The story of an old family farm gradually transformed into a comfortable hotel...

 In early summer 1947, the Hotel Soleil Gay received his first customers.  But this was not the Gay Sun we know today...

 In 1823 the farm was built by Pierre-Joseph Mermoud to accommodate his large family.

 Born in 1796, he married twice, had four children from first marriage and ten ones the second.

 Which may explain his bulimia houses, he built since a total four houses!



The old photos give us a clear idea of what the farm was to become the Gai Soleil: a building firmly pulled on the walls of 80 to 90 cm thick, upper east and west facades of wood on two levels, a "suite" on the west facade and a roof ancella (plate’s carved spruce wood in the thread).

 Few still Contamines houses that have it as an elegant gateway, just built from the 1820s, with two pilasters in tuff, crowned with an arch "basket handle" with a key carved scrolls.  Father Lacombe said that these houses, such as "la Clé des Champs" have been built respecting the volumes and angles of the roof determined, giving a harmonious whole.

History of Gai Soleil began in 1920 with our grandfather Albert, grand-son of Pierre-Joseph, born in 1871.

There is a farmer-rancher; summer, it has the pastures of the “Bûche-Croisée” and “Roselette” and practices also the livestock trade.

He is open to the modern world, to the point of being one of the first to have a car at les Contamines-Montjoie village...

Seeing that the top of the valley are interested in more tourists, he built two rooms on the farm for summer rental.

But there was no question of abandoning the agricultural and pastoral.


It is also in the early 1920s, Mrs. Anne-Marie Espritoz, our mother is 12 years which began in the kitchen and the reception of tourists.

His uncle and aunt take the summer refuge of Tré la Tête.

His cuisine is famous to the point where tourists are told it for the pleasure of eating!

The food was butter and cream.  It raised the poultry, rabbits, sheep, cows for milk and its derivatives.

Even if the framework and were rustic furniture, the cutlery was silver, much to the chagrin of our mothers and sisters, who had the burden of maintenance to the white of Spain.

They had to monitor the arrival of customers at the bend of the forest, 30 minutes from the hotel help to kill and skin animals, sometimes down to the village if he was missing something...

Then it was for our mother, beside her aunt, the real learning of the hotel: the kitchen, the patisserie, a sense of welcome.  Without knowing it, she would be prepared for a new job, twenty years later.

Anne-Marie married our father, Fernando, in 1930, and came to live in the farm that is now the Gai soleil after the death of our grandfather in the same year.  The thirties were difficult.

The division of the heritage of the grandparents, the trials of death and disease, the sale of property to replace a social security still lacking, little land in the valley to feed a large family, this would lead parents to seek another way to survive.  Tourism would offer them this opportunity after the war.

Our mother had retained the taste of contact with tourists, and was not too hard to convince her husband to get into the hotel, starting at the bottom of the scale, that of family pension,

Fernand continue while the land: cows and customers coexisted in the same building!

It broke everything that could not serve, on difficulties with opened windows in the walls which seemed to have been built before, to the dining room and 10 rooms.  We installed a bar, equipped kitchen and, in early summer 1947,

Hotel Gay-board Sun received its first guests.  Of course, children were put to the task sent me on to cooking courses,

Renée, Ginette, and Jeanne-Elise also got to know a bit about profession during school holidays, Gilberte later on.

The beginnings were not easy, financially especially. Very low prices and we concern to serve customers, often beyond what it would take to ensure a fair return, however, had the happy consequence of giving quickly a strong reputation in the property and retain customers.

But it was necessary to fire any timber to develop the activity of the establishment, and ensure the financial burden of the loan for the development.

The bar remains open all year for the locals, and it also provided room for restaurant workers.

There was also food of communion, marriage, banquets or Veterans Affairs classes.

But the greatest sensation in the balls was that our father took pleasure in organizing one or two times per year.

He did as much to raise revenues, by love of the accordion and dance!

He did not hesitate to bring accordionists whose reputation beyond the borders of Savoy, which led the world in the valley.
The idea, very fashionable today, to live a farm and a hotel, was not really at the time, but it does not go too badly, customers enjoying the products directly from the farm.

Yet the situation was not to last. Ten rooms, with a score of customers,

were not sufficient to cope financially. It should build more rooms,

using another part of the volume of the barn, and thus save the cattle outside the house.

In the early 50s, we built a barn independently.

Liberated on the volume of the barn, and was able to create three new rooms on the second floor.

Cohabitation was over, but not the dual activity and it became burdensome.

It still lasted ten years until 1961/62. More products from the farm, over pasta and smoked sausages prepared by our mother from pigs raised for this purpose with the remains of the kitchen, more milk and cream of the day, more chickens, ducks, goats and sheep from the farm!

Customers had a bit grumpy, and understand them.

But for the family it was probably worse for the first time in centuries, abandoned a generation that had always been his ancestors live in the valley.

A page turned with nostalgia, but with pain. And in 1963 the barn was replaced by cottage housing for our parents.

In 1868, parents entrust the charge of the operation of the hotel at Renee, who has always worked so far.

Therefore, it will continue to renovate, build, decorate, embellish. She inherited the passion to build our mother, and give free rein to his greatest pleasure and that of customers who are new improvements each year.  In 1973/74, she redesigned the dining room on your own, a large lounge and five new rooms in the last remaining part of the barn. But what has been done before is no longer, nor taste, nor, she thinks, than the number of customers.

In 1976, it goes all over again at nine, we added two additional bedrooms. A new kitchen and standards, is rebuilt.

Of course, the exterior walls and roof are retained to preserve the character of the house.

Last major dated in 1993, the roof is redone to give more space and light in three rooms on the second floor, by creating large balconies, very appreciated, as can be expected. But Renée pushes his concern for the respect of form and style of the old farm up to cover the entire roof of “tavaillons”. But this time with a wood that did not know our ancestors, Cedar Tuya Giant or Canada. What comes next in the history of the farm Gai Soleil?

May it continue to provide pleasure for a while holiday guests, as it gives to that which receives, in a shared pleasure.

Mr. Albert Mermoud (June 1997)