chalets au Val d'Hérens dans les alpes suisses

FAQ – Ask us anything

On this page you will find the answers of our most frequently asked questions

Alpiness – Coliving FAQ

Here are a few questions you might have about Alpiness.

If you have other questions, feel free to contact us.

Stay

What is a coliving?

A coliving is a space designed for people who work remotely and want to spend time with other people and discover a new place. At Alpiness we believe that living together helps people be inspired (by nature and by others) and be more productive. 

Every person has their own personal space, but there are always social areas available for those who want to connect and share a meal / an activity or simply a conversation.

Everyone is welcome; there is no typical age or profession… Anyone who is open-minded, willing to meet people and work on their projects (and who is over 18) can stay at Alpiness. 

The space is thought through to be a productive and social environment. Areas are distinct, and thus there will always be quiet coworking spaces available as well as a more social place like the kitchen or the living room. Every week, we’ll organize events/dinners/activities to make sure people get to know each other and have fun when they’re done with their work, but Alpiness is not a “party-place”.

How many people are staying at Alpiness?

We currently have 9 rooms available. 2 double rooms (en-suite), 1 single room (en-suite), 1 single room (shared), 4 double rooms (shared bathrooms), 1 shared room with 3 beds (private shower for the room). Total capacity: 13-17 people

Why is there a minimum stay of 14 days?

We feel that staying 2 weeks will allow people to truly connect with other people and build lasting friendships. Staying just a week-end would make it feel a bit too much like a short “holiday” and we really want to maintain this work-life balance in our space.

The longer you stay, the bigger the discount. For stays over 30 days, you’ll get 25% off your full stay and if you decide to stay around for more than 60 days, the discount is 35%.

Payment and Cancellation policy

You pay your first 14 nights when you make your booking online (minimal stay duration). The rest, along with other extras like drinks/laundries, is paid at the end of your stay (or monthly if you stay more than 1 month). Payments can be made on site by card or through wire transfer.

Cancellation policy

  • If you cancel your stay more than 30 days in advance, you can keep your deposit as a credit to be used for your next booking within the next 12 months.
  • From 30 days to 7 days prior to your arrival: we charge a 20% cancellation fee, the rest is given to you as a credit to be used for your next booking within the next 12 months.
  • From 7 days to 72 hours prior to arrival: 50% cancellation fee, the rest is given to you as a credit to be used for your next booking within the next 12 months.
  • Less than 72 hours / no show: 100% cancellation fee

The credit you get in case of cancellation is transferable, which means you can give it to a friend if you can’t make it to the coliving in the following 12 months.

Cancellation Policy for Shortening Stays

Our coliving space operates with a minimum stay of two weeks to ensure stability and proper planning for all residents. Shortening a stay impacts our ability to rebook the room and maintain the community dynamic. Therefore, the following policy applies:

  • If the shortening is of 14 days or more our regular cancellation policy applies
  • For other shortenings, remaining rent for the canceled period is due unless we manage to rebook the room. Of course we’ll try our best, but since our minimum stay is 14 days, these cancellations will be harder to rebook.
  • Cancellation made during the stay is non refundable.
What’s included?
  • A cozy and comfortable room (or bed in a shared room depending on your choice) with a desk in your room
  • 24/7 access to our in-house coworking space 
  • A fully equipped shared kitchen to prepare your meals
  • A comfy living room and dining room 
  • Optic fiber wifi in the whole house
  • We have a few monitors available 
  • A beautiful terrace with mountain view
  • An inspiring and active community of digital nomads
  • Occasional community events such as skillshares, masterminds, and excursions during the week-end
  • Free tea and coffee 24/7
  • Weekly cleaning of your room 

Subject to a small contribution fee:

  • Laundry/dryer: 3 CHF per load
  • Sodas, beer and wine in the shared fridge
  • Sports equipment: We do have quite a large selection of sport equipment that you can use if you like. We simply ask for a small contribution in order for us to maintain the gear and buy additional items as we go. If you’d like newer equipment, there is a sport shop in the village where you can rent everything you need as well.
Why do I have to pay a tourist tax?

This tax is compulsory for every person that stays overnight in the area who is not officially a resident. We collect the tax, but it is immediately passed on to the municipality. The tourist tax is 2,5 CHF / day.

Paying this tax gives you access to unlimited and free public transportation in the valley from the village of Vex (ideal for going skiing, hiking or visiting the surrounding villages). It also means that if you want to go down to the city of Sion, you only have to pay between Vex and Sion (around 5 chfs). In addition, you’ll also enjoy free activities and discounts on local museums. 

How does it work for food and cooking? (+ family dinners)

We have a large shared kitchen where you’ll be able to cook your own meals. There are several fridges as well as many cupboards. Every guest gets a designated space where they can store their personal groceries. Basic ingredients such as oil, vinegar, sugar, spices are provided.

Since the beginning of the Alpiness adventure, we also organise family dinners from Monday to Friday. It’s in our opinion a great way to connect with other colivers, eat super diverse food for a really good quality price ratio (But as everything in a coliving, all these dinners are of course optional). If you want to know more about our family dinners, we explain in details how it works here.

Where can I buy groceries?

No worries, there are plenty of options. In Les Haudères there is a bakery, a butcher as well as the “laiterie”, a place where you can buy cheese and various dairy directly from the producers (We don’t want to brag, but if you’re a cheese lover, I’d like to point out that the Haudères Cheese won the title of the best Raclette cheese in 2022… And it’s made 80 meters away from the coliving!  Ok… we might be bragging a bit, but believe us it’s the best cheese in the world! 😉 )

Additionally, there is also a small “Denner” 1 minute away (on foot). It’s a small supermarket which has (almost) everything one needs. 

For more specific products, there is a bigger “Coop-Supermarket” in Evolène 3 km away (there is a bus leaving in front of the coliving that runs directly to the supermarket in 5 minutes).

Is Switzerland that expensive? How much should I expect to spend in a month?

We’re not going to lie, Switzerland is an expensive country. However, we’re also big advocates of the fact that nature access is free and that there are plenty of things one can do without spending a cent: hiking, running, snowshoeing or simply enjoying the outdoors.

In addition to the coliving price, you’ll have to budget for your groceries. Here it obviously depends on what you decide to buy, but in Switzerland it’s reasonable to assume that you’ll spend about 50-70 CHF per week on groceries.

I would say that counting on spending 2000 CHF for a single person and 3000 CHF for a couple (coliving + groceries + some activities and restaurants) a month is a realistic budget. Obviously, it is possible to spend quite a lot more if you want to go skiing in Zermatt or Verbier, paraglide, go to the restaurant every day, etc… 

If you decide to stay in the shared room and go mainly for free activities (there is a lot to do for free), 1300 CHF is a reasonable budget for a month’s stay. 

Is it possible to have guests over?

Alpiness is a so-called community focused coliving, which means that we put lots of effort towards creating a stable and cohesive group.

However, we understand that sometimes it is nice to have someone over.

Our minimum stay is 2 weeks, which means that if you book a double room for yourself but would like to be joined by a friend for 2 weeks or more, this is totally possible and we’ll simply bill your friend 20 CHF a day (normal rate for a second person in the same room) + the mandatory tourist tax.

For shorter stays, we can make exceptions for weekends (by this we mean 1 to max 2 nights) if the house capacity allows. If you wish to have someone over for 1 to 2 nights, this is usually possible. In this case, we’ll charge your friend 50 CHF per night (+ 2,5 CHF for the tourist tax).

Can I bring my dog?

Yes, Alpiness is a dog-friendly space (up to 2 dogs). We have our own “house-dog” named Winchy. Being in the middle of nature, the space is ideal to go on long walks with a dog.

In order to ensure a certain balance between the number of dogs and humans we’ve decided to limit the number of dogs staying simultaneously at the coliving to 2 (thus 1 guest dog + our house dog). If you wish to bring your dog, please get in touch before booking. Dogs stay for free.

Dogs are allowed in your room (not on the bed), in the living room, terrace, as well as in the coworking and generally speaking all shared spaces.

Your dog has to be well-behaved and be ok to stay alone in the room if you have to leave (ski days, grocery shopping, etc).

Dog beds, water bowls are provided in several spots around the house.

How to get to the coliving?

Our address:

Alpiness Coliving
Rue de la Dent-Blanche 9
1984 Les Haudères

Getting here by car:
You can reach les Haudères by following the main road leaving Sion. It takes about 30-35 minutes from the valley to reach the coliving. There is free parking available in the village.

Getting here by public transportation:
If you decide to arrive by plane/train, the first thing you’ll have to do is to take the train to Sion main station (direct train from Geneva Airport).

Once in Sion: The bus N°381 leaves in front of the train station and comes directly to the coliving (bus stop: Les Haudères, centre, 60 meters from our front door) 😉 You can check the schedule on cff.ch

Work

How are the working conditions? Do people actually work in a coliving?

Our space has been thought through to make it a productive environment. People come here to enjoy nature during their free time, but work is still a big part of our daily life.

At Alpiness, you can work from anywhere: your room, one of the 2 coworking spaces, the living room, the dining room or the terrace. 

The living room, dining room and the terrace are so-called social spaces, which means people can work from there, but should expect that others might be here to take a break.

However, both coworking spaces are silent and separated from the other spaces, which means there will always be 2 rooms that are dedicated to productive time 24/7.

How fast is the wifi? Is it available everywhere?

We are connected to copper connection and thus internet speed is about 3-400MB/s.

The house is equipped with a modern Unifi Ubiquiti installation and thus strong wifi is available everywhere.

I need to make calls…

No worries! We understand some people have to teach online, make calls. We’ve decided to keep the coworking spaces as “silent areas” which means these places are not suitable for long phone calls. You can take calls in all shared areas such as the living room, dining room and terrace.

If you want more privacy, we have an additional smaller conference room you can use as well.

Additionally, all rooms are equipped with a desk and strong wifi, meaning you can take longer calls from there as well.

Can I use an extra screen? A printer?

There is a printer available (B&W). We charge 10 cents par page.

We also have a few basic screens available in the main workspace, these are free to use.

Explore

Do I need a car?

No, not at all! This is one of the reasons we decided to open our space in the swiss Alps. Public transportation is amazing here and there are trains, buses or even boats going almost everywhere.

The main village bus stop is right in front of the coliving. From here, buses go to all different local areas (such as other villages, supermarket, ski resorts, other hike starts).

What is there to do in les Haudères?

Les Haudères is a typical swiss village located in the Val d’Hérens, one of the most traditional and stunning valleys in Valais. Being in the middle of the Alps, there is obviously everything outdoor related: hiking, trail running, mountain biking, mushroom picking, climbing, skiing, ski touring, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, ice skating, ice climbing, paragliding, fishing, tennis, etc..

But no worries, there are not only sports related activities… 

Val d’Hérens is also famous for its stunning villages (Evolène was voted to be one of the most beautiful swiss villages). La Sage, Arolla, La Tour, Hérémence and its incredible church are also on the top list of things to do!

In addition, there are plenty of natural areas which are simply stunning: Lac Bleu, Ferpècle Glacier, Grande Dixence dam…

What is the best time of the year to visit?

To be honest, the answer to this really depends on what you would like to do in your free time. We’ve been living in the mountains for many years, and we still can’t tell which season we like the least or the most.

Spring (April to June): that’s when nature awakes. Everything is green, colorful mountain flowers popping out everywhere. The clear skies & fresh morning air are amazing! This is the perfect time for beautiful walks along the river, sunny lunches on the terrace and exploring the beautiful villages around.

Summer (July to September): The warmest months of the year. Living at 1500m altitude, this makes “heat” much more bearable. During the day you can expect up to 25-30°C but at night it cools down, allowing for perfect sleep. These months are also ideal for going “high up” in the mountains, spending a night in a hut, climbing on high peaks!

Autumn (October and November): Val d’Hérens is famous for its many Larch trees, so coming here in those months is amazing for the colors. It is also the season for chestnuts, cheese platters and pumpkin soup! A cozy and warm feeling. 

Winter (December to March): Winter Wonderland! Located at the foot of 4000m high mountains, the valley turns white and usually stays under its white coat for the whole period. It’s the perfect time to go skiing, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing or ski touring. The valley is very famous for endless ski touring and snowshoeing options, there is a 20 km cross-country track in front of the house and the beautiful ski resorts of Arolla and Evolène are only a few minutes away by bus (10 minutes to Evolène, 20 minutes to Arolla)

I am not an experienced skier/hiker/climber, is this an issue?

No not at all! Alpiness is a place for people who want to work remotely while being in a beautiful area surrounded by nature.

We are by no means into “extreme sports” ourselves and are always keen on trying new sports. For example, we just started climbing a few months ago. Are we good climbers? Not at all! Do we enjoy it? Hell yes!

If you are a beginner, this is the perfect place to learn new skills / try new stuff.

I want to ski…

If you need more infos about winter at Alpiness coliving, we just published a detailed winter guide with all you need to know about the ski resorts, ski pass, gear rental, public transportation and much more! Check it out 😉