Staying off piste

All white on the night: The view across snow-covered roofs and the mountains in the famous ski resort of Verbier, Switzerland

Felice Hardy

10 April 2012

Everyone wants to save money during the credit crunch, and when it comes to skiing the easy answer is to go to lower or smaller resorts that connect into the bigger ski areas.

Brides-les-Bains below Méribel or Le Chable below Verbier are both considerably cheaper yet only a short cable-car or gondola hop up to the main ski area.

All of these satellite villages have pleasant yet reasonably priced places to stay, so you need not miss out on your creature comforts.

Steering clear of the better-known resorts will not only save you money in terms of accommodation, but you can also eat and drink for better value when off the beaten track. Here we review the best of the off-piste areas in six of the main Alpine resorts.

VERBIER

Verbier, Switzerland, is one of the world's top resorts with its 410km of piste, sensational off-piste and nightlife to match, but its more affordable cousin is Le Chable, a nine-minute télécabine ride away which links directly to the Medran lift station. In the evening, if you want to stay for Verbier's legendary après-ski, you can catch the post bus early on or take a taxi if you're late. Le Chable may not be terribly glamorous and you won't find any celebs here, but the prices are credit-crunch friendly.

Max & Millie's (+41 (0)27 776 4007, www.bedandbreakfastverbier.com) is a delightful B& B 200m from the lift, run by an Australian couple. It's especially good value as prices aren't hiked up in high season, at about £80 for a bunk room to about £115 for a deluxe room, both including cooked Australian breakfasts inspired by the famous Bills of Sydney restaurant.

MÉRIBEL

Méribel is at the heart of the notoriously expensive Trois Vallées, but you are paying for the stupendous amount of skiing - 600km in the area - and often supremely luxurious accommodation. Stay instead in the thermal spa resort of Brides-les- Bains in the valley below, where the three-star Golf Hotel (+33 (0)479 55 28 12, www.golf-hotel-brides.com) started life as a stately residence in the 1920s and still has oodles of character. The hotel has a swimming pool, restaurant and bar, and costs from about £73pp per night half board (if you book a whole week you'll receive a three per cent discount).

It is close to the thermal spa and only 150m from the gondola that whizzes you straight to the Méribel pistes.

Alternatively try Club Hotel Verseau for five nights' B& B from £239pp including return coach travel with Skiweekends (0870 442 3400, www.skiweekends.com).

ST ANTON

St Anton is a fabulous Austrian resort with its 120km of hardcore skiing mainly for strong intermediates to experts, which doesn't come cheap.

However, you could choose instead to stay in the lesser-known village of Stuben, which is connected into the lift system.

More than a dozen comfortable little B& Bs are on offer here, including Haus Anna (+43 (0)5582 735, http://members. aon.at/haus_anna), from about £32pp per night or about £255pp per week, both including breakfast.

LES ARCS

The futuristic resort of Les Arcs has 200km of piste — or 425km in the whole Paradiski area, which is linked with La Plagne. Les Arcs is made up of four high-altitude villages — and Bourg St Maurice, down in the valley. Catch the funicular up to Arc 1600 each morning, just like most of the resort workers do, and you can stay in Bourg St Maurice for a fraction of the price of the higher villages. At the chalet-style L'Autantic Hotel (+33 (0)479 07 01 70, www.hotelautantic.fr) prices start at about £34 per room per night, and there's also an indoor swimming pool.

ZERMATT

Finally, there's nothing like beautiful Zermatt, but you can still enjoy its skiing by staying lower down the valley at Täsch and catching the train up to ski each day.

A room in the three-star Best Western Alpenhotel (+41 (0)27 966 2644, www.alpenhotel-taesch.com) starts at about £46 a night and it's a friendly place to stay with a sauna, hot tub and gym — but it is pretty quiet down here.

A four-course dinner in the hotel restaurant is about £16 a head.

FLAINE

You can avoid purpose-built Flaine, France, by staying in its prettier neighbour in the valley. The Grand Massif area — which comprises Flaine and the lower villages of Les Carroz, Morillon, Samoëns, and Sixt — has 265km of piste and 73 lifts.

The village of Samoëns, connected to the ski area by cablecar, is much more architecturally appealing than Flaine, attracting weekenders who come here for the reasonable prices.

It has charming old hotels such as the Hotel Neige et Roc, which has one of the best restaurants in the area.

It costs from £319pp B& B per week including ferry crossings, through Peak Retreats (0844 576 0170, www.peakretreats.co.uk).

MORE ABOUT

Alpine Skiing

Staying off piste

Read More