Saint Charles Hôtel & Spa Val Cenis

Overall, a lovely hotel with great potential, but let down by breakfast service and one particularly poor staff experience. The rooms are a good size and good value for money, and the location is excellent — right next to the ski lifts. A few small touches are missing (e.g. conditioner in the bathroom), which feels unnecessary at this price point. We travelled with a dog and were happy to pay the €15 per night supplement, but when a surcharge is charged it’s reasonable to expect basic items like bowls, a blanket or a dog bed — none were provided. The hotel is clearly understaffed. Most staff were pleasant and trying their best, though often undertrained. Breakfast was underwhelming and poorly managed. There should at least be a limited à la carte option for fresh eggs. Plates and egg cups frequently ran out, food was slow to be restocked, and the fruit selection was very average and limited. Room service was very poor. The goat’s cheese and quinoa salad was genuinely one of the worst dishes I’ve had in years. The “poké bowl” was smoked salmon, sliced avocado and two tomatoes on cold white rice that had clearly been prepared much earlier in the day. Unfortunately, the maître d’ was extremely unpleasant. I was pregnant and unwell during my stay and was met with unnecessary resistance when trying to take food back to my room to finish it. His attitude was upsetting and completely out of step with the rest of the staff, who were generally trying to be helpful. This interaction alone was enough to put me off returning. In summary: great location and comfortable rooms, but weak food offering, poor breakfast service, and unacceptable behaviour from the maître d’. With better management and staffing, this could be a very good hotel, but I wouldn’t return in its current state.

I was having high expectations for this hotel but it turns out to be a really bad experience. The room's sound insulation is extremely poor. I could hear exactly what the mext room is doing, talking, or even singing...which made me didn't sleep for two nights in a row, especially after long days of skiing. I reported this to the hotel and was told I could change rooms. After packing all my luggage and going to the front desk, I was then told by the chief manager that they won't give me another room and nothing could be done, no solution whatsoever. There was also an issue with the card-activated light switch, which stopped working and left the room without lights. I called the front desk and was told that they would send someone right away, so I waited in the room sitting in dark. After waiting for 20 minutes and no one arriving, I called again but the front desk staff told me rudely that they have already sent someone and asked me not to call again. I was surprised by how these issues were handled for a 4-star hotel I will never stay at this hotel ever again.

Mixed feelings. The facilities are good, nice pool. There is also a nice playing area for kids in the lobby, our kids really enjoyed that! We booked a family suite, which was nice. However the carpet on the floor was clearly stained, which is not a surprise seeing the fact it’s a very light color. The service isn’t as you might expect. The hotel is clearly short staffed. Because of that, the breakfast was disappointing, as the staff wasn’t able to coop with the number of people eating, so they couldn’t clean the tables or replenish the food. However I would like to mention that the staff did their utmost to satisfy the guests, but that was a mission impossible. Overall, we enjoyed our stay but there is definitely room for improvement

Fantastic hotel. We stayed here for our first ever ski trip and loved it. Nice modern rooms with balcony’s, nice pool area, right by the ski lifts, ski rental shop and ESF ski instructor office both joined onto hotel. We didn’t use the restaurant but we used the bar which was very nice. We would definitely return in the future.

Overall, not a bad hotel. The sauna is available at an extra cost, which is the only one that is good and warm. €18 per adult is too much for what you get. I came back home with bedbug bites on my legs. A shower has no conditioner.

Wonderful stay, everything was on point. We stayed with a newborn and a little dog, we had a gift for our child at arrival. Breakfast service was amazing, varying food every morning. Extreme proximity to the ski resort. Beautiful mountain view and we caught a snow groomer working meters from us on an evening, amazing work. Pool is cozy and very pleasing after skiing. Eyes closed !

Those that work here make this lovely hotel fantastic.||From start to finish, I felt extremely welcome. Especially by the team at the bar/restaurant. ||It was my first ever solo holiday and they helped make it a great trip to remember.||I suffered a broken wrist on my last day and the team even helped me pack my luggage. ||Easiest 5* review I have ever written.

Great location, all staff were excellent could not do enough for you. short stays perfect, if you are staying for a couple of weeks or longer you may want to upgrade the room. Spa is excellent as is the Continental breakfast and choice. The hot options could have been better as could the variety of the Restaurant limited if staying longer but plenty of great alternatives around the villages. The entire hotel was spotlessly clean at all times would definitely recommend. Parking advertised as free but that was very limited so you had to pay for underground which was a shame and not expected. We have been coming to Val Cenis 2/3 weeks a year for over 20 years and this was our first visit to Saint Charles, we would come back again.