France’s hotel scene is having a renaissance, with a wave of luxury openings that blend heritage and modern flair. From the Basque coast to the boulevards of Paris, these storied buildings are being reimagined by visionary designers to create stays that feel both deeply rooted and refreshingly new. Each has its own personality, but together they signal a new chapter in France’s haute hotel dream scene.
Here are the hotel openings putting France at the top of every traveller’s list this season.
(Credit: Matthieu Salvaing)
Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, Camargue
Cost: From $338 in low season; $873 in high season
In a nutshell: Wild calm on the edge of the wetlands.
Set in the heart of the Camargue’s protected marshes in the South of France, Les Bains Gardians is a 67-room retreat inspired by the gardians – the region’s traditional horseback cattle herders. Their iconic cabanes, once scattered across the area, have been reimagined as timber-framed, limewashed lodges with earthy textures and vintage Provençal charm, courtesy of interior duo Hauvette & Madani. Owner Jean-Pierre Marois describes the property as “conscious hedonism”: guests can spend their days riding horses, floating in the pool or engaging in spa rituals, before dancing to DJ sets or dining under the stars with guest chefs. Flamingos drift across the nearby Parc Ornithologique, and the pilgrimage town of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer is just a short cycle away.
Address: Route d’Arles, D570, 13460 Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, France
The lap pool at Hôtel du Couvent.
Nice
Cost: From $590 per night
In a nutshell: Monastic serenity revived as quiet luxury.
Opened in June 2024 after a decade-long restoration, Hôtel du Couvent transforms a 17th-century convent into a sanctuary of intelligent luxury. Festen Architecture’s interiors honour the building’s past with terracotta tiles, limewashed walls and contemplative restraint softened by natural linens and sunlight. There’s a Roman-style spa built on ancient foundations, an in-house herbalist crafting remedies from the gardens, and three restaurants – Le Restaurant du Couvent, La Guinguette, and Le Bistrot des Serruriers – serving Provençal dishes made almost entirely with estate-grown produce. Vieux Nice, with its winding alleys and pebbled beaches, is just beyond the cloisters.
Address: 1 Rue Honoré Ugo, 06300 Nice, France
The rooftop at Hotel La Fondation. (Credit: Romain Ricard)
Paris
Cost: From $822 per night
In a nutshell: A creative hub disguised as a hotel.
La Fondation is a new kind of hotel: part cultural venue, part hospitality concept. Its 58 rooms sit alongside a rooftop bar, with occasional cinema screenings and rooftop yoga, semi-Olympic pool, and two restaurants, designed to draw in both travellers and Parisians. Roman & Williams’ interiors bring warmth and texture to the raw architecture – velvet sofas, sculptural wood, soft lighting. It feels more like a small-scale cultural nerve centre than a traditional hotel, with a focus on events, collaboration and wellbeing. Located in Batignolles, it’s well placed for relaxed neighbourhood cafés, contemporary galleries and leafy walks through Parc Martin Luther King.
Address: 40 Rue Legendre, 75017 Paris, France
Hôtel Hana’s Prestige room. (Credit: Romain Ricard)
Paris
Cost: From $697 in low season; $1072 in high season
In a nutshell: Japanese Zen meets Parisian polish.
Tucked into Paris’ Little Tokyo, Hôtel Hana is a 26-room retreat that blends Japanese restraint with Belle Époque detailing. Designed by Laura Gonzalez and Olivier Leone, the interiors mix iroko wood, washi textures, and Pierre Frey fabrics with soft lighting and lacquered furniture. The restaurant, Hanabi, was conceived by Shirley Garrier of The Social Food, with chef Roberto Sanchez in the kitchen – expect French ingredients filtered through a Japanese lens, from camembert tempura with yuzu jam to udon with langoustine tartare. A small basement spa offers kobido facials and reiki-inspired treatments. Just outside, rue Sainte-Anne buzzes with izakayas, sushi bars and karaoke spots.
Address: 17 Rue du 4 septembre, 75002 Paris, France
The dining room at Regina Experimental. (Credit: Matthieu Salvaing)
Biarritz
Cost: From $322 per night
In a nutshell: Old school glamour on the Basque coast.
Poised on a clifftop above the Atlantic, this grand 1907 hotel has been reimagined by the Experimental Group as a salt-air escape with a wink. Arched windows frame ocean views, while Paris-based designer Dorothée Meilichzon brings Art Deco glamour and a touch of vintage surf culture: lacquered headboards, coastal hues and nautical-motif carpets. There are 72 rooms, a Mediterranean restaurant, and a sea-facing bar that hums from golden hour till late. From here, stroll to the Grande Plage, the covered market, or follow the cliffside paths of the Basque coast.
Address: 52 Av. de l’Impératrice, 64200 Biarritz, France
Château du Breuil at Les Sources de Cheverny.
Loire Valley
Cost: From $393 per night
In a nutshell: A retreat of woodland, wine and water.
Set on a 45-hectare estate in the Loire Valley, Les Sources de Cheverny is a rural escape with roots in the land. Sister to Les Sources de Caudalie near Bordeaux, it’s comprised of a working vineyard, a vinotherapy spa and two restaurants championing seasonal local produce. Rooms are dotted between 18th-century stone buildings and timber cabins overlooking lily ponds and forest paths; interiors mix antiques with natural materials and calming, earthy tones. Days unfold gently – baths infused with grape extracts, glasses of sauvignon by the fire, and château visits or bike rides through the Sologne woods just beyond.
Address: 23 route de Fougère 41700 Cheverny
The whimsical Winter Garden at Le Grand Mazarin. (Credit: Vincent Leroux)
Paris
Cost: From $875 per night
In a nutshell: Wes Anderson whimsy meets Right Bank romance.
Le Grand Mazarin brings theatrical flair to the heart of the Marais. Designed by Martin Brudnizki, the hotel leans into playful opulence: scalloped headboards, fringed lampshades, painted ceilings and patterned textiles in a palette of dusty pinks and deep greens. There are 54 rooms and seven suites, plus a pool tucked beneath a mosaic-covered dome. The restaurant, Boubalé, serves Ashkenazi-inspired dishes with a modern twist, while the bar channels the spirit of a decadent literary salon. Step outside and you’re within minutes of the Seine, Place des Vosges, and a tangle of cafés, bookshops and falafel counters that give the neighbourhood its charm.
Address: 17 Rue de la Verrerie, 75004 Paris, France
The Slanted Door bar at Maison 1896. (Credit: Serge Chapuis.)
Beaune
Cost: From $757 per night
In a nutshell: Where Burgundy meets California cool.
Tucked just behind the Hospices de Beaune, this 16-room boutique hotel blends Burgundy’s wine heritage with a surprising dose of California cool. Housed in a 19th-century Beaux-Art-style limestone building, the interiors mix stained glass, restored fireplaces and herringbone oak parquetry floors with soft velvet armchairs and smoky-toned walls. At the heart of the property is Slanted Door, Beaune – the late San Francisco-based chef Charles Phan’s first restaurant outside of the US – where delicate Vietnamese dishes are paired with rare Burgundies curated by sommelier Mark Bright. It’s intimate, quietly cinematic, and best experienced after a late-afternoon tasting at one of the nearby caves.
Address: 2 Pl. Fleury, 21200 Beaune, France
Magazine Issue:
October 2025
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