Where to Stay in the French Riviera During the Off-Season

In the beginning, France’s Cote d’Azur (aka the French Riviera) was a winter destination. Northern Europeans — particularly Britons — with the means to travel would often decamp to the cities of the region when the weather at home grew cold and damp near the end of autumn. In the early 20th century, a litany of palace hotels was constructed in the region to house them, and many still stand today.

When I visited over Thanksgiving 2021, many of the palace hotels in the region had already closed up shop for the winter, and some of the region’s most illustrious names were closed for the season. 

It’s enough to make travelers question whether it’s still worth visiting the French Riviera at that time of year. The answer, I came to discover, is “absolutely” — the weather, while somewhat more likely to be wetter, is still pleasant, with highs in the low 70s. 

While many palace hotels close, these standout properties remain open. Hotel Barriere Le Majestic, Hotel Barriere Le Gray d'Albion, Hotel Le Negresco and Hotel Metropole Monaco all guarantee a fantastic stay. 

Hotel Barriere Le Majestic (Cannes)

In Cannes, Hotel Barriere Le Majestic, known as the customary hotel for celebrities to take up residence during the city’s famous film festival, remains open with most facilities still available, albeit in some cases reduced to weekend hours. 

Right across from the famous red-carpeted steps at the Palais des Festivals et des Congres, the hotel has one of those iconic lobbies that are immediately recognizable to French and international cinephiles, with polished marble and eye-catching custom chandeliers. Many guestrooms overlook the sea, and the hotel’s private beach is located across the street.  

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Because this is a hotel for film stars, it’s the suites that get the attention. Of the 350 rooms, a large proportion are suites. The Christian Dior suite was designed in partnership with the fashion brand, while the celebrity-worthy Majestic Suite has a private rooftop pool, butler service, private gym and home cinema — and even a barber’s chair for doing hair and makeup. 

Guests can dine at the Nice branch of Paris’s Le Fouquet’s restaurant, famous for tartares and other classic Parisian cuisine; and Paradiso Nicole & Pierre, focusing on regional Mediterranean cuisine, or a number of other bars and restaurants. 

Le Gray d’Albion (Cannes)

The hotel comes at a five-star price, but just across the street is the more contemporary — and more modest — Le Gray d’Albion, which still offers Hotels Barriere service (and guests can access some of the amenities at Le Majestic). There, guests will enjoy comfortable (but smaller) guestrooms, and rotating lobby and public space decor featuring local artists. 

Le Gray d’Albion also has its own oceanfront restaurant on La Croisette (Cannes’ famous oceanfront promenade) called Mademoiselle Gray Plage Barriere, which offers a beach club atmosphere. 

The property is a member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts’ Lifestyle brand collection, and guests at either Hotels Barriere property can be assured of an authentically Gallic experience — the hotel group itself is French.

Hotel Metropole, Monte Carlo (Monte Carlo) 

Up the coast in the Principality of Monaco, there are several palace hotels that remain open year-round. Monaco is a city-state ruled by a prince, and it’s one of the smallest sovereign nations in the world. 

It’s also one of the world’s wealthiest countries. The streets here, lined with trees pregnant with limes and oranges even in November, are Disneyland-level clean, meticulously scrubbed early each morning, and the city is almost bursting with well-tended public gardens (most without seating). 

Just near Monte Carlo’s famous casino sits the Hotel Metropole, Monte Carlo. Hotel Metropole was originally constructed in 1889, and it’s fresh off the first phase of a renovation, reopening in April 2021. 

The hotel is designed in the grand style of that age, and is most notable for its seventh-floor collection of suites, which can be sold as a single buyout for parties seeking maximum privacy. 

The ultimate Carre d’Or suite has a terrace overlooking the casino and gardens, as well as the Mediterranean; a private exterior staircase to the hotel’s pool; and bespoke design — the wall coverings are all fabric — designed specifically for the suite. 

The interior floral designs of the hotel vary by season. On the day I visited, the hotel’s staff had just finished putting up Christmas decorations. Guests can dine in the gracious lobby bar or check out Yoshi, the hotel’s Japanese restaurant, which has held a Michelin star since 2010 — the only Japanese restaurant in the region to hold such an accolade. 

Hotel Metropole, Monte Carlo also has one of only three Givenchy spas, complete with a spectacular indoor pool.

Hotel Negresco (Nice)

In Nice, the Hotel Negresco is undoubtedly the city’s grande dame. Also open year-round, the hotel sits in a prime position on the city’s own famous ocean promenade, the Promenade des Anglais, so named because the original 19th-century construction was funded by English expats in Nice. 

The hotel was constructed in 1912 in the distinctive beaux arts style of the time, and was acquired in 1957 by Jeanne Augier, who loomed large over the hotel for the next several decades (she once told Bill Gates that purchasing the hotel would be beyond his means). 

Doormen and bellmen in 18th-century attire welcome and escort guests into the chandelier-capped lobby, but it gets better from there. The hotel’s main hall, often used for events, has massive crystal chandeliers playfully juxtaposed with pieces of modern art. 

The hotel — which Augier liked to call an “art hotel”— is indeed brimming with artwork. Each floor has a different theme, and it could easily take more than a day for guests to view all of it. 

The fourth floor, for example, is Napoleon-themed in the elevator lobby, while the wings of guestrooms have themes such as Salvador Dali (a frequent guest of the hotel) or Le Coq (artwork featuring roosters). 

My own sea-view room was outfitted in a classic/modern style with tapestries that suggested the setting sun, matched on the bed canopy and seating. Stylishly, the hotel’s room keys are made of wood, and the room’s appointments can only be described as exquisite. 

Chef Virginie Basselot oversees the food and beverage at the hotel, from the three-meal La Rotonde restaurant to the lovely Michelin-starred Le Chantecler, where guests can choose the eight-course “Secrets of Virginie” tasting menu to let the chef guide their evening before being packed off in style with a parting gift of boxed cake and a souvenir menu. 

From taking in the sea air to enjoying the region’s still-open palace hotels, there’s plenty to do in the Cote d’Azur during the off season.

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