About Peak Retreats

We are a small niche award winning ski operator giving holiday makers the opportunity to discover the real Alpine France. Enjoy all you expect of a French Alps holiday - first-class accommodation and stunning scenery but also discover unspoilt, traditional and welcoming mountain villages.

Peak Retreats was set-up by two French Anglophiles, who previously were directors of well-known UK tour companies who operated holidays to France. Their extensive experience means they understand the needs and expectations of British holidaymakers. In addition, they have the benefit of an excellent network of local contacts and have a clear advantage in dealing with French supplier partners. The directors personally select and visit all the accommodation featured and the reservations team also get to visit the accommodation and resorts each year to give our recommendations.

Why book your winter ski holiday with Peak Retreats?

Peak Retreats Ski Company Awards 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2010

Peak Retreats are honoured to have been awarded for the second year running the ‘Best Ski Company’ at Guardian and Observer Travel Awards 2010. Again we beat some tough competition to the winners spot.

“For the second year, Peak Retreats, which looks beyond the big resorts and takes its guests to smaller, more authentic French villages, wins the day.”

As the most prestigious and longest running independent travel survey, the 24^th Guardian and Observer Travel Awards 2010 proved victorious for Peak Retreats.

This year thousands of readers from the Guardian and Observer took part in the survey (20,000 people voted last year). We are proud to be involved in celebrating the fact that despite all the continuing uncertainties in the world, the British travelling public has not lost its spirit of adventure.

So, how does the survey work?

A coupon was published for three weeks in the Guardian and the Observer and on guardian.co.uk asking readers about their holidays. The data was recorded by an independent company, Sample Answers.

Readers were asked to rate the quality of service they received on their holidays by ticking one of four boxes- excellent, good, fair or poor. This figure was then translated into a percentage. This system allows us to compare small companies, assessed on fewer coupons, with larger rivals. A threshold for minimum number of votes was set at 1% of total votes for that category. We are very pleased to announce a score of 98.7% (beating our score from last year of 97.9%), with 100% being truly excellent.

How we did it?

Many ski companies, you may have noticed, tend to focus their energies on the same old resorts and not setting themselves apart from any other ski company. Peak Retreats have found the niche market taking its guests to smaller, more authentic  French villages of which many are not featured by other British Tour Operators. Many are hidden gems offering you the real Savoyard French Alps atmosphere but connecting via lifts to the larger resorts. Some may have seen it as a gamble, but it’s clearly paid off and our clients thank us for offering them an alternative to a lot of the concrete jungle resorts out there.

With a dedicated team we make it our priority to ensure our clients get the personal service they deserve with a holiday to match. Each holiday is tailored to our clients and their needs and expectations. Due to this we have a high number of repeat clients who have put our trust in us to arrange their holiday. Being fully ABTA bonded we offer our clients complete financial protection.

Other Awards

As well as been voted no. 1 in October 2009 and October 2010 for the ‘Best Ski Company’ by readers of the Guardian and Observer newspapers we were also voted ‘Best Independent Ski Operator 2006’ and ‘Best Tour Operator to France 2005’ by Maison de la France (now Atout France), the French Tourist Office.

Best Ski Company 2010

Peak Retreats won this prestigious award in October 2010.

Left: Gemma Bowes (Guardian Travel Editor), MD Xavier Schouller and TV Newsreader & Presenter Huw Edwards

Best Ski Company 2009

Peak Retreats won this prestigious award in October 2009.

Left: MD Xavier Schouller

Best Independent Ski Operator 2006

Peak Retreats won this prestigious award given by the French Tourist Office.

Left: MD Xavier Schouller with the Best Independent Ski Operator 2006 Award

Best Tour Operator 2005

Peak Retreats was chosen as the Best Tour Operator to France in the World by Maison de la France, the French National Tourist Office. The award was presented by French Minister for Tourism, Leon Bertrand and Maison de la France Director General, Thierry Baudier at the MIT International Trade show in Paris in October 2005.

Left: Best Tour Operator 2005 award

Our Partners

Favourite Partner

Peak Retreats is delighted to be a ‘favourite partner’ of the Savoie Tourist Board.

Consumer Confidence & Financial Protection

ABTA - Book with confidence

When booking with Peak Retreats you can rest assured that you are arranging your holiday with an ABTA bonded company.  This is your best guarantee of complete financial security, a guarantee you do not receive when booking with your accommodation and transport independently. Peak Retreats is member of the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) number W5537 so your holiday is in safe hands. Peak Retreats is fully bonded with ABTA for ALL arrangements that it offers and therefore not only for packages but also for each individual component booked separately. This means that accommodation only booked with us is protected for instance (it is not with many operators in the same way as flights only are almost never covered). This goes well beyond our legal requirement derived from the Package Travel Regulations and is the only total guarantee.

Peak Retreats is fully bonded with ABTA but does not require to hold an ATOL license run by the CAA as these are only for operators who offer flight inclusive packages that we don't offer.

Not only ABTA have strict joining criteria but they also provide us with bonding arrangements so in the unlikely event of our insolvency, any money paid to us would be refunded to you by ABTA or monies may be transferred to another ABTA operator with whom you make alternative holiday arrangements. Thus your money and your holiday are fully protected. Our financial bonding arrangements with ABTA comply with the Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992.

We are also members of the Association of British Tour Operators to France (ABTOF).

Xavier Schouller

Director

Email:

Xavier AT peakretreats.co.uk

Nathalie Soma

Director

Email:

nsoma AT peakretreats.co.uk

Please change AT to @ if you would like to email us

We look forward to talking to you soon!

Peak Retreats Ltd, is a company registered in England no 4382873 and VAT 794 5107 08                                                                                  

Call us on 0844 576 0170 to book or for further information. You can also email your request or enquiry to a member of our team at reservations@peakretreats.co.uk

Opening times Mon-Fri 9am – 6pm (7pm Sept-Mar), Sat 10am – 4pm. Closed bank holidays and Sundays.