnished and has its own distinctive style, while the main living spaces in both Gentianes and Fontanet are veritable rooms with a view, affording panoramic vistas and views from the south-facing terrace.
Despite being a new development, the entire building is very sympathetically constructed in old wood and stone, and the interiors are overwhelmingly woody with great big beams, pitched ceilings and antiqued walls. Les Esserts is rather more funkily and contemporarily furnished, using a combination of modern furniture and traditional Swiss antiques. ^
rooms
These are all beautifully appointed, the extra deep sprung beds being dressed with cashmere and faux fur throws, goosedown duvets and Egyptian cotton bedlinen. The bathrooms are fully stocked with sumptuous Jo Malone toiletries while each bedroom also has its own iPod docking station. ^
food & drink
Food and drink at Sagittaire is, quite simply, first rate. The chefs have all worked at some of the world’s best restaurants and are infinitely capable, able to turn out fancy four-course feasts as much as fun dishes for children, simple hearty family meals or gourmet tasting menus. And they can cater for all requirements, from kosher to vegan or gluten-free. Dishes range from top steaks and bangers and mash to seared salmon with haricot blanc and chorizo cassoulet or spatchcock quail with pea puree.
As at its sister chalet, Chalet Kernow, Sagittaire has an excellent wine cellar for guests to plunder, the owner of Kernow being a keen collector. There is a selection of over 150 fine wines to choose between, representing the very best of the world’s greatest wine regions, including Puligny Montrachets and Chateau Montroses. There is also a near-absurd array of top champagnes including the Clos d'Ambonnay, Krug's most expensive champagne (only 250 cases are allocated by Krug each year). In fact, Krug is offered to guests on arrival, while the house champagne is the excellent Villa de la Reine. Serious oenophiles should look no further. ^
service
The service in these chalets is top of the range. The team is absolutely professional but at the same time friendly and relaxed. A dedicated member of the management team is also always on hand to organise anything you wish. ^
spa facilities
There are superb spa facilities in the heart of the building that include a decent-sized 10m indoor swimming pool, a proper gym and luxury spa area including hammam and private massage therapy room for a whole host of treatments. It is all beautifully sleek, made of stone and mosaics. The gym area also looks over the pool and has a roomy stretching area. The only possible negative is that these facilities are shared between the three apartments, but they are big enough to absorb all the guests. ^
children
Sagittaire is a gorgeously grand complex, but that is not to say it isn’t family-friendly. Separate meals can easily be laid on for children, and each apartment has games rooms, Wiis, Playstations, board games and hosts are always up for a game of musical chairs. Babysitting can be arranged in just about any language, but it is not included. The chalet uses Petit Verbier, a local company, but staff themselves can also babysit if they have a good relationship with the children. An extra charge is payable for this, however. ^
extras
A 24 hour driving service is available in resort, using luxury 4x4 vehicles, while all three apartments have wall mounted plasma TVs, a fully networked DVD library plus Sky system and Wii consoles. There is also ample parking space for all chalets in the basement, plus a central elevator which can whisk you directly to the gym or the spa area from the privacy of your apartment. The apartments also each come with a separate library and TV den where you can just loaf or watch a movie in peace. Fontanet also has its own billiard room. ^
for skiers
Well, Verbier is one of the top resorts in the Alps and for good reason. It offers fabulous skiing for everyone from beginners through intermediates to hardened off-pisters. Sagittaire, like Chalet Kernow, uses instructors from European Snowsports and the excellent new Performance Verbier, run by a couple of British guys. They carefully match instructor to guest ability and taste and these can be raised at a moment’s notice, such are the chalet’s relationships with the two ski schools, although obviously it is preferred if guests can anticipate need in advance. ^
for non skiers
The spa and gym are great attractions for non-skiers, and skilates sessions can be arranged, as can pilates and yoga, together with all the spa treatments embracing everything from hot stone massages to facials. All the shops of Verbier are also only minutes away, while non-skiers can go paragliding, huskey riding, snow shoeing, even ice driving, and day trips can be arranged to the lovely towns around Lake Geneva or the local hot thermal spa in Lavey Les Bains near Sion. ^
best thing
The food, the wine, plus the spa and gym – among the best in-chalet facilities we have seen. ^
worst thing
The shared spa facilities and communal stairs, although the top two chalets each have internal stairs within them so no need to bump into strangers on the stairs once inside. ^
getting there
No chalet in Verbier is allowed by local law to lay on transport beyond the resort, hence a private company is used by Sagittaire for airport and train station transfers. These all cost extra. The nearest airport is Geneva, around 1 hour 20 minutes away, although Sion (45 minutes away) is often used by guests arriving by private jet. The nearest train station is Le Chable, just a 20 minute drive from the resort. ^
bottom line
Both Gentianes and Fontanet are priced around 33,000 CHF (around £20,000), while the smaller Les Esserts costs from 14,750 CHF (around £9000). ^
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 - 9
Service - 9
Room - 8
Food & Drink - 9
Luxury - 9
Make sure you eat at Chez Dany, the restaurant which is co-owned by the people who run Sagittaire.
Quickfinder
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* Location
• Style
• Rooms
• Food & Drink
* Service
• Spa Facilities
• Children
• Extras
• Skiers
• Non Skiers
• Best Thing
• Worst Thing
• Getting There
• Bottom Line
• Bookings & Enquiries
• Other chalets in Verbier
• Other chalets to suit corporate groups
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RESORT GUIDE
The Chic Chalet Guide to Verbier
how to book
Email: enquiries at chicchaletguide.co.uk Telephone:
+44 (0)7772 853996
guest book
"quotes to come"
summer
Sagittaire is broadly open but it depends on the dates because of the owners liking to visit over the summer months. Mostly the apartments are not let out on a self-catered basis, but it depends. It’s best just to get in touch with us to check this out.
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