The Build: creating a family chalet in the French Alps

Our story of building a chalet in Saint-Gervais

Chalet Miage is a new-build, contemporary family chalet in Saint-Gervais-les-Bains, in the Haute-Savoie at the foot of Mont Blanc. The Build is our record of how it came to be — from the summer of 2011, when we stumbled on a campsite beneath the Dômes de Miage, through years of looking at chalets and building plots, to buying land in the valley and building from the ground up.

Along the way we’ve learned a lot about buying property in France, working with local estate agents, choosing between an existing chalet and a building plot, and what it really takes to build in the Alps. We’re writing it down honestly and in order, for anyone dreaming of doing the same, and for future guests who want to know the story behind the place they’re staying.

Follow the timeline below or start at chapter one. New chapters are added as the build progresses.