Subterranean hammams, heated boot rooms and sweeping mountain views – our editors reveal the finest chalets to hunker down in on this glittering ski resort
Centuries before skiers started carving down its slopes, Val d’Isère was a remote mountain farming community – and its 1664 church steeple still stands at the heart of what was the village. Its transition into a world-class retreat started slowly, beginning with its very first hotel in 1888 after a new mountain road opened up access and accelerating when the pioneering Téléphérique de Solaise cable car was completed in 1942.
Today, however, is another matter entirely. This shimmering enclave is now home to some of the French Alps’ most wondrous private chalets, and a glut of stylish snow-seekers make their annual pilgrimage every season without fail. In turn, the private homestay scene nowadays melds the area’s traditional Savoyard stone and timber architecture with state-of-the-art design and amenities ripe for the modern traveller.
So, whether your priority is quick and easy access to the slope for early morning kickoffs, or simply a cosy fireside lounge to curl up on a long lazy afternoon, there’s a smart address for you. Expect indoor pools with bubbling waterfalls, hammams, heated boot rooms and dedicated resort shuttles – here are our picks of the very best places to hunker down this season.
In this article
Editor’s picks of the best chalets in Val d’Isère
- For couples: Refined duplex right on the slopes
- For families: Chalet Yeti
- For big groups: Chalet Ruitor
- For interior design fans: Chalet Shiva
- For a room with a view: Arolay Penthouse
Chalet Yeti
Enveloped in a cocooning mix of dark timber, local stone and flashes of vibrant Alpine tartans, bedding down here feels like a warm embrace after a day whipping around on the slopes in sub-zero temperatures – and not just because of the great big crackling fire. Wake up and pad out to the terrace for freshly baked pancakes and steaming coffee against a backdrop of frosted pine forest, then pull on your boots and get out there – you’re just moments from the Espace Killy lift network and sprawling tangle of exhilarating runs. Once off the mountain, thaw out in the heated pool and hammam before gathering the whole family under all the cosy faux fur throws and a mountain of popcorn for film nights in the cinema room.
Sleeps: 10
Price: From around £147,000 for a seven-night stay
Chalet 1850
Swaddled in an exclusive woodland nook just three minutes from central Val d’Isère’s lively après ski scene, this lofty villa delivers pindrop quiet serenity for the whole family, without sacrificing proximity to the town centre’s lights and buzz. The space itself is a real beauty, with cathedral-like vaulted ceilings and soaring stretches of glazing bathing the interiors in natural light, plus those exemplary forest vistas just beyond the window panes. After a day in your ski suit, the recovery sessions start downstairs, when you can sink into the indoor Jacuzzi, sweat it all out in the sauna, then curl up by the wood-burning stove in the toasty fireside lounge.
Sleeps: 12
Price: From around £13,951 for a seven-night stay
Chalet Ruitor
This is a big one, clocking in at an expansive 500 square metres across three storeys, so book in for your grandest multi-generation family holidays and special milestone bashes. The location is just as wonderful as the interiors, Overlooking the jagged peak of Mont Pourri in the Haute Tarentaise, it puts the slopes at Val d'Isère, Tignes, Sainte Foy and Les Arcs all within a hop and a skip. There are two living areas, both with roaring open fires, giving everyone room to spread out, while a hammam, a media room with a video projector for snuggling up after long active days – and six bedrooms, each with en suites, to make hosting large crews a breeze (without a single queue for the shower in the morning).
Sleeps: 14
Price: From around £12,934 for a seven-night stay
Chalet Shiva
Clinging to the hillside in peaceful Le Crêt, this centuries-old stone farmhouse has been reincarnated into a heady, moody mountain retreat. Inside, double-height ceilings meet sky-high glass looking out onto soaring views over the peaks and valleys below, while clever design accents – like a historic cider press reimagined as a coffee table and Beaufort cheese moulds repurposed into pendant lights – create a distinctly local soul. It’s totally opulent from head to toe, with a subterranean spa floor making a destination in itself, starring an indoor pool with a counter-current system fed by a frothy waterfall, a steamy hammam and your own dedicated treatment space for teasing out knots in tired muscles. Add in daily free-flowing champagne (yes, really), your own chauffeur and a plush cinema room for cosy nights in and you may find it nearly impossible to tear yourself away for the pistes.
Sleeps: 14
Price: From £6,826 per night
Arolay Penthouse
Few Alpine rentals put you quite so high above the clouds as this ultra-smart hideaway, which sits pretty at a 1,930 metre altitude in the idyllic little snow-crusted hamlet of Le Fornet. Enormous windows draw the characteristic glittering white snowscapes straight into the open-plan living room, where a central log fireplace crackles at the heart of the space, warming your bones after a day on the pistes. Speaking of: it’s an easy five-minute stroll to the Le Fornet cable car, so you can be shooting down fresh powder ahead of the crowds, while a dedicated ski room with heated boot racks ensures toastily warm toes every single morning.
Sleeps: Eight
Price: From around £10,059 for a seven-night stay
Cedar Peaks
The interiors here are really fun, with bouncy boucle sofas in soothing curving designs, and steeply-pitched roofs that draw you out towards front-row views over Val d'Isère’s famous icy blue skyline. This striking duplex occupies the top two floors of a smart mountain residence, where there’s room for eight of your best pals. Expect long sociable dinners by the open fire, followed by stargazing sessions on the balcony after the light’s dipped behind the pine trees. For ski sessions, you’re perfectly placed – it’s an easy walk to both the Solaise gondola and Bellevarde Express lifts, and while there’s no private spa, you have access to the building's shared complex, which is finished with a glassy indoor swimming pool, hammam, sauna and gym.
Sleeps: Eight
Price: From around £10,481 for a six-night stay
Refined duplex right on the slopes
For those who prefer their alpine escapes a little more sharp and a little less twee, look to this cosy Airbnb for families where minimalist aesthetics and effortless access to the slopes merge seamlessly. This newly renovated top-floor duplex is decked out in tactile timber cladding, with an array of smart modern finishes and multiple sun-dappled southwest-facing balconies overlooking sparkling snowglobe scenes unfolding right before you. When it’s time to head out, you can step out and click into your skis just 50 metres away, then slide straight onto a green run leading down to the main lift hub. Visiting in the off season? No problem – during summer visits, the bucolic trails and activities of Manchet Sports Park are right on your doorstep.
Sleeps: Six
Price: From around £2,423 for a four-night stay
How we choose the best chalets in Val d’Isère
We've vetted these listings based on Superhost status, ratings, amenities, location, previous guest reviews and decor. All listings featured on Condé Nast Traveller are independently selected by our editors. If you book something through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission. This is our pick of the best chalets in Val d’Isère.
More of the best places to stay on a ski trip
.jpg)
Charley is the Commerce Writer at Condé Nast Traveller. She has worked as a commerce journalist for five years, joining Condé Nast in 2023 from her prior position as one of Hearst's shopping editors, where she covered homes and interiors. She has a Master’s degree in Journalism & Media Studies ... Read More