Creation of Flaine station 1961 (≈ 1961)
Launch of the project by Eric Boissonas.
1966-1968
Construction of the hotel Le Flaine
Construction of the hotel Le Flaine 1966-1968 (≈ 1967)
Directed by Marcel Breuer.
29 avril 1991
Registration for historical monuments
Registration for historical monuments 29 avril 1991 (≈ 1991)
Protection of facades and roofs.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
Facades and roofs (Box B 2920): inscription by order of 29 April 1991
Key figures
Marcel Breuer - Architect
Designer of the hotel and resort.
Eric Boissonas - Real estate promoter
Initiator of Flaine's project.
Origin and history
Hotel Le Flaine is a modernist building located in the Flaine resort, in the commune of Arâches-la-Frasse (Haute-Savoie). Built between 1966 and 1968 by the architect Marcel Breuer, it embodies the brutalist style, with a raw reinforced concrete structure and prefabricated elements. Its bold design, including a spectacular overhanging cliff, deliberately breaks with the traditional architectural regionalism of the Alps.
The Flaine station, created from 1961 onwards, is the result of a collaboration between the developer Eric Boissonas and Marcel Breuer, who led its overall design. The Hotel Le Flaine, with the adjacent Betelgeuse building, was listed as a historical monument in 1991 for its architectural importance. These buildings symbolize an avant-garde approach to mountain planning, mixing functionality and radical aesthetics.
The building is part of a broader development of winter sports stations in France during the Thirty Glories. Flaine, conceived as an integrated station, reflects the modern ambitions of the time: accessibility, unified design and break with traditional models. The Le Flaine hotel, with its protected facades and roofs, remains a major testimony of this period of architectural innovation in the French Alps.
