Our Chalet in Switzerland

To be honest, our choice of Switzerland for Christmas started with this chalet, truly. On a sunny day back in September, I had a few minutes to spare while at school and went to VRBO. I typed in Switzerland, and no joke, this chalet was one of the first to pop up. I gasped at how utterly picturesque it was and immediately went to googlemaps to figure out the precise location in the Alps. I sent the link to my dad, and later that night we ohhh and ahhhed over the gorgeous chalet. And then we became serious about going to Switzerland for Christmas.

The chalet is located in Plans-Sur-Bex, a tiny but adorable hamlet above the town of Montreux on Lake Geneva. We spent the first 4 nights and 5 days in this wooded masterpeice, and it was the perfect launching pad for the start of our European Christmas. Plans-Sur-Bex is nestled up high in the mountains, and contains a handful of chalets, a quaint church, one restaurant, and an adorable water fountain where the cows drink from during the year. If you want Swiss Ambiance, you've come to the right place.

The chalet worked perfectly for our family of 8 people. There were 4 beautifully decorated bedrooms, as well as 2 updated bathrooms, an extremely cozy living space (with a HUGE roaring fire), and a lovely kitchen and long farm table that became the heart of the home as my family cooked up some tasty meals. Our first night in the Chalet we had raclette cheese on potatoes. The raclette melts, and then you pour it over your potatoes. It's a very famous Swiss dish, and it was the perfect way to kick off the trip. We also had fondue one night, another famous Swiss specialty.

If I haven't sold you on this dreamy place yet, here are a few more reasons why we loved it. First, it was built in 1714 (WHAT?!?) and is decorated in almost all antique furniture. You literally felt like you might run into hansel and gretel on the road:) And even though it's old, it has been modernized in the bathrooms and kitchen area so things are convenient! To put it in perspective, it was built before the USA was even a country, haha!

Lastly, like I mentioned before, it was an excellent launching pad to explore the surrounding area. One day we drove to Zermatt and visited the Matterhorn, another day we drove into Lausanne and saw the Olympic Museum, and yet another day we wandered the Christmas market in Monteux and visited the most famous castle in Switzerland called Chillon.

 At the end of our 5 days, I was sad to say goodbye to this chalet. I could have stayed another week, just holed up reading by the fire while it snowed. But alas, we had to move on. As a total side-note, the chalet is so affordable and with 8 people, we couldn't have found a cheaper place (or a cuter one!). If you want to check out this chalet, the link is here.  I hope you feel the magic as you look through these pics!! Enjoy!

ps- This is an awesome and hilarious post on parenting by one of my favorite bloggers, Jami Nato. She's actually guest posting on someone else's blog, but after you read and laugh about this post, go to her blog and read her redemptive story! Ok…now on to the Swiss pics!