Reberwhere?

In 2009, after 18 seasons operating in Les Gets, we committed to branching out into new territory. The resort chosen for our initial expansion was Reberty Village.

If you’ve never heard of Reberty Village there is no need to be ashamed. In conversation with people outside the ski industry I have only ever come across one person who knew exactly where it was.

So why, having looked at more well known resorts including Courchevel, Meribel, Megeve and La Plagne did we opt for this relative unknown?

There was one massively important factor – LOCATION

We knew that guests wanted to travel with us to the 3 Valleys (it repeatedly came up on guest questionnaires) and the area was therefore a key focus from the start of our search. We found chalets in Meribel, but the access to the slopes was dismal. We found chalets in Courchevel, but the costs were astronomical. We had seen chalets in La Tania, but they tired with compromised layouts. Finally we had fallen for St Martin de Belleville, but failed to find a property that would work for families.

A few people had, by this point, suggested we have a look at Reberty Village. I had put it off for a couple of key reasons. Firstly I knew it was a satellite resort of Les Menuires; an unattractive purpose built resort which I perceived to have a lot of pretty low rent accommodation. Secondly I knew a competitor had chalets there – I won’t name them but the most basic of Google searches will allow you to compare our offerings!

After a couple of seasons of searching and with nothing else that really appealed on offer it was time to visit Reberty. I’d be over dramatizing to declare it love at first sight but it was certainly “hmmm, this is a lot better than I imagined and really rather interesting” at first sight. Given the chalets are in a location beside the slopes at 2,000m with a ski school meeting point around a minute and a half away I suppose I shouldn’t have been too surprised to discover I liked the place.

The chalets were (indeed are) quite different to our properties in Les Gets but I could instantly see them working for families. All rooms are en-suite and it’s very easy to pair up doubles and twins for families. These are chalets designed to be commercially let, unlike our Les Gets properties that are typically family owned second homes, but they still have some traditional character and the south facing terraces are a great place to be on a sunny day. There is also the benefit of a spa room in each chalet.

We took a leap of faith and committed to three chalets in the place that nobody had ever heard of. Over the past two seasons we have tried to make the properties more homely (more is being done this Autumn) and we have learnt how to help guests make the most of the area. The skiing needs little selling but we have genuinely become rather fond of ugly ducking Les Menuires and the facilities it is able to offer guests.

I have even reconciled myself to being neighbours with a close competitor. We are both there for the same reason, we believe it to be one of the best locations in the 3 Valleys for skiers and boarders with young children.

Chris
skifamille.co.uk