Our service and fixed nightly prices

* Breakfast. more detail...
* Teatime treats all day. more detail...
* Dinner with wine. more detail...
* A bed with linen and towels. more detail...
* Our assistance in arranging your travel, kit hire and activities. more detail...
* All local resort taxes paid on your behalf. more detail...
* Wireless internet access and use of our computers, plasma TV, dvds, books and X-box games. more detail...
* A discount at several sports equipment and hire shops. more detail...

We are the only chalet company who:

* Charge a fixed rate every day of the year. find out why...
* Are happy to discuss alternative nightly rates with you. find out why...
* Help you service your equipment for free. find out why...
* Don't force you to travel on Saturday and stay for a week. find out why...
* Don't require you to book a package including travel or lift passes. find out why...
* Can enable you to explore the whole of the Paradiski area in a couple of days. find out why...
* Are located near local amenities. find out why...

Services which are not included but can be provided for a fee are:

* Transport to the chalet from the airport or railway station. more detail...
* Day time or evening babysitting. more detail...
* Lessons, guiding and other structured activities on the mountain. more detail...
* Packed lunches. more detail...
* Equipment hire. more detail...

Details

Breakfast. back to list ...

We realise that people don't always want to get up at the same time, so we don't stipulate when you have breakfast, but let you help yourselves when you are ready. On the breakfast table you will find:

* Croissants, chocolate croissants and bread.
* Hard-boiled eggs, cheese and ham.
* Butter, and condiments like honey, jam and marmite.
* Muesli, and porridge oats.
* Yogurts, fruit juices and fresh fruit.
* All the equipment you need to make hot drinks.
* You also have a microwave for heating up milk, croissants (and last night's leftovers).

We have decided what to provide based on what previous guests have requested, so if there is anything missing which you would particularly like just let us know when you book and we'll endeavor to include it. We made the decision not to automatically provide a cooked breakfast, because guests have said they prefer not having a set meal time, but if your group would like hot food just ask us when you contact us.

Teatime treats all day. back to list ...

Lots of companies set out tea and a fixed time, so if you don't get back to the chalet early enough you miss out. We think this is a pain - we also know that sometimes you may stay at home and want to snack during the day. So in our chalets you will find a dresser containing a constant supply of cakes, biscuits, and all the equipment you need to make hot drinks when you feel like it. You also have your own fridge to store cold drinks and snacks.

Dinner with wine. back to list ...

We made the decision when we set up Chillchalet that we wanted to provide hearty home cooked meals using good quality ingredients, so we focus our dinner budget on a large main course with plenty of seconds and pudding. The standard chalet format is three courses, and when we looked at these menus we realised that they were actually spending less money on food than us, but were just making each course smaller, or using cheaper ingredients, so we have stuck to our two course format.

However if your group would particularly like to have starters just ask when you book and we will be happy to provide them - it may just mean that you don't get seconds of the main course. If you have any allergies, things you don't like to eat, or favorite recipes just let us know when you book and we will set the menu to accommodate you. We can make vegetarian versions of all our meals and are also well practiced at catering for children. Some of the meals we may cook for you are:

* Chicken pie with mash and green beans
* Lasagne with salad and garlic bread
* Moroccan tagine with cous cous
* Beef bourguignon with jacket potatoes and carrots
* Thai curry with rice
* Coq au Vin with roasted vegetables and dauphinoise potatoes
* Chilli with rice and nachos
* Tartiflette (a local dish made with potatoes and cheese which is compulsory for all visitors to the region)

Pudding favorites include:

* Apple tarte with ice cream
* Lemon meringue pie
* Chocolate mousse
* Eton Mess (strawberries with meringues and cream)
* Fromage blanc (another local speciality which is made with creamy yogurt and locally grown myrtle berries)
* Dame blanche (basically a huge pile of chocolate and vanilla ice cream with whipped cream and chocolate sauce)

Meals are served at one large dining table with carafes of wine at 8pm, but let us know if you would like to eat earlier, need highchairs or would like us to do a separate sitting for children. We can't afford to provide unlimited free alcohol and keep our prices low, so wine with dinner and all hot drinks are included, and we can sell you extra wine or beer from our larder for 1 euro a drink.

A bed with linen and towels. back to list ...

For some bizarre reason lots of chalet companies, even expensive ones, charge extra for sheets and pillowcases. We don't. We also provide towels and a heated drying rail in each room. We don't generally disturb your room once you are settled other than to empty the bins, but if you would like us to have a tidy up and make your beds for you, just ask.

Similarly we tend to change the sheets and provide fresh towels once a week, but if you need it done sooner, just let us know. Most of our rooms have two beds, but are fairly large, so if you would like three to share, we will happily add an extra bed for you. We also have cots available, so just let us know what you need when you book.

Our assistance in arranging your travel, kit hire and activities. back to list ...

If you are traveling by plane you will need a transfer from Lyon, Grenoble, Chambery or Geneva airports. We have an arrangement with a local transfer company, so if you would like us to arrange this for you just ask. Our guests also receive discounts on ski and snowboard hire, and technical clothing and we will show you where these shops are. There are lots of activities available to you when you stay with us, and we can help you book any of these in advance of your visit. We can even build an itinerary for you if you prefer and then work out a set price per person for your trip to include all these costs. This is a service that has worked very well in the past for stag and hen dos.

All local resort taxes paid on your behalf. back to list ...

Another peculiarity of some chalet companies is that they charge guests extra for ‘taxe de sejour', which is a set amount businesses have to pay the council for each visitor they bring to the town. We include this in our fixed rate.

Wireless internet access and use of our computers, plasma TV, dvds, books and X-box games. back to list ...

We have stacks of books for you to read, and if you don't finish them before the end of your stay we are happy for you to take them home - as long as you promise to bring another one back with you the next time you come and stay.

You can use our computers to access the internet, or bring your own laptop and log on using our wireless connection. There is a large plasma screen in the living room for watching one of our 200 or so dvds as a large group. We also have a hard drive in each chalet which contains a library of these films, so if you do have a laptop, you can watch them privately in your own room.

We have debated whether to put plasma screens in the bedrooms, but guests have said they prefer the sociability of watching films together. We'd be interested to know what you think about this, because the jury is still out?

A discount at several sports equipment and hire shops. back to list ...

SS20 are a very friendly company who have a skate and snowboard shop online, and in Oxford, and have offered a 10% discount to all the people who come and stay with us, which we which think is very nice of them. Their website is www.ss20.com.

You will also receive a discount from TipTop Snowboard shop, and Ski hire in Bourg Saint Maurice, and the Evolution2 Ski hire shop in Montchavin. We will show you where these are when you arrive.

We charge a fixed rate every day of the year. back to list ...

All other chalet companies charge different rates throughout the year. Although this is probably quite lucrative we don't do it for several important reasons:

Charging more during the school holidays simply penalises parents, and makes alpine holidays inaccessible to most families. We think everyone should have an equal chance to come and experience how amazing a holiday in the mountains can be so we make sure everyone pays a fair price.

Charging increased prices during the holidays also distorts the value of coming at certain other times of the year. For example we are always amazed at how bookings slow down in April, even though it is by far one of the best times to come. We think this is because April doesn't have any holidays around which companies inflate their prices so becomes the cheaper option. Over the years this has led to the perception that somehow April isn't as good as the other months, whereas in reality it is one of the best.

We are happy to discuss alternative nightly rates with you. back to list ...

Our service is all about trying to meet your needs. We have set out what we provide for a fixed price for clarity and consistency, however we realise that this may not suit everyone, and wouldn't want this to put you off trying an alpine holiday. So if you would prefer to stay on a bed and breakfast basis, or would like to cater for yourselves, we are happy to discuss a reduced rate with you, just get in touch.

We also recognise that planning a large group holiday can be hard work, and that the organiser has to put a lot of time into chasing people and organising the booking. Therefore if you are planning a trip for a large group we will often offer you a discount for all your hard work in getting all the information and payments we need to us on time.

We help you service your equipment for free. back to list ...

If you have your own equipment it can add a significant cost to your trip getting them serviced by a hire shop. So in our chalets we provide workshops with all the tools you need to do it yourselves. If you haven't done it yourself before we will teach you how to look after your skis and snowboards, and have a toolkit for working on bikes. Even if you have hired your equipment ready serviced it will greatly improve your enjoyment of your trip if you re-wax every few days, or are able to tinker with your bindings to make them more comfortable. We also have an outside area where you can hose down and work on bikes or canoes.

We don't force you to travel on Saturday and stay for a week. back to list ...

Companies do this because it easier for their staff and booking systems. However it means that guests have to deal with the horror which is Saturday change over day, when everyone is on the road, in the airport lounge, or standing on a railway platform at exactly the same time. We are totally flexible about your arrival and departure, so that you can take advantage of cheaper travel options, and avoid the crowds, and even if you do chose to travel on a Saturday you can time it to avoid the main rush.

Another reason for our decision to charge by the night is that not everyone has the time, or can afford to take a whole week off work, so we provide an alternative if you just want to nip over for a few days or a long weekend. Or some of you may choose us because you can come for a longer period, or may not have decided yet how long you want stay. We had one guest who came for two weeks and then stayed for two and a half months.

We don't require you to book a package including travel or lift passes. back to list ...

On a package holiday you pay for a 6 day lift pass to the resort you are staying in. We don't include a pass in our rate because we want you to have more flexibility than that. You will walk past the lift pass office to get to the lifts anyway, so actually buying them yourself is easy enough, and the added benefits are many:

* You can decide whether to buy your pass, for an afternoon, daily, weekly or for the season which works out cheaper if you are staying for at least two weeks.
* You can buy passes which cover La Plagne and Les Arcs allowing you to explore both resorts regardless of which you are staying in.
* We are a half an hour drive to many other resorts which you may want to visit, including Sante Foy, La Rosiere, Tignes, Val d'Isere, and the Three Valleys.
* You are not wasting money if you take a day off to do something in the valley instead.
* You don't have the hassle of having to send a passport photo in advance, or queuing to collect your pass from your tour rep.

All the staff in the office speak English and will help you to chose the best pass for your needs, but if you are at all worried we will help you get your pass on your first day.

We don't include travel in our price for similar reasons. You will save money by having access to a wider range of travel options, and be able to be much more flexible about planning how you use your time. You will find all the information you need to help you plan your travel on the left, but if you need any assistance please just let us know.

We can enable you to explore the whole of the Paradiski in a couple of days. back to list ...

The Paradiski area is made up of the two resorts of Les Arcs and La Plagne. They are connected by a cable car, so if you buy a paradiski pass you can visit both. However it is a huge area and you may find you don't have enough time to get there and back in a day.We have chalets in both of these resorts so we can drive your bags from one to the other while you travel across the mountain by foot, bike snowboard, or skis, allowing you to fully explore, and experience living in both places.

Are located near local amenities. back to list ...

On many standard chalet holidays you find yourself in a hamlet on the mountainside with chalet staff who drive you down to the lifts and pick you up at set times. This often means a lot of hanging about waiting for people which can be frustrating. It also means that you have to plan any extra visits to the towns carefully and pay out for taxis, (or tips for the chalet staff if they offer to drive you).

We have chosen the location of our chalets to ensure that although both chalets have wonderful views and outside space which is quiet and peaceful, you are always within walking distance of the lifts and local pubs and cafes so that you can truly treat the place like home and come and go as you please. This also means that you get to experience being in a French town itself, rather than just resort life, and can access a huge range of activities beyond what is available to you on the mountain.

Transport to the chalet from the airport or railway station. back to list ...

If you are traveling by plane you will need transport from Lyon, Grenoble, Chambery or Geneva airports. We can provide this for you, and you can pay for it in Euros when you arrive. The cost will depend on the number of people and the time you travel, for example Saturdays are the most expensive, and if there are 10 of you it will cost much less than if you are a couple. It is therefore difficult to give a fixed price, but will usually be between 20 and 60 Euros per person. If you are staying in Montchavin and traveling by train, you will need transport from Bourg railway station to Montchavin which is about a 15 minute drive. Again the price varies according to numbers but is generally between 10 and 30 Euros each. If you would like us to provide any transport please let us know your arrival times as soon as possible so we can make the arrangements well in advance.

We can provide a babysitting service for 15 Euros per hour. We have insurance, health and safety training, CRB checks and many years experience between us. You can either let us know the hours you would like when you book, or we can agree timings on an ad hoc basis when you are here. We can also provide a group creche facility at a local nursery, or a qualified nanny. The costs for this vary depending on the number of children but will be from 15 to 30 Euros per hour. If you would like this service please let us know well in advance of your arrival.

We can arrange ski and snowboard lessons, or for a guide to show you around the mountain. Costs vary depending on whether you are in a group, or have a private session, and whether you pay by the hour or hire someone for the whole day. We can give you a better idea of cost when you let us know your exact requirements, but it costs between 10 and 40 Euros per person per hour. We can also arrange a guide in the summer months to show you around the mountain on foot or by bike. The costs again vary, but are between 10 and 40 Euros per hour per person.

We can make packed lunches for you every day you are here, or just for the odd day if you prefer. What you have is entirely up to you. In the past we have done a simple carry along lunch where we give you a bottle of water, a chocolate bar and a baguette with cheese or ham to take with you in the morning for 8 Euros, or we have met people on the mountain at a specified place and time with a full blown picnic in a hamper with proper plates, a picnic rug and wine cooler for 30 Euros. Just let us know what you would like.

We have some equipment ourselves, and have arrangements with local hire shops to provide anything we don't have, so should be able to cater to all your needs. Just let us know what kit you need in advance so we can make the arrangements. Prices obviously vary depending what you need, but as an example we can get you a basic mountain bike or a snowboard and bindings for about 15 Euros a day, or skis and boots for between 15 and 25 Euros a day. We will give you a quote by email and if you go ahead you can pay in Euros when you arrive.

Hopefully setting out on this website why we do things the way we do has helped you to get a feel for what staying with us will be like. If you have any other questions about what we do please contact us. Basically, we do whatever we can to make sure your holiday is just how you want it to be - it is your holiday, after all.