66 LUXURY SKI CHALETS
THE GLITTERING peaks of the Alps have always been synonymous with glamour, and some of today’s ski chalets are scaling new heights – not just in altitude but in opulence. Once rustic barns with shared bathrooms, some of the latest mountain retreats are palatial hideaways with private health clubs, personal chefs, and architecture that blurs the line between chalet tradition and cutting- edge design. At the heart of this shift is designer Nicky
Dobree, widely regarded as the grande dame of Alpine luxury. It all began with what seemed a modest decision: the renovation of a 300-year-old farmhouse in Les Gets as a second home for her London-based family. When Grand Designs featured the project in 2003, her phone began to ring off the hook – and it hasn’t stopped since. ‘I landed in this extraordinary Alpine niche,’ says Dobree. ‘I’ve always loved the mountains, and to create homes that bring such joy – it’s not just a career, it’s a privilege.’ Now, with over 50 ski projects completed
worldwide, Dobree is continuing to redefine mountain luxury – one of her recent projects, the extravagant, 14-bedroom Étoile du Nord in Val d’Isère, won World’s Best New Ski Chalet 2023 in the World Ski Awards and costs up to £400,000 per week to rent in high season. Less of a ski chalet and more of a private resort, Étoile du Nord reflects how the concept of luxury has been redefined over Dobree’s career. ‘Two decades ago, ski-in, ski-out access was the luxury,’ she recalls. ‘Now, the chalets are vast, and facilities rival five-star resorts. Saunas have given way to full wellness suites with pools, hammams, yoga studios, gyms and massage rooms. Outside, you’ll find fire pits, hot tubs and outdoor kitchens. I’ve even designed chalets with dog showers!’ Te pandemic, she feels, accelerated this
evolution: ‘Suddenly, people realised they could work from anywhere, so living in the mountains became appealing year-round, not just for the ski season. With that came a desire for a healthier lifestyle. Wellness is on every client’s agenda now. Spas and pools are grander, yoga and meditation spaces essential.’ At this level, chalet residents are not heading to the local bars for the après ski; they are unwinding in their personal health club and employing top chefs to serve their meals. For the designer, that means ensuring that staff can do their jobs and provide the services that clients expect, while ensuring that the atmosphere retains the privacy and essence of being a home. ‘Tese buildings may be vast, but they must still feel intimate, private and homely, with service discreetly behind the scenes,’ says Dobree. Contemporary design can also be a
challenge, as the French authorities are staunchly defensive of their traditions. ‘French approval processes can be testing,’ Dobree
admits. ‘Tey’re passionate about preserving their chalet traditions, and after 25 years, the same battles remain.’ Yet architects are pushing boundaries, reinventing the Alpine aesthetic for a new generation. At Étoile du Nord, designed by AndArchitects, for example, the pitched roof and natural timber materials honour local tradition, while the soaring glass walls and vertical fins introduce modern drama. ‘Te sense of arrival is awe- inspiring,’ says Dobree. While the kind of uber-budget projects
that Dobree deals in represent the pinnacle, the push towards ever-increasing luxury can be felt throughout the ski chalet market. Andy Sturt, managing director of VIP Ski, says: ‘Te word “luxury” keeps being redefined. Tirty years ago a Jacuzzi was a luxury, then it became an expectation, then it became a necessity as you couldn’t sell a chalet without one – you had to have a Jacuzzi on the terrace with a view. Now, it still says luxury to have a pool in the basement, but it’s not unthinkable that in ten years’ time you won’t be able to sell a chalet without a pool, so we are retrofitting them into some of our older chalets. People are putting in climbing walls, chutes to the lower levels, amazing wine cellars; I think it will just keep going more and more upmarket.’ Sturt has been in business 38 years, from
the days when ski chalets were timber-framed Alpine barns with a shared bathroom. ‘Tere are a million skiers in the UK,’ he says, ‘but younger people and students are being priced out of ski holidays as everyone is chasing this elusive notion of luxury. Tese days a week’s skiing starts from a minimum of £2,000 a person, so someone who is taking their family away and paying that amount will be used to staying in the best hotels, so the chalet has to be at least as good.’ Today’s skiers aren’t content to hop on a
shuttle bus or clomp in their boots to the bottom of the lifts – ski-in-ski-out is now regarded as essential. And as the climate warms, and Alpine snowfalls become less reliable, it is driving chalet operators further up the mountains. ‘Te key component is being able to ski from the ski room door and you only get this at altitude,’ says Sturt. ‘As global warming is pushing demand further and further up the hill, there’s less space on top of a mountain and land prices are so expensive that it is driving everything inexorably upmarket.’ With space at such a premium, Sturt’s
challenge is to fit all the comforts that people enjoy at home into a fairly compact space. Masses of storage, rain showers, glove and boot warmers, a fireplace, and first-class connectivity are all part of what he describes as ‘a thousand things that make the difference’. Contemporary design is part of that. ‘Back in the ’90s it was real wood from barns, and indoor cladding that looked
All images One of Nicky Dobree’s recent projects, the extravagant, 14-bedroom Étoile du Nord in Val d’Isère, won World’s Best New Ski Chalet 2023 in the World Ski Awards and costs up to £400,000 per week to rent in high season
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