But not everyone burns can burn calories on the snow each day so a tub of hot cheese, ham and buttery potatoes isn’t always necessary, but you need to get what you are given.

And you might fancy trying out that new restaurant in town but the ski chalet staff have been preparing‘ since noon. Fortunately things are changing and it’s now possible to find (though still hard) a more freestyle attitude to dinners and dinner times. Above all, be nice to the staff. Take out things they can’t get in the Alps as little presents/tips – the staff will then go out of their way to be extra nice. Why tip at the end? And because of the way the budgets work, it’s good to get the hosts on side.

Each chalet is rated out of 10 in the following categories: style, character, location, service, facilities, rooms, food and value for money to give you an in-depth look into what each property offers.

We’ll start with Swiss ski resorts that come with chocolate-box appeal, and chalets in popular villages such as Zermatt and Verbier, just like AlpenHouse, go a long way to making those picture-perfect ski holiday dreams a reality. Prices in Switzerland might be higher than anywhere else in Europe, but along with the weighty price tags come some of the world’s most luxurious lodgings. Check out our best-in-class chalet in Switzerland to see what we mean.

Try to be flexible- you can save on fares by travelling mid-week, or choosing sunny Varadero, Cuba, over sunny Cancun, Mexico.

Find and book a package deal or an all-inclusive trip.

Save your health – check with your credit card company for existing travel or car insurance. Not applied for local restaurants to hotel fare or planned outings, all-inclusives may not be a good idea.

Brown bag healthy snacks and meals to avoid pricey airport or train food. Book a hotel room with a kitchenette, to save on meals.

A very important thing, consult with your travel agent to preplan trips; surf the Internet for immediate deals. Ask your travel agent where to change your money to get the best exchange rate.

Visit appropriate websites for hot Deals or special Deals to get the best prices on North American rail travel.

We’ve been lucky enough to stay in all sorts of accommodation over the years from cheap guest houses to five star resorts, and recently had the unique opportunity of staying in both an apartment and a hotel while visiting Venice.

We thought it would be interesting to compare our experience between our apartment rental and our hotel stay in Venice and give our readers some trip advice so they know which form of accommodation we think is better.

At least in Venice anyway.