Glitz & Glam: Hotels from the Golden Age of the French Riviera

“The rich, powerful and beautiful have been coming to the French Riviera (aka the Cote d’Azur) for around 150 years – it was a playground for royalty and aristocracy long before celebrities arrived on the scene. Perhaps that’s why the region has something of a dual character. Some of its wealthy visitors came wanting to be seen, and stayed at grand hotels in chic coastal cities; others wanted privacy, and chose small villas on clifftops or in hidden coves. We’ve gone for a bit of both in our list.

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Hotel Negresco, Nice
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You’d never guess it from the outside, but Hotel Negresco is the brainchild of a Romanian innkeeper’s son. Henri Negresco (born Alexandru Negrescu) made it big on the Riviera in the early 20th century, and hired star architect Édouard-Jean Niermans to help him create a super-luxury hotel on Promenade des Anglais. Today the hotel has its share of modern touches, but when you look up at the gorgeous domed skylight and 16,000-crystal chandelier in the Royal Lounge, you’re instantly transported back to the Belle Epoque. (Nice’s Palais de la Mediterranee, now a Hyatt Regency, is also worth a mention for its stunning façade – more on that in our Art Deco list.)

If you want to see more hotels in Nice, visit our Nice hotels page.

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InterContinental Carlton Cannes
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If you’re lucky enough to find yourself bobbing around on a boat in Cannes harbour, you’ll have no trouble spotting the Carlton. Its huge façade is bookended by prominent domes, making it one of the most recognisable grand hotels on the waterfront (and in Cannes, that’s saying something). It has been around since the early 1910s, and is a popular base for film stars during the Cannes Film Festival.

If you want to see more hotels in Cannes, visit our Cannes hotels page.

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Hotel Hermitage Monte-Carlo
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Built at the tail end of the 19th century, the Hotel Hermitage remains one of the most impressive on the Riviera. And it isn’t just the palatial façade. The public areas are uniformly spectacular, and the celebrated Winter Garden features wrought iron balconies and an intricate glass-and-steel cupola created by Gustave Eiffel. Yes, that Gustave Eiffel. The equally grand Hotel de Paris, which dates right back to 1863, is just across the road.

If you want to see more hotels in Monte Carlo, visit our Monte Carlo hotels page.

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Hôtel Belles Rives, Antibes
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If you like your Riviera with a touch of arty, Bohemian glamour, it’s hard to do better than Hotel Belles Rives. This isn’t one of the grand purpose-built hotels that dominate Riviera waterfronts – instead it’s a five-star resort in a secluded cove, built around the core of a pretty old villa. Back in the 1920s the villa was the Riviera residence of F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife Zelda, putting it at the centre of a circle of creative and hedonists that included artists, writers, actors and fashion designers. It looks very different today, but the traces of glamour remain – as do the superb views of the sapphire-blue Med.

If you want to see more hotels in Antibes, visit our Antibes hotels page.

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Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat
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Situated on a rocky, wooded headland just east of Nice, the magnificent Grand Hotel du Cap-Ferrat dates back to the early 20th century. Today it is a Four Seasons property, but the distinctive outline of its main building remains intact, as do the many Art Deco flourishes inside. It hit the big time in the 1930s, and by the 50s it was a favourite haunt of the Hollywood jet set. There’s a striking funicular railway running down to the pool deck, and the hotel’s modern extension houses some exquisite suites with private plunge pools.

If you want to see more hotels in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, visit our Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat hotels page.”