The arrival

Private houses since 2011. The ritual of arriving: a table, a chef if you want one, water, a closed door. Not a hotel corridor.

You arrive at 16:00. Boots in the ski room, or shutters closed against noon — the climate tells you which. The bag is already decided. The house is already the one. What remains is the door.

A butler sets the table before you ask. Wine. The rooms named. Water in the glasses. This is the estate butler, not a hotel desk. You can skip it. The house still works. The quieter version: keys, the pool, the first evening that starts too early because the road was long.

At altitude the first thing is fire. Timber takes the cold out of the room. At Chalet Robin the ski room takes the boots; the table takes the party. In heat the first thing is shade. White stone holds the day. At Villa Apeliote the shutters do the work until evening.

The suitcase goes down. The silk packed for this house comes out for dinner, or it waits until morning. Either is correct.

Fantasia holds the houses. We take 30% so the bag can charge. Remainder by invoice before arrival. We confirm the dates the same day. The ritual starts when the door closes.