Chalet Mouria Review | Courchevel With SkiWeekends
The start of 2023 marked my 21st year skiing. A far cry from throwing myself down the slopes in Val Thorens back in 2002, this short break trip was a much more sedate affair. Ish.
Welcome to my review of Chalet Mouria in Courchevel 1650. Part of the SkiWeekends catered chalet collection, Chalet Mouria is a decent size, sleeping 16 – 21.
Chalet Mouria, looking down the valley
Located literally over the road from the shops, bars and restaurants of Courchevel Moriond, the lounge at Chalet Mouria was refurbished in November 2022, so it was a very cosy, social place to be before and after skiing.
Looking back, I stayed in a catered chalet in 2006 – 2011, 2016, and 2017, and other than the super luxury F&P Travel Chalet Le Koissou in Meribel, this was the most comfortable chalet I’ve stayed in.
THE ROOMS
In my haste to get out skiing, I didn’t take any photos of the room, but it is covered in the video below. We were in room 6, a triple room downstairs from the lounge. It was a good size, comfy beds and styled in a basic way which suited our needs absolutely fine.
I was told by fellow guests that bedrooms 7 and 10 were a little bit tight and poky, so best to go for rooms 5, 8 or 9 if you want a nice twin / double.
Just to note rooms 1 and 2 are triple, with a single mezzanine up some stairs, but this accessed by a separate exterior door.
THE CHALET HOSTS
We were looked after really well by Ben and Elise, and they were ably supported by a chef and resort manager, Matt. A few people in the chalet had allergies, and one was vegetarian, but nothing was too much trouble, and alternatives were always offered for each course.
They gave us a good brief on the chalet, and were very knowledgable about where to ski, where to eat and where to enjoy different kinds of apres, which is exactly what you want from chalet hosts!
THE FOOD & WINE
With SkiWeekends – even with a short break – the chalet hosts have two nights off per week, which means although you’re staying in the chalet for 3 nights, on one night you’ll need to find a bar or restaurant in town to enjoy an evening meal. We went for burger and chips in Le Pelican bar, which was ideal.
No complaints for the food in the chalet either, both breakfast and dinner options were excellent, with good variety and taste. It was my birthday during our stay, and despite have no notice, they managed to make me a cake, which was a lovely touch, so if you’re reading this, thank you!
My only slight gripe was there wasn’t enough afternoon cake. The cake itself was lovely, but when 16 or more people want a piece of the action, the portions are very slender indeed.
THE HOT TUB
Both SkiWeekends chalets come with an outdoor hot tub. Perfect for soaking aching muscles after a hard day on the slopes! here’s my brother Chris looking really excited to being in it:
THE SKIING
Courchevel needs no introduction to the ski fraternity, but Courchevel 1650 has more of a village feel. It’s less….pretentious than it’s 1850 neighbour, with more sensible prices around town.
To reach the slopes you can take the main Ariondaz gondola up (which is a 5-minute walk from the chalet) and enjoy the reds and blues in the area, or you can head over the the Meribel valley and beyond.
The main Ariondaz blue run is lovely, from the top of the gondola down to the village, or some of the reds such as Bel Air and Chapelets on the very left of the piste map are also lovely, and usually quiet as everyone tends to bear right towards Meribel.
On the day we arrived, we picked up our ski hire around 2:30pm, but wanted to get a couple of runs in. We found out that in the main ticket office, you can ask for a single gondola ride up, and it will cost you 11 euros…far less than a half day ticket. So if you arrive late but still want to ski, this is a great option.
We went up twice and skied the Ariondaz blue, which was lovely and quiet, and perfect to get the ski legs in!
Darren enjoying the first run of the holiday, back to the bottom of Courchevel 1650
Stunning views over the Bel Air red run on day 3!
The second day – my birthday – was a complete white out. It snowed all day and visibility was incredibly poor. Only half the chalet guests went skiing.
But this was my birthday.
So I went skiing. By myself 🙂
It wasn’t the best conditions, but a) it was my birthday so I had to ski, and b) this was a short ski break so I had to make the most of my time in resort, so I had to ski.
This was the view as I reached the top of the Ariondaz gondola in the morning…
Safe to say, it was a pretty short ski day!
But day 3, by contrast, was one of the best days of skiing I’ve ever had. After the big dump of snow came blue skies, and wow, it was incredible. Check out the clips at the end of the video below and you’ll see what I mean! Look at those views!
This, of course, had to followed by apres, which started at the Folie Douce and ended – just – in Le Schuss Cafe in Courchevel 1650.
I say ‘just’ because to get back from the Folie Douce in the Meribel valley, you need to get two lifts, and take the very long Creux blue run, which can be extremely mogully and cut up in the afternoons. So time it well to get the last lift back!
On the final day, our flight back wasn’t until 9pm, so whilst we had to check out of our room by 9am, we could leave our bags in the chalet, go skiing all day, come back and there was a shower and changing area available for us, so we could get washed, re-pack and feel fresh for heading back to the airport – perfect!
CAR HIRE vs. SHARED TRANSFERS
With SkiWeekends chalet break, shared return airport transfers are included in your price. But – as in our case -we opted to hire a car from Geneva, so we could make it to the chalet and back under our own steam.
The good thing about that is SkiWeekends will give you a discount on your price if you choose the car hire option because you aren’t using those shared transfers. So we saved £110 per person!
FINAL THOUGHTS
Overall this was a brilliant short break skiing trip, and the chalet is in a great location, and we had great staff and food. Chalet hosts and food can make or break a chalet, so we were lucky to get a good team!
Check out Chalet Mouria and SkiWeekends for your next trip, and keep an eye on their newsletter for great deals throughout the season!
WATCH THE VIDEO!
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