Rent the Chalet les Cerises, an alpine gîte with exceptional views

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More than a chalet, a warm human adventure

In order to understand the purpose of this blog, it is essential to explain the genesis of this project to rent a chalet in a Savoyard family resort. Far from any form of financial investment, we followed our intuition. We had no idea of the risks we were taking and, above all, of the joys we would experience by welcoming holidaymakers to Cordon. Today, this recklessness has allowed us to do an exciting new job in an idyllic setting in the heart of the most beautiful valleys of the French Alps. We are lucky enough to welcome our guests in a luxury chalet at an altitude of 950 metres, in the middle of mountain pastures, fir trees, Savoyard farms and snow-covered peaks.

Falling under the spell of a small preserved mountain village

We discovered Cordon almost by chance when we came back from a family holiday in Les Saisies, the magic of the place literally captivated us. A few dozen minutes from Chamonix, this friendly hamlet offers a breathtaking view of Mont Blanc. A combination of circumstances allowed us to recharge our batteries for a few days, and since that unforgettable moment we have had the irresistible desire to return.

The purchase of the Chalet les Cerises took place on 27 November 2017, a pure folly! This act, which we would describe today as completely impulsive and unreasonable, turned our lives upside down. We had never thought about a second home, yet between the time we started looking at real estate listings on Cordon and the offer to buy, only 48 hours passed.

To top it all off, we had no savings, we had to borrow the whole property and the notary fees. I imagine it would be completely impossible to repeat this crazy gamble today.

©You can change everything but the breathtaking view”

It is typically this panoramic view of the Mont Blanc massif that seduced us. At the time, there were no large windows, only two small French windows in the living room. Despite the few openings, the old-fashioned Savoyard decorations and the improbable layout of the rooms, we fell in love instantly. The most improbable thing is that afterwards everything followed almost miraculously and with surprising speed.

The work began the day after the signing at the notary's office; we had been planning it for several months. We had even started to move the future chalet furniture ourselves on the weekends before the purchase. We absolutely had to have the very rustic interior of the chalet refreshed so that we could rent it out a few weeks later for the opening of the Évasion Mont-Blanc domain and the Espace Diamant. We had clearly underestimated the scale of the work to be done in this large chalet.

Renters of happy weeks, our first steps

It was absolutely vital not to miss out on the high season det to welcome our first guests in February 2018. We were hoping for a good snowfall so that the ski area of Cordon would attract alpine skiers. Luck and success were with us, we rented more than 20 weeks the first year. What an unforgettable experience it was to welcome our very first holidaymakers! The smiles on the faces of the whole family as they discovered this human-sized chalet touched us deeply. We felt as if we were reliving each time the deep emotion we had felt when we first discovered Cordon.

The arrival of the off-season in the spring was an opportunity to continue the development of our little Savoyard setting. The construction of a large private terrace in the middle of a preserved nature including a jacuzzi which can welcome 8 persons was the kick-off of the realization of our wellness area. Since that moment, we have been in a frenzy of transformations in order to push back the limits and to offer ever more comfort. The positive feedback we have received from people has encouraged us to push the limits of what is reasonable and to continue in this convivial way.

A radical change of life

2019 arrival of the Covid! We took refuge, as a family, on the balcony of Mont Blanc during this uncertain period. Leaving the Paris region to live in the wide open spaces of Savoie and Haute-Savoie seemed to us to be an obvious choice. The evolution of teleworking possibilities allowed us to leave our urban world and settle permanently in the middle of the mountains. As soon as the restrictions were lifted, we put our house on the outskirts of Paris up for sale so that we could live in Haute-Savoie in the Arve Valley. The change of scenery linked to a healthier life in the open air was immediate and we have never regretted coming to this charming mountain village in the Rhône-Alpes.

Continue to rent the chalet or live there?

Passionate about meeting new people and sharing our haven of peace, we decided without hesitation to continue our activity as hosts. We were looking forward to the reopening of the ski resorts and winter sports accommodation. The incredible comments and reviews we received completely galvanised us. So much kindness and goodwill, made us want to go the extra mile and offer more to each new holidaymaker. The time to find a place when we rent our spacious chalet has been a pretext for a nomadic life.

Today, we divide our time between the Chalet les Cerises and a small cosy flat in the ski resort of Combloux. We are fortunate to be located in the centre of the village and to have this view of Mont Blanc, the Aiguille du Midi, the peaks of the Grand Massif and the Aiguilles de Chamonix. Only 10 minutes away by car, we can easily welcome our guests and intervene quickly to ensure the comfort of our tenants.

A blog to share our favorites and the Savoyard art of living

The marvellous experiences we have had have given us the desire to relate our hikes, our favourites, our desires for decoration... We would like to talk about all the things that have thrilled us over the last few years and all the numerous sporting activities that our children or friends are discovering. You can be sure that we will cover subjects as varied as climbing, paragliding, downhill mountain biking, rafting, hiking routes, the Mont-Blanc ultra trail, the Tour de France, mountaineering, hot air ballooning, snowboarding, mountain pasture walks, dog sledding, high mountains, snowshoeing, tobogganing, freeride, vias ferratas, cross-country skiing... We look forward to seeing you throughout these pages.

We are still looking for the right tone to share these moments, and perhaps to encourage readers who will want to read us to live with passion the aspirations that animate them.