Portetta

Address: Courchevel Moriond, 252 Rue du Marquis, 73120 Courchevel, France
Phone: +33 4 79 08 01 47
Website: portetta.com

Low key and Courchevel rarely share the same sentence. But slide down mountain to 1650 where the Savoyard spirit endures, and you’ll find Portetta. It’s cosy without feeling overly twee, rustic while shining its shoes. Rooms are pared down but sumptuous in fabric and materials choices, a hallmark of its owners, the Hutsons (behind Lime Wood and the ever-growing group of Pigs). Not only is it ski-in/ski-out, but the backdoor opens to miles of unspoilt backcountry, where the pros can wiggle through Alpine woods, looking out for wildlife and carving tracks into fresh snow. Those sticking to the pistes are right on the Belvedere, with easy access to the lifts and Les Trois Vallées miles of scenic runs. They can snowplough home to backgammon boards and hot toddies in fire-lit rooms or, outside, the Fire & Ice Bar whose stone-baked pizzas are as legendary as their ‘Pistes Rouges’ cocktails.