WHERE TO GO FOR… NEW SKI CHIC
HARD DAY on THE PISTE? THEN YOU’LL WANT TO stay SOMEWHERE STYLISH to RECOVER
Ski season is finally upon us – these are the stylish new spots to recover after a day on the piste
EL LODGE Sierra Nevada, Spain
You might raise some eyebrows checking in for a flight to Granada with your ski boots slung over your shoulder, but you’ll be the smug one when just an hour after landing you’ve checked into El Lodge: a luxury hotel in the snowcapped Sierra Nevada mountains. The ski-in/ ski-out resort is a well-kept Spanish secret, with 124 well-maintained pistes (cannons mean the slopes stay open until May) and the area’s only outdoor pool. The 2O snazzily designed rooms and suites (cowhide cushions, Campari bottle lamps, Moroccan textiles) have private terraces with steaming hot tubs to people watch from, and sweeping views of the vast mountain range. After truffle pizza on the restaurant terrace, try vertigo-inducing excursions with local hikers or horseback rides organised by the hotel. And don’t miss ‘The Sleep Inducing Ritual’ in the spa afterwards – you are on holiday, after all. Doubles from around £28O, B&B (ellodge.com). easyJet has flights from London Gatwick to Granada from £13O return
SEVERIN*S THE ALPINE RETREAT Lech, Austria
After throwing yourself down a mountain all day, you’ll need some serious cossetting. Severin*s has this in spades. After being scooped from the slopes (Lech’s access to 3O5km of pistes and 87 lifts makes it Austria’s largest interconnected ski area) by the retreat’s car shuttle service, you can hit the underwater bubble loungers in the pool, or warm up in one of the saunas, steam bath or infrared cabin.
Each of the nine suites have floor-to-ceiling windows, Loewe sound systems and a private terrace or balcony. To refuel, Chef Kevin Szalai’s mindful menu will satisfy the meat-mad through to the vegan. Three nights from £1,34Opp, half board, including private transfers and return flights from London Gatwick to Innsbruck (oxfordski.com; severins-lech.at). For area information, see lechzuers.com
LIMELIGHT Snowmass, Colorado
In terms of terrain, the 3,3OO-acre Snowmass ski area has it all: groomed cruisers, challenging glades, powder fields, two half-pipes, and a 4,4OO foot vertical rise. But when the lifts shut down, skiers traditionally headed to glitzier Aspen, nine miles down the road. Now there’s reason to stay, thanks to a $6OO million Base Village that debuted last December. This 99-room slopeside outpost of Aspen’s eco-chic Limelight Hotel has become a village social hub, with pizza restaurant, live music and buzzy après-ski scene. Rooms eschew Alpine décor in favour of neutral furnishings, with smart touchs, such as a microwave, fridge and Keurig coffee machine, plus a plush robe to wear to the two hot tubs outside. If you haven’t worn yourself out on the slopes, you can tackle the hotel’s 54-foot indoor climbing wall, the largest in Colorado. Doubles from £285, including a very good breakfast (limelighthotels.com). British Airways has flights to Denver from around £48O return. United Airlines has onward flights to Aspen from around £2O5 return
EXPERIMENTAL CHALET Verbier, Switzerland
You’ll find no Alpine clichés at this refurbished 39-room boutique hotel, which is a glamorous mélange of Art Deco and mid-century modern – green velvet headboards, plush red carpets, mirrored walls and cocktails rather than glühwein. This is the sexy new venture from the Experimental Group, which also has hotspots in London, New York and Venice. Every detail hits the mark, from bath salts to soothe post-ski legs to in-room hip flasks, while chef Gregory Marchand’s menu is a creative riff on hearty mountain fare. The Group also runs the infamous Farm Club in the Chalet’s basement. In its heyday, Bowie and Diana Ross danced on the tables; these days mischief is to be had drinking Billecart-Salmon on the velvet sofa in the Ladies’ Room, which doubles as a sneaky smoking room – where men are also allowed. Doubles from £27O, B&B (experimentalchalet.com). British Airways has flights from London Heathrow to Geneva from £14O return