Peisey-Vallandry France

During our stay at Club Med Peisey-Vallandry in the French Alps, we had the pleasure of meeting Ines (also known as "Ines the Tall"), who works as a J.O. She is simply incredible! Ines is always smiling, kind, professional, and absolutely wonderful.

We bonded with her instantly, and our kids especially loved her. Even though they don’t speak French or English, she managed to communicate with them beautifully, making them feel comfortable and happy.

We highly recommend her to anyone visiting Club Med – she truly makes the experience even more special!

Pretty much what you expect with Club Med, all included and you don't really want for anything. It makes things very simple. The hotel is well presented, clean and a comfortable temperature throughout. Staff are very friendly and always say hello and are very helpful if you have a query.

The private airport transfers after an early flight with a child are a welcome start to the holiday not having delays and elongated coach trips on mountain roads. Unfortunately the driver had not been briefed we had a 4 year old with us and didn't have a booster seat with him which gave us a nervous journey to the hotel but it was rectified on return to the airport.

Greeted on arrival and sat down with a drink to get everything explained and provided with SkiPass and wristband that opens room and ski locker before going up to the room where luggage is waiting by the door. Plenty of cupboards and drawers to unpack everything into.

Our Junior Family Room had a large and very comfortable superking bed in the main area and a separate lounge area separated with a sliding panel to provide privacy with an L shaped sofa arrangement from 2 sofabeds (proper mattresses) which provided a full sized single bed for our child. Kettle, teas and coffee provided in the room but no small sized milk anywhere so we asked in the restaurant and were given a full sized one to put in the fridge in the room. Re-useable water bottles are provided to be used at the cold water dispensers located throughout the hotel.

There is a TV but we were unable to locate any English speaking channels despite it suggesting there were some. That said, we pretty much only use the room to sleep and get ready so we aren't too bothered. We had the Premium WIFI giving us WIFI on 4 devices and it was a very good reliable signal throughout the hotel.

Nice sized bathroom with shower over bath, Shampoo, Conditioner, Body Wash and Lotions all provided. Controllable towel rail which was great for drying ski gear (mittens etc).

The balcony had a couple of chairs and a table but it wasn't the weather for sitting out! Our view was fairly limited looking into the side of what was the return ski run back to the hotel. I think we were room 416 so we weren't low.

We had pre-registered for adult ski groups on the Club Med App but had to go to the ski school to register our child. The Club Med equipment rental is super easy as it is all placed in your ski lockers ready for you, however you do pay through the nose for that convenience so we always pre-book with the local SkiSet and walk to collect the gear. We generally find it is a slightly better standard and about 2/3rds of the price. The lockers have plenty of space in them and the boot dryers are very good. We went on a fairly quiet week and space in the locker room was OK, I would imagine at busier times it might be a bit trickier. They could do with drain mats on the floors because there were always puddles on the floor meaning a lot of one leg balancing when messing about with boots/footwear to avoid soggy socks!

The shop sells all the usual things, clothing, gifts etc, all displays updated daily to feature the theme of the day (the Club Med App tells you what it is in advance so you can pack if you want to join in. We always thought this was a bit silly but it actually helped me pack, which I'm notoriously poor at, because I just limited my choices to fit the theme!)

The food, as usual was to a high standard, being really picky it wasn't as good as we had previously had at Club Med simply due to choice, and mostly for little people. Breakfasts were very good, all you could want for hot and cold selections, Greek Yogurt is our preferred option and was only available on 2 mornings but there was white chocolate or plain available. We only made the lunchtime BBQ on one day and it was lovely. Lunches and evening meals had a good selection across hot and cold that changed daily with some standard offerings such as pasta, pizza, cold meats and cheese, salad bar etc. There always seemed to be at least one vegetarian and fish option. Much as we try to get our child to eat varied food, much of what is served is highly flavoured etc and just a bit much for a 4 year old! There was burger and chips available every day which isn't something we encourage and she doesn't especially like anyway, and she doesn't like Pizza so quite often we ended up with plain pasta and trying to find some sort of mushroom sauce (if it was served with another meal) and a vegetable to put with it. Even if there was a chicken breast and plain fish fillet (or even fish goujons) it would give some option for children. The desserts were beautifully presented but the daily choices were very much of a theme, so a tart with various flavours, rather than different types. The afternoon tea selection seemed to be limited to the mornings pastries dipped in chocolate plus pancakes. There was charcuterie and cheese served before dinner along with cocktail of the day.

Nice selection of drinks in the bar. The self serve coffee machine in the bar was out of action all week but the one serving hot chocolate worked. There aren't many coffee machines in the restaurant area and they are pretty slow so there can be quite a queue at breakfast time.

I used the spa and had a very nice massage. We used the pool on a daily basis. It was a nice size and in the warmer weather the external part would also be accessible. The water could do with being a couple of degrees warmer but I guess it is hard when part of it is outside in the snow! There are sinkers and floatation aids available. There is a shallow splashpool that is a bit warmer. There are nice sized sauna and steam rooms that were never too busy. We didn't locate a whirlpool or hot tub so I don't know if there isn't one or if it was out of action.

There was a games room with Fussball and ping pong tables that seemed popular with the older kids. Each night there was a family show in the theatre from 8.15 to 9pm then a bit later there was some other entertainment but we had returned to the room by then so didn't see any of it.

The kids club was well organised. Our daughter had 2 hours ski instruction morning and afternoon with a break for lunch. Some days she ate with the Mini Club and some days with us. Some English speaking staff which helps as we don't speak French so I can't criticise that! The ski group progressed well. We were disappointed she didn't get out onto the main mountain until the Friday when we had been told she was ready on the Wednesday. This was purely down to the group sizes and the fact she is small and although capable, the other children were bigger. We were told that had they got the right number of instructors the group would have a further split and it would have allowed her to progress onto the mountain with the right sized group. We felt that was a little unfair on her because that is a staffing issue, not an us issue, but we fully appreciate safety is paramount. It is also because there isn't access to a true green on the mountain, they need to ski a gentle blue to access anything more, but as your first time out of the snow garden that could be tricky for less confident children.

We don't necessarily need instruction but like to access the adult ski groups to help orientation on the mountain, learn the best runs etc and also meet people. Our guide (Francoise T) was very good. They allow people to self access which group they should be in and then do a basic watch as you ski a run after about a 40 minute time to warm up and find your ski legs. This process was not as well managed as we have previously observed. People seemed to be able to almost bully their way into which group they wanted based on being with family or friends and in some cases moved themselves up when the skiing wasn't really to the standard. Some of the group skiing had people skiing too close to one another, cutting into the 'line' etc. In fairness the instructor did mention it a few times (but was ignored) and this issue was more down to poor etiquette than anything else, but we found it frustrating and eventually left the group on day 4 and did our own thing.

The hotel location is great for ski in and ski out, but the first lift is right next to the Vanoise Express station from La Plagne so it can be busy first thing. We had good ski conditions across the resort which is vast and plenty to go at.

All in all we enjoyed our holiday and like the little luxuries that Club Med offers but this time there were just a couple of niggles but really nothing major. We have already booked Club Med again for next year (we always book through SkiLine when the discount time is on and it is usually around £450 cheaper than direct to Club Med).

My whole experience was exceptional from the ambience and quality of service in the hotel, the food, the comfort of my room and interaction with the staff. I do not even consider anywhere else for my annual skiing trip.

We had a delightful holiday and highly recommend the club for a skiing getaway. The domain is world-class, and the ski-in/ski-out access was excellent. The GO team was exceptionally friendly and helpful. The rooms are spacious, with en suite bathrooms (bath with a shower combination, which may not be ideal for older guests).