Alpine alfresco

Whether you’re after chills and thrills or lakeside lazing, a home in Haute-Savoie is the perfect base for enjoying the great outdoors of the Alps, says Chloe Govan

- Chloe Govan

Picture yourself sledding across glittering white snow with a band of irrepressible huskies. You descend into a village straight out of a Christmas postcard and head for your cosy Alpine home where you sit down to a warming fondue feast before curling up by a log fire. In the morning, you have your pick of some of the world’s best ski slopes. And that’s just the winter lifestyle in HauteSavoie. Whatever the season, these awe-inspiring valleys have eternal appeal.

COOL HOTSPOTS

While the chic mountain retreats of the French Alps are not suited to a rock-bottom budget, there are still affordable options out there for savvy buyers. Here in Alpine paradise, the best things in life are certainly free, as the environment itself is simply luxurious. While winter brings skiing, snowshoeing, dog-sledding and ice-skating, summer is all about hiking, biking and road trips, including into Switzerland and Italy, which are within easy reach.

There are two superstar destinations in the department – Annecy in the south-west, and Chamonix Mont Blanc in the south-east.

LAKESIDE LAZING

Nicknamed the Venice of the Alps because of its maze of downtown canals, Annecy is favoured in the warmer months thanks to its position on the northern tip of a vast lake, offering stand-up paddleboarding, scuba diving, paragliding and yacht cruising. Yet the small city also comes to life in March, when a Venetian carnival is held, boasting a costume ball and masked participants parading in front of the lake in elaborate vintage dress. A scenic cycle path around the lake is linked to UNESCO-rated prehistoric dwellings at St-Jorioz. The city's signature and most fascinating landmark is the Palais de l'Ile – a floating museum that was once a prison.