After a hectic Christmas at home last year, we had booked a family ski holiday by the end of January to "get away from it all"! With 3 adult kids and a new son-in-law, we enjoyed fabulous skiing, too much excellent food and plentiful wine from the very good, inclusive, wine list. We have enjoyed Christmas in the Alps before, but this was the first time we opted for a catered chalet. It truly was a relaxing Christmas, and for the time of year, the snow was good. Graciosa has been refurbished to a very high standard, and at 2000m altitude and less than a stone's throw from the slopes, it is easy to be on the first lift, even after making the most of the wine list the night before!
Our chalet host was very friendly and capable in the kitchen and he showed a real passion for food. We made a couple of changes to the standard menu options, swapping for a lighter option, and this was produced with competence and flair, even though it was probably only the first time in the season it had been requested. Christmas lunch was delicious and even included home made bread sauce.
The design of the building, in apartment style units, meant that we didn't really see other guests, except for a bit in the boot room at each end of the day. One of my concerns was that there would be young kids everywhere but we didn't see or hear them at all.
We made use of the free transfer from Geneva. On the way there we had an hour to wait once we had collected our bags, and on the way back, we arrived at Geneva 4 hours before the flight was due to leave, which was annoying. However, I think there has been some chaos at Geneva recently due to the implementation of the new EES biometric passport system, so maybe better to be early than miss the flight.
All in all, a very relaxing and enjoyable Christmas ski break.