Courchevel 1850 is the ski resort to be seen in for many of Europe's wealthiest piste lovers and some are going to great lengths to secure the chalet of their dreams.

Undeveloped plots of land with planning permission are very hard to come by in 1850 these days, so there is a growing trend to knock down existing properties and replace them with bigger and better equipped chalets.

Quite a few of the chalets built in the 60s, 70s and 80s are now looking a bit dated, so a total rebuild seems the sensible option, especially as some of the state-of-the-art facilities demanded by today's owners would be difficult to incorporate into existing properties. These include extensive wine cellars and spas.

But the stock of original chalets ripe for redevelopment is dwindling, so those looking to create something truly bespoke will need to hurry.