Hôtel Au Coeur du Village

Gaston Pollet-Villard, founder and still head of the group that bears his name, began developing the hotel project in 2000 in his native village, convinced that the growth of the La Clusaz resort called for accommodation to match. The owner of the Groupe PVG establishments had started his career as an importer of semi-precious stones.

Relais & Châteaux describes the building as a chalet of elegant design, and the hotel joined the association as soon as it opened. It was also among the winners of the MICHELIN Keys when they were first awarded, in 2024. In every room, touches of red and orange add warmth, and the walls are hung with the unique, offbeat photographs of Ludovic Di Orio, a photographer and artist from Annecy who decorated all the rooms.

The hotel stands at 26 montée du Château, in the centre of the village of La Clusaz in Haute-Savoie, at an altitude of 1,040 metres among the mountains of the Aravis massif. It was built at the foot of the slopes: the Champ Giguet runs, the Beauregard lifts and marked trails for mountain biking or walking are all a stone's throw away, a position the hotel says makes it easy to begin each day in the great outdoors.

From the hotel, the view takes in Le Crêt du Merle, Le Crêt du Loup, the Pointe de Merdassier, l'Aiguille and the Plateau de Beauregard. La Clusaz is 30 minutes by car from Annecy and 45 minutes from Geneva, and before arrival the concierge can organise transfers from the airport or the railway station with its partners.

The Junior room, at 20 m², sleeps one or two adults in a 160×200 cm Queen Size bed or twin beds, with a flat-screen television and a bathroom with a multi-jet shower and separate toilet. The Privilège room steps up to 25 m² for two adults, with a 180×200 cm King Size bed or twin beds, a bathtub and either a cosy office area or a balcony. Both have a Nespresso machine, a safe, a minibar and Alpeor welcome products.

The Junior Suite, 33 m² for two or three guests, has an office area, a lounge with a sofa bed for one child under 12, a spa bath and a balcony over the mountains or the village. The Junior Sommet Suite, 35 m², sits on the top floor with a balcony facing the mountains, a spa bath, a separate toilet and a living area that converts to sleep one adult or one child. The Privilège Suite, 48 m² for up to four, pairs a bedroom with office area, spa bath, separate toilet and a balcony over the mountains or the village with a large lounge or sleeping area that has a single bed and a second bathroom with a multi-jet shower; an extra bed for one adult or two children under 12 can be added, and removable walls and separate entrances let it become communicating rooms.

The 50 m² Privilège Prestige Suite shares that divisible layout, and its view, which the hotel calls privileged, takes in the ski slopes and the Etale and Beauregard massifs. For families, there are two Family Suite categories. The Single Level Family Suite, 60 m² for three or four, pairs a master suite with lounge area, balcony and spa bath with a children's bedroom that has a King Size bed or twin beds and its own bathroom with walk-in shower. The Split Level Family Suite, 80 m² for three to five, has a living space opening onto the balcony, an office area, a sofa bed and the master bedroom with spa bath on the ground floor; upstairs are a second bedroom with walk-in shower and a mezzanine space with a 90×200 cm single bed.

Le Chalet Le Coeur adjoins the hotel, with private access to Cristal Spa, and spreads 190 m² over two levels. The upper level has exposed beams, a fireplace and a cosy terrace, and a fully equipped American-style kitchen lets guests cook together. Its three bedrooms are the Panther Room, 29 m², with a double hammam shower, separate toilet, balcony and independent entrance; the Lynx Room, 19 m², with a bathtub and separate toilet; and the Bear Room, 23 m², with cabin-style 80×190 cm bunk beds and a shower room suitable for guests with reduced mobility. Each has a King Size bed or twin beds.

Le Cin5, the gastronomic restaurant, earned one Michelin star in March 2024, and Relais & Châteaux lists it with one star for 2026. Its refined Franco-Mauritian cuisine is the work of Vincent Deforce, who took over the kitchens of Le Coeur in 2019 and has been executive chef of both restaurants since autumn 2020. Le Coeur, the hotel's gourmet restaurant, serves local cuisine in a friendly spirit, for a meal alone or with family or friends.

The bar, which the hotel calls the central place of the house, welcomes hotel guests and visitors every day in winter for a gourmet snack or a drink at any time of day. It pours classic cocktails and house creations, fine wines, local beers and soft drinks, with tapas, cheeses and charcuterie from local suppliers.

Cigar and spirits lovers have an English-style smoking room, a cosy space of leather club armchairs and wood, with a small cigar cellar stocked with Partagas, Cohiba and Montecristo, a menu of spirits from around the world and a television corner showing sport on Canal+. In the chalet, breakfast can be delivered to the suite each morning, room service is available at any hour of the day or night, and the chef can come to cook a private dinner at its wooden table, on reservation and with a supplement.

The 450 m² Cristal Spa lies beside the Clusaz river and is set with semi-precious stones: amethysts, rose quartz and rock crystals. The hotel describes a warm, woody fragrance and relaxing music against a backdrop of snowy or green peaks, and calls the atmosphere soothing.

The playful pool has counter-current swimming, swan-neck jets and a bubble bath, alongside a rest area, a herbal tea room, a rock-crystal hammam under a starry sky, a sauna, chromotherapy lighting and five treatment rooms using Phytomer and Alpeor protocols. Hotel guests can use the pool from 08:00 to 22:00 and the sauna from 10:00 to 20:00, and in winter the spa reception and treatment area is open from 10:00 to 20:00.

The redesigned 50 m² ski room, open from 08:30 to 18:00, rents skis, snowboards and snowshoes and sells accessories such as glasses, hats, gloves and sun products. Each room has its own personalised locker and boot warmers there, and two professionals advise guests on equipment and routes. Before arrival, the concierge can book ski packages and lessons as well as lunches and dinners, and a free shuttle with driver, a nine-seat Volkswagen Caravelle, runs within La Clusaz and its immediate surroundings.

During the winter school holidays, a lounge opens to children from 17:00 to 22:00 under the supervision of two facilitators, with a games console, board, creative and construction games, painting and a 40 m² cinema room. At 19:00 a Kid's Corner buffet is laid on, where the entertainers have the children dine while parents spend the evening at Le Coeur or Le Cin5. Babysitting within the hotel can be arranged through the concierge team, at an additional charge.