Just returned from a week in Nendaz, and stayed in Pracondu Appartments, which were modern, well-located, clean and good value. The immediate area was a bit of a building site, and you could ski in if you were prepared to negotiate a short but precarious walk through rocks & rubble. The resort itself was pleasant enough, but with pockets off Verbier-envy - We booked a basic trattoria for New year, and were surprised to find it a set menu, which was a prob with 2 veggies, also no kids meals on that night. Hence for 2 adults and 3 kids the bill was 350 SFr...and the vegetables were those crinkle-cut carrots from the freezer! A rip-off. On the skiing front, far too many drag lifts, and hardly what I would call an integrated ski area, as some of the link runs between one valley and the next were too advanced for several of our party. If Nendaz wants to be taken seriously as anything more than a day/weekend resort it needs to sort out the lift system.
Nendaz is the perfect route to skiing the Verbier Mont Fort area if your on a budget. Cheap low cost flights, rail transfers from Geneva to Sion and Great value appartments. Ive been skiing here for 5yrs as many as 8 weeks per year and have found a great B&B run by an english guy and his wife, MIRA LODGE just 60 chf per night!! Great for short breaks only takes 5 hours from the UK, just think 6.30am flight your skiing by midday last flight back 10pm in a long weekend you get 31/2 days on the slopes!!
[Editors tip - Swiss rail tickets are MUCH cheaper if you book them online. However, you cannot book these tickets more than 72hrs before you intend to travel.]
We have just returned from our 10th visit to Haute Nendaz. Everything you say in your information is correct. A convenient way that I describe the resort is the same ski-circus as Verbier at 2/3 of the price, in a beautiful position with superb views over the Rhone Valley. Not to to missed skiing wise is the Piste de L'ours (Bear run) a World Cup Giant Slalom slope over at Veysonnaz (included in the local pass). Access to Verbier from Nendaz takes about 40 minutes using a free bus service, a chairlift, and a gondola to Lac de Vaux.
Accommodation in HN is mostly in apartments, and the largest supplier is Interhome, which boast a bookable web site.
We always travel there by car - it is 540 miles from Calais and takes 9 hours driving time on average.