Type 7

Up in the Air

The ski chalet 3000 metres up a remote Swiss mountain.

Making for pretty much as isolated a holiday experience as you can ask for, the recently reconstructed Cabane Tortin sits on a mountain ledge just over 3000 meters (9842ft) above sea level. Theoretically it’s part of the Swiss ski resort of Verbier, but nearly 4 miles of alpine terrain separates it from the town proper.

The chalet neighbours an ancient glacier on one side and the highest peak in the region on the other and there are almost no other built structures in sight, despite clear views across the distant border with France on a cloudless day. You get the picture, though it’s about as luxuriously appointed as you can have it up here, booking into the Cabane Tortin is only one or two steps removed from overnighting on the South Pole, or the ISS, for sheer solitude.

Architect Snorre Stinessen designed it on the foundations of an older cabin that once served as a refuge for particular ambitious hikers. As you might imagine, it subsists entirely on off-grid technologies including solar power, battery storage and a heated water tank replenished by a local spring.

Despite all this, it’s far from a spartan experience, with the main living space providing an unmatched view of the western alpine peaks as you lay beside a crackling fireplace and sink in to the furniture.