Ski chalets are finding favor over hotels as holiday-makers eye up winter breaks. finews presents nine gems which stand out from the raft of standardized or mass-market offerings.
Artur Vogel, freelance author
1. Gentleman Farmer’s Life
It must have been a wealthy landowning family which built Grosshostett, a sturdy house in the canton of Obwalden late in the 18th century. At 835 meters above sea level, the four-story home is far more spacious than was common at the time. The chalet, idyllically located at the entrance to the Melch valley, retains most of its original features after a gentle renovation in 2002 combining historical architectural substance and modern amenities.
The holiday apartment sleeps four to five people, on the two upper floors. Several pilgrimage trails pass through the village and itno the Ranft Gorge, where Niklaus von Flüe retreated as a hermit. Stoeckalp, the gateway to the Melchsee-Frutt ski area, is 20 minutes drive away.
2. Alpen-Chic Above Valbella
At 1,800 meters above sea level, the alpine chalet Briula is noteworthy for its architecture: modern cubes were inserted into the 100-year-old structure for living area, kitchen, bath, a separate toilet, two double rooms, and a dorm which sleeps up to eight. Heated with wood, the chalet offers direct access to a ski piste on Alp Briula as well as amazing views. Valbella is part of the Arosa Lenzerheide’s 220-kilometer ski region.
3. Manhattan, But Make It Matterhorn
This two-story, 300-m2 loft is the work of local favorite Heinz Julen, an unconventional jack-of-all-trades artist and designer. Three double rooms and two baths are integrated into the typical wooden chalet structure which Julen calls Manhattan inside and Matterhorn outside. Amenities include six-meter high windows, a sauna, whirlpool, cross-trainer, Steinway piano, bar, a fireplace built into the glass facade, and the for Julen typical chandelier as an exuberant finishing touch.
4. Swiss-Italian Alp Route
Spluegen, on a Rhine tributuary at the foot of the mountain pass of the same name, was the epicenter of transalpine traffic for 2,000 years. The village’s palazzi and wood-paneled houses are the vestiges of the area’s role as link between Graubuenden and Italy.
This former pack station, or so-called susta, was built roughly 600 years ago. An extensive refurbishment ten years ago maintained the historical substance, and added modern amenities. Spluegen’s ski area – 30 kilometers of piste, one gondola, three lifts – is at your door.
5. Eco-Chic in Lower Valais
The exclusive Les Giettes eco-retreat calls itself a hotel, but its white, wood pellet-heated pods with all the creature comforts feel like a luxury trip to the Antarctic. Whitepod emphasizes ecology: water and electricity use are reduced and waste recycled.
Three chalets built from local larch wood – three-bedrooms, one living room – are more conventional, but equally eco-conscious. Whitepod offers «relaxing, quiet forest walks, delicious local, seasonal food, and discovering private ski pistes».
If you prefer conventional winter sports, Portes du Soleil’s 650 kilometers of pistes as well as Villars sur Ollon in Vaud are about 30 minutes drive away.
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