Chamonix > Reviews > Chamonix? Mais Oui!

Author's product rating:   

Value for Money	Excellent
Sightseeing	Excellent
Shopping	Good
Nightlife	Excellent
Ease of getting around	Average

Advantages:	Les Balcons du Savoy hotel excellent, great variety of skiing, good snow, great nightlife .  .  .
Disadvantages:	Buses slow and full

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I have just returned from an excellent weeks ski holiday in Chamonix.

The part that really made it for us was the fantastic hotel - Les Balcons du Savoy. We (4 friends) stayed in a self-catered apartment and it was simply brilliant - I would say it was worth a lot more than we paid. The apartment was spacious, well maintained and immacuate with a well stocked kitchen (utensils etc). We had a balcony which caught the sun all day and looked over Mont Blanc. The hotel pool is excellent and steam room (although you are supposed to pay sometimes you can sneak in) was welcome at the end of a hard day on the slopes! The staff were also incedibly good - very friendly and helpful all week at all hours. I cannot recommend it highly enough and would go back there again with no hesitations.

The hotel is very well placed for the Brevent/Flegere area being a 1min walk to the beginning of the lift system up there. It is a 3 min walk to a bus stop for Le Tour/Le Grand Montets, and 5 mins into the main town. Fantastic location.

We really liked the fact that Chamonix is a town in its own right rather than made simply for the skiing and the nightlife was great (once we found the hot bars!). We didn't eat out much as we cooked in the flat but there are plenty of restaurants - particularly serving local specialities such as Tartiflette and Fondue. The variety of places to ski was brilliant - if conditions were not great in one places somewhere else would be good. Not that conditions weren't good - plenty of pow pow and off piste conditions great. Ability levels are well-catered for and we rarely skied the same run twice. The only thing is that beginners may have to ski in a different area to more advanced riders - one of our party was learning and was often elsewhere and had to come meet us for lunch as some areas (e.g. Grand Montets) aren't as good for beginners as others. The most extensive pass also includes Courmeyuer in Italy - well worth a trip (our on a sunny day - bellisimo!) - through the Mont Blanc Tunnel.

Do not miss a trip up the Aguille du Midi cable car to the highest point, even if you dont want to ski down (get a guide if you do). The views are absolutely incredible at 4000m!

The only downside to Chamonix was the length of time we had to waut for buses - they need to be far more frequent. However hiring a car would solve this and really it didn't detract from the holiday. And girls - there were about 8 men to every one girl. Bear this in mind...