Youve booked the chalet, the flights are organised, likewise the ski hire and lift passes. Its all very exciting and soon youll be on the slopes having the time of your life. One aspect sometimes taken for granted is the actual location, the mountains. One of the great things about a ski holiday in the mountains are the vistas on offer. Ive selected five rooms with spectacular, life affirming views.
Chalet Grace, Zermatt
Ever since Edward Whymper the English mountaineer, explorer, illustrator and author came and conquered in 1865, the Matterhorn has been a magnet for an ever increasing troop of tourist, armed with cameras, who come to pay homage to this iconic peak. If you piled all the photos and images of the Matterhorn in a heap Im betting that pile would be higher than the mountain itself. The Matterhorn is Zermatts calling card and a fair few of the chalets built since 1865 have been placed in such a way as to take advantage of its ever changing moods. Standing like a sentinel keeping watch over the village, the Matterhorn watches us while we watch the Matterhorn. The lounge area in Chalet Grace has a huge picture window so guests can worship its majesty.
SHL Lodge, Meribel
Perched high above Meribel on the Chaudanne slopes the Lodge is in an ideal position to take advantage of the truly breath taking vistas. The impressive open fire place in the lounge area has been placed in such a way as to lead your eye out through the vast windows which flank the chimney breast. I can only speculate how many man hours have been indulged in daydreaming while gazing at the view. I know if I were in the room, Id park my self on the sumptuous leather sofa facing the fire, with a glass of red, with some suitably chilled music and Id just gaze vacantly at the wondrous spectacle that confronts me, for hours on end.
Les Anges, Zermatt
Its our old friend the Matterhorn again but from a different angle. The aspect from the stunning Les Anges also takes in one flank of the Mattertal Valley. Zermatt is wedged in at the head of the valley and its almost as if the valley sides have an arm around Zermatt enveloping the village in its cosy embrace. From Les Anges you can see the chalets dotted on the hill side, creeping higher and higher until the tree line takes over and building is no longer possible. And there it is, unmistakable, that big lump of Toblerone shaped rock that has been Zermatts star attraction and benefactor since day one.
Chalet Cragganmore, Chamonix
Renault Chevallier sounds like the leading man in a French romcom but hes actually the youngest in a family of talented architects. Renault knew full well what he had on his hands when he was presented with the plot to construct Cragganmore and boy does he cash in. The massive glazed wall in the cavernous seating area brings the outside in to splendid effect. As the weather changes mood throughout the day the constantly shifting light levels play out a captivating drama thats worth the admission money alone.
Hidden Dragon, 4 Vallees
The owner of Hidden Dragon is in touch with nature, the location was chosen according to Feng Shui principles and the plot itself prepared with Shinto rituals, to cleanse the earth and appease the mountain spirits. The chalet certainly makes the most of its location, nestled in a forest and perched high at an altitude of 1500m this beautiful hideaway has uninterrupted panoramic views of the surrounding mountains. The lounge in hidden Dragon benefits from those views. I often wonder what the Renaissance painters would have made of the mountains had they had access when they were in their pomp. The only people in the mountains in those day were shepherds and farmers who had this amazing pristine wilderness to themselves. I would love to have seen mountain scapes painted by the old masters.We only have photographers who have attempted to capture the majesty of it all, with some success but the skill of a Rembrant in rendering the changing light and shifting hues would have been something to behold.
