Belambra Resort & Hotel La Plagne - Terra Nova

We loved watching the skiers from our balcony, which faced the slopes, and the adjoining rooms were brilliant for us. It was our second visit, and this hotel works perfectly for our family. The staff were great and helped us a lot. We had half board, with food the kids liked and healthy choices when we wanted them. We arranged the children's ski equipment and passes through Belemnbra, which was easy and convenient. The rooms are simple and a bit old-fashioned, but that doesn't matter to us. With kids, it actually feels less stressful. Ski in, ski out onto a blue run, then take a very easy chair lift to the centre la Plagne and the rest of the resort. I'm not a strong skier, but I found nice, easy runs using la Plagne centre, Telemetro, telebus and the bus, even with limited snowfall. It was only the second week of the season.

The evening meal was the one part we enjoyed. It was pretty good, maybe a different chef was working then. The rest of the stay was awful, and I would seriously try to change hotels if you're booked here with Crystal. This place may have been great when it was built in the 70s, but it seems nothing has been done since. It's dirty, cold, unhygienic and falling apart. After waiting two hours until 6pm, we were given a cramped room, 521. The duvet had stains that looked like bodily fluids and no cover, and the pillows had no covers either. There were marks on the walls and curtains, dust and hair around the bath and sink, and wardrobes coming apart. Reception said they'd sort it, but after skiing the room hadn't been cleaned, the same bedding was there, and the bins were still full. We told Crystal too, and they later called to say another room was available for an extra 200 euros. What an insult. We eventually moved to room 628. It wasn't much better, though the view was nice. The hotel was freezing. There was no heating in reception or the dining room, so people ate in their coats. On several days, guests said their rooms had no heat either, with -15 degrees outside. Breakfast was very poor, with dried-out beans and scrambled eggs, cold bacon, and ice-cold plates and cups that made everything go cold. The place was dirty, and the cutlery filthy. One place setting at our table still had dried food all over it, so check what you're eating off. There was no effort to clear a pedestrian route to the hotel, and the road and path leading down were sheet ice. The bar felt like a cold throwback to the 70s, with old sofas and tables and no atmosphere, so we went out every night to get away from the hotel. At 5am on our pickup morning there was no breakfast. They wouldn't even give us fresh milk to make tea in our room. Instead, they pushed the worst coffee machine in the world into reception and said to get milk from that. No takeaway breakfast or croissants were offered.

The service and food at Terra Nova were both fantastic, and we had a brilliant stay. Halis deserves a special thank you for going above and beyond. I'd highly recommend it 😊

Several rooms connect for families, but they put separate bookings in them, so you can hear everything next door. I believe they turned down the heating because the hotel has BED BUGS. I got back four weeks ago and I'm still trying to get rid of them!!!