Hotel Carlina became our "stop of choice" when we were in Champagny for Christmas/New Year, we definitely "do" luxury and this place looked awesome. We stayed in Hotel Ancolie (which was great) but if we return we will stay in Carlina. Most days we had a beer (or two, with a few vin chauds thrown in) and on one day we ate in the restaurant (we ate outside once as well), people bemoan the prices but seem to forget this isn't the Hungry Horse on a roundabout on the A614, it's The Alps for goodness sake.

A really great spot to rest and take in all that is great about La Plagne, and an ideal place to arrange to meet with friends/family when/if you get split up.

The best feature of the hotel is the ski in/out facility.

The bedroom was very small and uncomfortably cool. In the public areas (bar and dining room) it was positively cold - I had to wear a fleece at all times. Apart from an ineffective log fire in the bar, there was little cheer. It was a gloomy area where we didn't want to linger, and decorated with dusty wooden artefacts from farming days gone by.

The choice at breakfast was ok if, like us, you enjoy continental fayre. However, if you prefer a hot meal, the only option was a boiled egg. Chef would have got top marks for the presentation of his food at dinner, but generally it was tasteless; we wouldn't have recognised the pork or veal unless we had been told what it was.

The hotel seemed to be run by very young people; noone appeared to be over 25.The waiting staff were very friendly but we were not very impressed with the attitude of a woman who we took to be the restaurant supervisor/manager. She would sweep through the dining room acknowledging each table of French people and totally ignored us. As there was a maximum of 8 guests staying during our week, and we were the only 'foreigners', we thought this was downright Gallic rudeness. Even our French runs to 'Bonsoir'.

We are seasoned skiiers and have been to many countries, although this was our first time in La Plagne. The accomodation is so important when you have been out all day. To return to a warm, comfortable hotel with good (not fancy) food doesn't seem too much to ask.

Would we return? Yes to La Plagne but not to the Hotel Carlina.

We spent four nights at the Hotel Carlina with two teenage children. The hotel was comfortable and all of the staff very helpful and kind. Our rooms were nice, not very spacious but then we did not spend much time in them. The views were great, we could see the pistebashers going all night ! The ski in/ski out was fantastic, the ski/boot room spacious with plenty of heated boot racks and easy accessibility. The spa area was nice and the hot-tub and steam room lovely. The food was good, but not quite up to the chefs expectations ! Beautifully presented - chef had a thing about large garnishes. There was a set menu, fine for non-fussy eaters like us although I understand they would offer alternatives. Breakfast was good, continental style only with boiled eggs available, but a good range of food and the fresh orange juice was lovely. The bar was nice, and the staff delightful, but it was never busy.
Would we recommend the hotel ? Definitely, if you are after great skiing and are less interested in lively atmosphere and home comforts. The hotel is a few minutes walk from Belle Plagne, making going out difficult, though the children did stop at the Spar Supermarket on the way back from skiing for emergency supplies and skied back with them ! However, in our view the location made up for this. Also, the hotel offer ski hire from their 'partner', ELPRO sport, who will pick you up from the hotel and take you to the shop, and then collect your skis from the hotel at the end of your stay. Convenient, but EXPENSIVE, and I feel we could have got a much better deal either online or by phoning other shops, and for the cost of a taxi up to the ski shop still would have saved quite a bit.
And as someone else has commented - no tea upon return from the slopes, and no kettle in the room (though that is entirely normal in France) - so take a travel kettle if you have room. Another mild complaint we had was that the bedrooms were really hot and the public areas not warm enough - we did comment on this but nothing much changed.
Would I go back - YES.

Having been a skier twice a year for 12 years I was disappointed with the value for money of La Carlina at £400 per night for a family room over Christmas week. The food was in my view poor quality (the chef was actually trying to hard but getting it wrong!) with little choice if you did not like the main menu. Childrens meals were also very limited. The hotel is ski-in ski out but the location of the hotel is a good ten minute walk up the mountain to get to the main belle plagne area. This is a problem if you have young children, and as the bar has zero atmosphere (maybe because of the prices!) your options are restricted.
The room (family room) was very small for 4 people given the tarif.
There was very little effort made in terms of recognising that it was Christmas, with only a small tree being put up on Christmas Eve.
On return from a days skiing, there was no complimentary coffee or tea or cakes, which is fairly traditional in my experience.
The other main problem with La Carlina is that you have no facilities to make yourselves any drinks (IE tea or coffee), so if you are like us with young children who get up at the crack of dawn you will have to wait until 7.30am before you can get a drink! Getting a tea or coffee on return from skiing or in the evening will cost you about £3. I think at £400 per night a kettle in the room would be a reasonable expectation, especially if there is no room service.
If you have a car, La Carlina will charge you £70 for the week for the pleasure of parking it in their garage so you can stay at the hotel!
On the positive side the staff were very friendly and helpful,and because of the location they are quite happy to take you in a minibus up to the ski school area in the morning. They also arranged all the ski school and ski passes. Make sure you understand clearly the times that the minibus is leaving as the Carlina has a tendancy to not be very forthcoming with clear information.
The hotel is tidy, well decorated and the Spa is handy at the end of the day. The hotel tends to cater more for the French visitor than the English.
Although we did not dislike the hotel, I am unsure how it commands such a price, when compared to the Champs Fleuris say in Morzine, there is no competition in terms of location, quality and atmosphere.