Over nearly two decades, the Experimental Group of bars and hotels has become so popular that fans would follow it anywhere. So, the opening of its latest project, a ski lodge in the village of Val d’Isère, will likely not stay quiet beyond its December 20 opening date. Interior design by Dorothée Meilichzon, the designer to know in Paris and London, nails the company’s ‘play hard, play hard’ ethos.

Meilichzon’s starting point was the L’Aigle des Neiges, a slate-and-wood chalet at the heart of the village with 113 rooms (which start from €400 for a standard) looking out onto the Vanoise massif. She used smart fabrics and tiles in earthy tones for the king-bed rooms and suites, incorporating antler and branch motifs from the Savoyard region. Her fondness for woods in competing tones makes a spectacle here, woven into side tables and dramatic headboards.

The rooms have tidy upholstered seating areas for tea and snacks beneath the picture windows. Yet most guests will prefer the hotel’s new brasserie L’Aigle D’or, for fondue or raclette (and pastries in the morning). Hidden beyond it is the hotel’s raison d’être: a 70s-style cocktail club in rusty reds, serving après-ski cocktails and nightcaps fireside.

The spa is also a looker. Meilichzon has intervened around the massive pool with tiles in a weave pattern that call back to the bedrooms upstairs. There’s a sauna, ice bath and hammam, and treatments by Experimental Group’s resident guru Morgane use Dr Sturm products.

www.experimentalchaletvaldisere.com

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