This summer, we headed for Les Cerniers in Monthey to spend a night at the Whitepods in Valais with my partner. A lovely gift from a friend.
We arrived at 4.30pm, as check-in starts at 3pm. Then, after the presentation of the city, we went to Lavey-les-Bains in 30-degree weather, which was fabulous. My boyfriend had never been there, so it was an opportunity to show him around, and the good news is he loved it. We did the bubble baths, the spinning tops, the Norwegian bath and the light therapy. We felt a relative soothing sensation in the water.
Then at 6.30pm we climbed into our Cosy Pods, as our meal would be delivered at 7.30pm.
We savored the view, the calm, the splendor after a twenty-minute walk up from reception. On the downside, there’s no transport for people with reduced mobility, and the size of the meal is more like an appetizer than a main course.
But that didn’t spoil this splendid moment for anything! We rested with a majestic view of the mountains from our bed. A good bed, air-conditioning, heating and a dream bathroom, a shower with perfect pressure, toilets, plenty of towels and a hairdryer.
Waking up the next morning was difficult, as we’d been hungry all night. However, we knew that breakfast was waiting for us 20 minutes from our pods! So cute, this little inn belonging to the estate! Very Swiss breakfast: bircher, charcuterie, cheese, pastries. We savored this before packing our suitcases, which were waiting for us at reception, and heading off to Sion for a little tour of the town, eating lunch there and then a lovely surprise awaited us.
The magic of Lac de Saint Léonard. It’s been a very hot couple of days, so we were glad to be sheltered in this 15-degree year-round cave, which welcomes an average of 100,000 visitors a year. We were surprised by the good atmosphere on the boat, but also by the formation of the cave and its magnificent stone deposits. Then, the water was very clear, littered all over with rainbow trout introduced by man. Why should this be? Because these fish clean the water, then if there are impurities they die, which raises the question of whether the cave is polluted. The boat ammara and we headed back up towards the heat, our eyes full of stars. If you haven’t already done so, I strongly advise you to take this excursion.
We’ve already come to the end of these two emotional days! We’ve been charmed by the Valais.
A word of advice for the white pots and the Lac de Saint-Léonard: take a sweater, or a little wool, it’s always better for the more chilly among us.
Travel with Mi 