Résidence DIGITALE Pierre et Vacances Le Lauze Plagne 1800

The room was clean and good value, but don’t expect much. It’s a long walk downhill to the slopes, and the climb back after skiing feels even longer. The pool is absolutely freezing, and the sauna was packed to the roof with people.

If skiing is all you need, this place works because it’s relatively cheap, but it’s definitely not fancy or hotel-like. In a town that wasn’t a ski resort, I’d expect more for the price. My unit was cramped and very bare-bones, more like a place to shower and crash after skiing than somewhere to relax. It didn’t look as nice as the photos, and there were no beds, just couches with pull-out futons underneath. The washed sheets came in sealed plastic packets, and we had to put them on the couch or futon ourselves. The pillows were in a closet, which I only spotted as I was about to check out. Before leaving, we were meant to clean the kitchen, strip the bed and leave the sheets in the tub, and take our own rubbish to the covered street receptacles. The carpet and flooring looked worn from lots of ski groups. There was just one radiator and a bathroom towel rack to heat the whole apartment, so some areas were hot and others cold on a chilly night. The TV was tiny, and the Wi-Fi was slow and needed reconnecting every few hours. The bathroom and separate toilet room were small but functional.

The room was clean and roomy, and there was plenty of space in the equipment lockup. Wi-Fi worked well, but it only covers five devices. There’s a supermarket and pizzeria close by. The water pressure was quite poor, though, and losing a room key will set you back €104. Still, it was a reasonably nice stay.

The ski bus stops right by the building, and there’s a Spar about 100m away. The apartment has WiFi, a dishwasher, and two showers that both work well. The downsides add up, though: it’s a small apartment on the 4th floor with no elevator, and there’s just one wc for seven people. The ski lockers barely work, the light in the ski room keeps switching off, and there’s no ski boot dryer. The lift is quite a distance away. The sauna is in another building, 150m away, and it’s very small and overcrowded. The swimming pool isn’t warm enough.