Chalet Hôtel le Prieuré & Spa

A huge thank you to the desk staff and everyone who looked after me when I got sick during the first three days of my weeklong ski trip. I couldn’t get out of bed, and they brought me tea, a fan, and bread. The location is good, by the bus line, and the rooms are great. My only disappointment with the room was the lack of English-language channels beyond BBC News. Since I was stuck in bed, an entertainment channel in English would have been wonderful. The desk staff were incredible. Thank you. One experience at dinner was harsh. On the first night I was well enough to sit up, I joined friends in the casual restaurant and buffet. They were in the bar about 10 feet away. It was loud, so I raised my voice to call one friend’s name and let her know I was going to sit down. A restaurant staff member later identified to me as Pascal, the restaurant manager, literally screamed at me to be quiet. It was embarrassing, aggressive, and absolutely unwarranted. He also didn’t verbally reprimand a man who disrupted everyone by listening to a conference call on speakerphone in the restaurant for 30 minutes. I guess loud men are okay? Guests shouldn’t be dressed down in public for calling a friend’s name once. Perhaps Pascal likes women quiet and subdued, but that wasn’t professional leadership. Sadly, this distracted from the otherwise incredible service. Shame on you, Pascal. I’d been violently ill and finally made it downstairs, only to be scolded by you.

The view of Mont Blanc is breathtaking, and we found the staff very friendly. Our room was clean and spacious, and the breakfast buffet had lots of sweet and savoury choices with delicious coffee. We enjoyed the spa, though the experience depended on who else was there. We went on two different days and it wasn’t the same both times. Some people, for instance, don’t respect the maximum time in the jacuzzi. The rooms aren’t well insulated, so it was a bit noisy, but the hotel staff dealt with that quickly. I recommend this hotel.

The only thing that puts us off returning is the parking charge. Paying 30€ per night, or 150€ for five nights as paying guests, felt excessive and should be reconsidered. We enjoy driving, so that was a real drawback. Otherwise, we had a good stay. The hotel is a short walk from the town centre and about five minutes from the bus station, making it easy to get to different mountains for skiing. The staff were friendly and professional and tried to make sure we enjoyed ourselves. Our room was spacious, with comfortable beds, somewhere to dry jackets, a modern chalet feel, and a great balcony. Each room gets a locker in the comfortable-sized boot room, big enough for two adult sets of skis, boots, and poles. There were lots of breakfast options. A few warm vegetarian dishes might be worth adding, but on the whole breakfast was really good. The lounge by the fire was a nice place to relax, the staff were attentive, and there were games for both adults and children.

Breakfast was delicious and good value, with lots of variety: fresh jams, honey, Nutella you can grind yourself, bread, and unlimited fresh OJ. Kate and the rest of the staff were incredibly kind and helpful. The heated ski and boot lockers were very useful, too. The room was spacious and nice, and waking up to the view of Mont Blanc each morning was incredible. The hotel far exceeded my expectations. It was also nice to have a spa, though it was more challenging to use than others I’ve been to. Reservations are required because of the size, and it still felt crowded. The jacuzzi was intentionally kept at room temperature, which seemed unusual and didn’t help sore muscles as much.