Villas in Alpes Vaudoises

Villars and Gryon suit families who ski, Les Diablerets has Glacier 3000, and Château d'Oex is quieter, all within two hours of Geneva. This is chalet and apartment country rather than villa country, and most of our homes are in Villars. The resorts sit lower than the big Valais names, so snow cover varies more in a mild winter.

Where

Villas: 166
From, per week: £292
Cheapest month: October
Nearest airports: Geneva is the airport for the whole area, around an hour and a half to Villars and two hours to Les Diablerets or Château d'Oex. Flights from London to Geneva take around an hour and a half. The train from Geneva airport to Bex takes around an hour and a half, then the mountain lines climb from Bex and Aigle.

Where to stay in Alpes Vaudoises

Villars-sur-Ollon

Most of our Alpes Vaudoises homes are in Villars, a sunny balcony village above the Rhône with a proper high street, an ice rink and international schools that keep it busy all year. The rack railway from Bex climbs to the village and on to the Col de Bretaye, where the ski area starts and the summer walks pass small mountain lakes. Geneva airport is around an hour and a half by car.

Best for: Families who want a lively resort village with a short transfer from Geneva

Not for you if: You want guaranteed powder: the slopes top out lower than the big Valais resorts and suffer in a thin winter.

Gryon and Alpe des Chaux

Gryon sits just below Villars on the same rack railway, an older farming village with a handful of restaurants. Alpe des Chaux is higher up, a scatter of chalets on its own side of the ski area, with runs that link across to Villars and on towards Les Diablerets. In summer it is good walking and mountain-bike country, with views across to the Dents du Midi. Geneva is around an hour and a half away.

Best for: Skiers who want the Villars lifts with a quieter village base

Not for you if: You want bars and shops outside the door: Gryon is small and Alpe des Chaux is little more than chalets on a hillside.

Les Diablerets and La Forclaz

Les Diablerets is a compact village at the head of the Ormonts valley, linked by lifts to Villars and Gryon. From the Col du Pillon, a short drive up, the cable car rises to Glacier 3000, with the Peak Walk suspension bridge between two summits and snow on the glacier long after the village has thawed. La Forclaz is a small hamlet down the valley. Geneva is around two hours by road.

Best for: Glacier trips, summer walking and a traditional village base

Not for you if: You want lots of sun on short winter days: the village sits deep in its valley under high cliffs.

Château d'Oex and Les Mosses (Pays-d'Enhaut)

Château d'Oex is a market town on the Golden Pass railway towards Gstaad, best known for its hot-air balloon festival each January and for the papercut craft displayed in its local museum. Les Mosses, on the pass road between Château d'Oex and Aigle, is a high open plateau with cross-country trails and the small Lac Lioson above it. Both are calm in high season. Allow around two hours from Geneva.

Best for: Couples and walkers after a quiet valley with cross-country skiing

Not for you if: You want a big linked ski area: the downhill skiing here is small and local.

Bex, Ollon and Les Posses-sur-Bex (Rhône valley)

Bex and Ollon sit on the floor of the Rhône valley among vineyards, a short train ride from Villars and around half an hour from Montreux and the lake shore. The Bex salt mines run guided tours by underground train. Les Posses-sur-Bex is a hamlet on the slope above, with wider views. Choice here is limited to a few homes. Geneva airport is about an hour and a quarter away.

Best for: Value, vineyards and Lake Geneva within easy reach

Not for you if: You want to walk to a ski lift: these are valley and hillside bases and you will drive or take the train up.

When to go to Alpes Vaudoises

The ski season runs from mid-December to early April, with Glacier 3000 often opening earlier and closing later. Christmas, New Year and February, when Swiss and UK school holidays overlap, are the busiest weeks. These resorts sit at around 1,200 to 1,300 metres in the villages, so a mild spell can leave lower runs patchy. Summer lifts run from late June to mid-October, and July and August are the main walking months. May, June and November are quiet, with many restaurants and some lifts shut.