Island Life Magazine Ltd January/February 2006 | Page 44

TRAVEL

Ski like
Royals

www.royalskiing.co.uk

A f t e r s ki i n g r e g u l ar l y i n t h e Al p s f o r 1 0 ye ar s , I s l e of W i g h t
h ot e l i e r W i l l i am Ba i l e y h a d h ad e n o u g h o f i n f e r i or c h a l e t
a c c o m m o d a t io n an d u n a p p e al i n g c u i s i n e – s o h e d i d w h a t
p e rh a p s on l y a to p h o t e l i e r c ou ld , an d p r o m p t l y b u i l t a c h al e t o f
h is o w n .

William, owner of the Island’s only four-star hotel, the historic Royal
at Ventnor, picked a spot nestling in the foothills of Mont Blanc and
commissioned the Chalet Royale – a luxurious new building laid out
over three floors and offering five star de luxe accommodation for
10 guests.
As William says, the standard of
service at the Chalet is “in
another hemisphere”, with a
ratio of one member of staff to
every two visitors, and an
attention to detail which
includes meeting guests at
Geneva Airport and driving
them back to the Chalet, just 50
minutes journey away. Some
guests prefer to arrive by their
own Lear jet, which the Chalet
is more than happy with.
William Bailey’s thought
processes in taking this
ambitious step in his long
career as a hotelier was that, as
well as providing an exclusive
new skiing venue, it would also
effectively employ some of the
Ventnor Royal Hotel’s highlytrained staff at a time of year
when things can be quiet on
the Island.
What he perhaps did not bargain for was the fact that the Ventnor
staff are, in his words, “queuing up” to do a season at The Chalet.
Only a small number of the Royal’s staff can go for the three-month
season, however – two chefs, two front-of-house staff and a
manager.
For the guests – some of whom have been regulars at the Royal – the

44

Chalet boasts five spacious double/twin rooms with generous
wardrobe space and private bath/shower. The attention to detail
includes a heated boot room where skis, boots and clothes can be
stored to ensure they are dry and ready for the next day.
After a hard day’s skiing, guests have the chance to wind down in a
relaxing sauna, followed by a bubbly hot tub wh \