We wanted a place in the Alps and we chose Italy rather than Switzerland or France mainly because the atmosphere is so much more relaxed.

When we saw Terra Alpina on the internet, the estate agent said it had already been sold. A few days later, he said the sale had fallen through and he could show us the outside, but he had already given the keys back.

One walk aroung the outside and we decided to buy it. We didn't see the inside, but we assumed it was totally derelict. When we did eventually see it, it was a lot worse than that!

We bought it mainly for the view. Of all the places we saw in the Alps over more than a year of searching, nothing else had views that even came close.

Spectacular in the winter and lush in the summer, we are still slightly shocked every time we arrive after a few weeks away. Getting out of the car in the car park and looking at the panorama is still an amazing buzz.

Jay: I have been lucky enough to stay in some very posh Alpine hotels on business in Austria and Switzerland, but I haven't been in one whose views are equal to Terra Alpina.

When we started the rebuild of Terra Alpina, our intention was to create interiors that would do justice to the outside of the building and the setting. We used local craftsmen who worked to an extremely high standard.

We wanted to provide accomodation that had all the benefits of a traditional chalet (wood burning stoves, great views, a warm atmosphere), but with a modern twist. The interiors are light and airy - we did not want the pine cladding and the dark woods of so many Alpine places.

We were also determined that each room should be a decent size. Anyone who has stayed in a purpose-built French ski resort will know what we mean. We could have squeezed in a lot more bedrooms, but we wanted apartments that we would be delighted to stay in.

Obviously, we love skiing in the winter, but it is also a fantastic location in the summer - something we had not originally anticipated. It is high enough to avoid the humidity of Milan or Turin, but still warm - on sunny days, the temperature is normally in the high twenties (or high seventies in old money). The mountains around are groaning with fruit trees: you can pick as many cherries as you can carry from the local paths, and there are plenty of strawberrries, raspberries growing wild all around. We used to go hiking in Switzerland in the summer, but the Aosta Valley is every bit as beautiful and the paths are a lot quieter.