Winter in Megève has always felt like a living snowglobe, with soft white powder whirling and settling over a village that seems almost too perfect to be real. There’s the gentle crunch of ski boots on cobblestones, luxury shops and local épiceries drawing passersby, while the scent of spiced breads and tarts drifts through the air. The church tower rises like something from a postcard, flanked by a giant tree tangled in Christmas lights that linger through March. Everything feels suspended in that particular Alpine air of glamour and nostalgia.
For years, the family-run hotel Les Fermes de Marie, tucked just behind the village and reached by a tree-lined path that follows the creek, has captured the spirit of Megève better than anywhere else. Since opening in the 1980s, it has come to define a certain kind of hospitality here: the perfected Alpine ideal, where families return winter after winter, drawn back by its warmth and familiarity, the feeling of being welcomed into a chalet with a history that goes back generations.
Days fall into a cozy rhythm at Les Fermes, with mornings beginning over a memorable country-style breakfast of local cheeses, like Beaufort and Reblochon, house-made jams, and baked goods, afternoons on the slopes, and long meals at the Sibuet family’s beloved tables—whether on property, in town, or up on the mountain. Children pad through corridors in slippers, bodies recover in the outdoor hot tub as snow falls, and evenings end by the fire with a glass of wine. In many ways, Les Fermes de Marie has long served as the benchmark for Megève hotels, establishing a standard of warmth and charm that has defined the village for generations.
But Megève, though deeply rooted in tradition, has always had room for new expressions of its magic. At the top of the storybook pedestrian street, just steps from the ski lifts and the bustle of the village, a new addition has arrived to expand Megeve’s quintessential vision of Alpine hospitality. This winter season, Hôtel Saint-Georges has reopened with a very different kind of energy—that of a modern Alpine fairytale.
Now part of Relais Châteaux and helmed by Chapitre Six, the group behind Hôtel La Ponche and Cap d’Antibes Beach Hotel, Saint-Georges has been reborn under the visionary hand of British artist and designer Luke Edward Hall as a theatrical chalet-style hotel. It doesn’t replace what came before; rather, it simply adds another tone to the chorus, introducing a younger, more playful sensibility that still feels deeply of this place. Where Les Fermes offers the ultimate family chalet vibe, Saint-Georges is a meticulously staged world of color, folklore, and imagination.
From the moment you arrive at Hôtel Saint-Georges, it feels like stepping onto a film set. At reception, painted columns frame the space, a graphic carpet grounds it, and a mural pulls you into Luke’s cinematic world, feeling delightfully symmetrical, colorful, and just whimsical enough to evoke a Wes Anderson dream without ever tipping into parody.
Hall has imagined Saint-Georges as a “house of stories,” and you feel that everywhere: fringed velvet sofas in jewel tones, bespoke floral carpets, antiques and old paintings, all giving classic Alpine elegance, but with a wink. The staff themselves feel like part of the narrative, dressed in Château Orlando knitwear—pullovers, cardigans, sleeveless knits with mountain scenes—like a troupe in a play.
Across the 29 rooms and five suites, you’ll find Christopher Moore fabrics inspired by 18th- and 19th-century French and English drawings, as well as wrap headboards and walls in deep palettes of red, brown, and green, lending each space its own mood. Edelweiss carpets, designed by Hall himself, run throughout the hotel. Original green metal wall lights shaped like trees and reindeer remain from the chalet’s earlier life—charming relics that add a sense of continuity.
Elsewhere, murals by Pauline Leyravaud draw inspiration from Pierre Frey toile de Jouy fabrics, weaving pastoral imagery into the Alpine setting. Blankets edged in contrasting trims nod to traditional mountain textiles, while corridors are illustrated with painted panoramas of peaks and wildflowers, as if you’re walking through a 3D landscape. (Saint-Georges also features plenty of details designed specifically for families, including several connecting rooms and a playroom by the spa for when parents want a quiet moment to relax while children are entertained nearby.)
And then there is Le Trappeur, the hotel’s gastronomic heart, which offers a refreshing alternative to the typical mountain restaurant (though a refined take on fondue is on offer for those who wish to stick to the classic). It is a timeless bistro, blending classic French technique with an Alpine sensibility: Signature dishes include leeks with egg mayonnaise, house-made duck foie gras, and a fire-grilled beef Chateaubriand served with house fries.
The piano bar offers its own kind of enchantment. By day, it is hushed, with guests sinking into deep armchairs to play chess by the fire, bathed in amber light that filters through the heavy green velvet curtains, crossed like a theatre backdrop. At night, it transforms, especially on winter weekends when a pianist performs, filling the space with a mood that is at once festive and intimate.
