A weekend break at Le Refuge de Solaise
Val d'IsèrePresentation
Are you looking for a mountain holiday that surpasses limits? Maybe a short break that goes above and beyond expectations? With OSC you can reserve 1 night, a weekend or a week-long holiday at the epic Le Refuge de Solaise! Get ready for a French Alps adventure at the top…
Unique, luxurious & wonderfully welcoming
In 2016 the old Val d’Isère Solaise Cable Car closed its doors for the last time after 74 years of trusted work. But all was not lost, oh no, this only meant one thing… Finally, Le Refuge de Solaise was born.
Taking 2 summers to build (in the mountain we don’t count winters as construction is too difficult due to weather conditions) this ultimate refuge was created. Located at the old arrival station, this masterful design was realised by Jean-Claude Borel and Jean-Charles Covarel.
The Refuge de Solaise holds the official title as the highest hotel in France, situated 2551 metres above sea level. Opening in 2019, just before the retched Covid disrupted our ski industry for nearly 3 seasons, finally the winter of 2022-23 saw its first 'real' ski season without any closures or limitations.
So, on one of the biggest snowstorm weekends of this season, OSC decided to explore and test the facilities of this unique and luxurious refuge we have all heard so much about…
Let the weekend commence!
We’re a group of 4 friends, 2 couples (who are parents of both younger and older children) and one person is in a wheelchair. This is the perfect test to see realistically how this accommodation caters for everyone.
We arrive around 2 pm as we’ve been contacted in advance due to the weather conditions. The refuge is only accessible by cable car and during the lift opening times and there was talk of it possibly closing early due to high winds. Useful to know, if this does happen and you are stranded at the bottom, the hotel will find appropriate accommodation, but of course, we didn’t want this to happen to us!
We arrived at the Oxygène Ski School meeting point in the heart of Val d’Isère where we were met by the extremely helpful and professional staff of the Refuge de Solaise. They took our bags, skis and car keys, handed us a green passport welcome booklet with our lift pass, room number, wifi code and a brief history of the refuge, and then guided us 50 metres to the Solaise Cable Car. We left our cars in their trusted hands where they were parked securely in a covered car park until the end of our stay.
There were a few wheelchair transfers needed to arrive at the top, from wheelchair to skidoo, to the bottom of the cable car, back to the wheelchair for the upward trip and then to an all-terrain/all-weather snow quad which took us 100 metres to the hotel front door. At this point, I would like to highlight this was all taking place in a blizzard! It went surprisingly extremely smoothly though and could have been a lot more complicated, especially for our adaptive skiing friend. Hands up, the first impressions were great!
Upon arrival at the top
Pulling up, we couldn’t see much with the whiteout around us, but this all added to the adventure. Where were we going? What were we going to see? As we moved inside the hotel's front door, an alpine mountain refuge vibe with a contemporary twist welcomed us, along with a roaring fire. We had entered another world, calm and quiet, as opposed to the one outside we had just come from. ‘What can I get you to drink?’ was what we next heard…
Starting as we meant to go on, there was no rush to get to our rooms, at the end of the day we were there for the weekend and couldn't go anywhere else! We explored the beautifully designed communal areas which gave off a sort of rustic, luxury cruise ship vibe. The restaurant Gigi is large and serves delicious Italian dishes, and in the bar area, we enjoyed a selection of antipasti opposite the fire, which soon became a favourite hang-out spot for us.
The receptionist was extremely attentive, showing us around their dedicated children’s area with a foosball and table tennis table, a giant television and lots of comfortable chairs. Useful to know, if you are travelling with children, they provide a childcare service from 9 am to 5 pm which is included in the price, you just have to make sure you reserve a space in advance!
The gym, spa and relaxation areas are also well thought out, with a huge 25-metre swimming pool, jacuzzis, hammams and an outdoor sauna. With the quantity of snow that had fallen, however, the sauna was not accessible to wheelchair users as it is located outside and has a few steps up to get in. Over the weekend we tested a number of different facials and massages. I told my therapist I wanted to look 10 years younger, so she adapted her techniques to me, and I must say I think it worked wonders! The massages were also extremely good and I 100% suggest booking one after a day on the slopes.
Finally, the grand finale of entering the bedrooms arrived and boy, we were not let down. Spacious, chic and warming, decorated with traditional stone walls and local wood. One of the rooms had an old clawfoot bathtub, the other had a massive floor-to-ceiling window that overlooked the mountains. They even have a traditional refuge dormitory sleeping up to 14 people, plus a selection of individual apartments perfect for groups of up to 18 people and seminars.
Lost in the mountains
For 2 days, we were lost in the mountains of Val d’Isère in a snowstorm. During our weekend we probably saw around 1.5 metres of snowfall. FANTASTIC for us, but not so great for the snow clearers who have to ‘de-neige’ the enormous outdoor terrace!
Did I feel worried about being so far away from reality? No, not at all. While the weather was brewing outside we were nestled up safe and warm in the comfort of the hotel with a warm fire, watching the England V France rugby game... and with a cocktail in hand (for info, France won!).
On our last day, the sun finally came out and the views from the bedroom 'super-window' were simply breathtaking. We had heard rumours and seen photos, but nothing is better than seeing them for yourself. This is what we had been waiting for and what a way to finish.
Bags packed and left in our room, the refuge staff looked after all the logistics of taking the luggage back down again. We just told them what time we'll be at the meeting point and they brought our cars to us. Pure luxury at its best!
Ski-in/ ski-out with Oxygène
A huge positive about staying in this fantastic setting is you have direct ski-in/ski-out access. You are also the first on the slopes, meaning you get to reap all the rewards of first-track skiing, every… single… morning.
When booking with OSC you benefit from the full service! Everything can be pre-organised in advance, including lessons, lift passes, equipment hire and activities. In fact, and very useful to know, Oxygène offers an onsite ski hire fitting service where your rental equipment is delivered and fitted upon arrival at the refuge. Your equipment is then ready and waiting for you in your individual heated ski lockers. So when the time is right, all you have to do is slip on your boots, click into your skis and off you go.
So, we’re ready and we set off for our morning ski in Val d'Isère with our own personal Oxygène guide. Useful to know, for any private lessons or guiding Oxygène can organise for your instructor to come and meet you directly at the refuge. The sun is shining, the snow is perfect and we have big smiles on our faces. Le Refuge de Solaise, thank you, you did not let us down.
This weekend Le Refuge de Solaise was incredible, recharged all batteries and I would honestly say it is an experience like no other. Useful to know, for anyone unsure about being cut off at the top of the mountain, every Friday and Saturday the Solaise Cable Car stays open later, allowing you to go down in the evening to eat in a restaurant and explore a little more Val d’Isère. Just make sure you are back by the last lift at 11 pm.
At the end of the weekend, we also found out we were the first group with a wheelchair user to have stayed at the hotel since it opened. We are extremely happy to see that this luxury refuge is ideally adapted for ALL our OSC clients.
To recap, Le Refuge de Solaise is a unique accommodation option perfect for anyone looking for something a little bit different. Expect a high-end service with a warm and friendly atmosphere, perfect for couples, families with both big and little children and not forgetting our adaptive skiers.
If you are interested in booking Le Refuge de Solaise or have any questions, feel free to contact our reservations team at any time! We look forward to hearing from you soon…