Le Sapin, whose name is recorded in the cantonal inventory of inns of 1815, probably does not owe its name to the spruce tree on the town's coat of arms, which was established in the second half of the 19th century at the earliest. A house on its current site appears on the plans of 1756 as the property of the innkeeper Louis Blanc and his sister Claudine. In 1828, it is mentioned as an inn adjoining a communal house used for assemblies and justice.

With the opening of the Bulle - Boltigen carriage road in 1881, Le Sapin was transformed into a hotel. In 1897, it became a hotel-pension and was given the title of GrandHôtel du Sapin. At that time, an extra storey was added, giving it its current appearance: a 46 m façade, 16 axes of windows, balconies and loggia terraces.

Its 70 furnished rooms (with 110 beds) were lit by electricity from 1893. Its café was run separately by L'Avenir, Société du Sapin and the Conservative-Catholic party circle, with the Radicals meeting at Le Maréchal-Ferrant.

Advertising at the time presented Le Sapin as an excursion centre for La Berra, La Hochmatt, Les Morteys and Vanil-Noir (2389 m), whose steep summit was made safer around 1900 by the laying of a cable at Pas-de-la-Borière. In 1895, a tourist took the first known photos of the village from the window of room 11, while the Fribourg daily LaLiberté announced that there were at least 200 residents at Charmey.

In collaboration with the municipality of Val-de-Charmey