Between the Cannes Film Festival’s beginnings in the late 1930s, Grace Kelly and Cary Grant’s mid-century appearance in Hitchcock’s To Catch a Thief, and Slim Ahrens’ 1970s photograph of the basalt cliffs of the Eden Rock Hotel – glamorous, bronze Americans relaxing in the pool, it has been largely forgotten that the French Riviera was originally a place for winter sunbathing. In the 19th century, Nordic “swallows” in search of “climatic cure” traveled south in large numbers from September to March of the following year, accompanying Queen Victoria to the pine-covered coast, when temperatures rose to such a level that they needed umbrellas to retreat to.
But then, almost exactly a century ago, things began to change. Askew marveled in the September 1931 issue: “[In 1925] Cannes looked like a winter resort wrapped in sheets, with only a few local shops and one hotel open. “Now the place is full of life in summer, even more lively than in winter… The harbor is full of yachts and speedboats, and the promenade is filled with branches of the famous Parisian brands – tailors, jewelry shops, etc. Further up, there is a bar or an outdoor terrace where one can dine by candlelight in the evening, and this year, throughout the park, several public baths have opened, like little beaches, but unlike the last two or three seasons, until Vieira became fashionable in summer, the country has spread along the coast, crowds stretching for miles from Capmartin to Toulon.
This description is more or less true today, but in recent years many of the “swallows” have gradually begun to migrate to the Côte d’Azur again for the winter, and their efforts have been richly rewarded. When the Maborn Riviera, a glass and concrete behemoth perched above Roquebrun-Cap-Martin, opened in 2021, the plan was always to remain open year-round, in response to the “delicious” lighting “that attracted Matisse to its best form.” False, absurd, beautiful”. In 2023, the Anantara Plaza is completed, restoring the golden facade and faded grandeur of Nice’s Belle Époque hotel and reviving the glamour of the Promenade des Anglais during the off-season. (In fact, thanks to vigorous campaigning by Mayor Christian Estrosi, Nice received UNESCO World Heritage status as a “Riviera Winter Resort City” in 2021.) What about this year? Erew, a luxurious tribute to the Riviera’s charm (think: tricolor color scheme and nautical decor), will welcome Saint-Tropez guests throughout the winter, as will Valerie Grego, whose Hotel du Couvent in Nice was a lesson in hospitality.
Grego has earned a reputation as the best hotel in France along with Le Pigalle in Paris, Les Roches Rouges in Saint-Raphaël and L’Alpaga in Megève. The hotel, and the Pope had to pay the ransom price. His commitment to preserving the integrity of the 7,500-square-meter complex led him to make a pilgrimage to at least 30 monasteries and abbeys in southern France, during which he visited the archives of the Duval department, the archives of the Diocese of Nice and France’s Archives des Provinciales and thoroughly researched thousands of historical records and documents from across the Alpes-Maritimes to ensure the reliability of the restoration. Its many acres of terraced gardens – from ornamental to edible and medicinal – have been carefully replanted with persimmon and olive trees, wild salads and Provençal herbs, the latter of which are used for balm. Expert herbalist Gregory Unren develops an extract with soothing properties. Meanwhile, lemon trees laden with fruit once again fill the orange grove where the Sisters of St. Clare gathered centuries ago.
That doesn’t mean the hotel is spartan, or that a stay here requires a bit of self-discipline. If Gregor has preserved the building’s basic architectural details (gypsum ceilings, terracotta floors, limestone walls), the interior of the new convent is reminiscent of the refined minimalism of Rose Uniacé, but with Mediterranean warmth. I stayed in the Terrace du Cloître suite, where the mahogany minibar held Henri Baudouin Pastis and Rinquinquin à la Pêche, next to a Picasso gouache commissioned for Sergei Diaghilev’s 1920 staging of “The Triangle.” On the other hand, each public area has a carefully designed Baroque arrangement by Majid Mohamed, owner of the Mews in Montmartre and personal florist to John Galliano, One evening I was drinking sleep-inducing Nuit Passible Forte tea in Le Bar, next to a giant delphinium; one in an Italian vase. Even the toiletries here are better than your average Diptyque products, with each bathroom stocked with Fragonard soap and an exclusive product developed by perfumer Azi Glassner with notes of amber, vetiver, and mugwort.
Dine? There’s also La Boulangerie, where ancient grains are ground into croissants and French bread; cozy alfresco restaurant La Guinguette, where you can order a Nicoise salad and citrus smoothie while looking out at the sparkling Angels Bay in the distance; and enjoy an aperitif at Le Bar Nightcaps. However, none compare to Thomas Vettel’s Le Restaurant du Couvent, a welcome response to the cult of haute cuisine and its many Côte d’Azur followers. In other words, the menu here is less Escoffier and more Elizabeth David. This time of year, dinner might start with a cold ratatouille made from garden vegetables, followed by herb-infused veal chops and peach scallop soup. If that’s not reason enough to book a flight, I don’t know what is.
Heading to the French Riviera this winter? Below, check out Eskam’s compiled list of destinations worth planning a day trip to.
Villa arson case
Designed by Michel Marot in the 1960s, Villa Arson, perched on the Saint-Barthélemy hill in Nice, is a contemporary arts hub and an architectural marvel, with its 18th-century Italian villa surrounded by mimosa-scented courtyards and brutalist architecture.
Pokorol Island
In the 1960s, Hemingway enthusiastically described the Côte d’Azur of his youth in A Moveable Feast, recalling “the sandy beaches, the great pine forests and the hills of Estrelle stretching into the sea”. Catch the ferry to Pokrol Island from October and you can also see some of the Riviera’s most pristine (and tourist-free) landscapes.
Marc Chagall Museum
The Nice museum displays Marc Chagall’s religious works, including his 1966 work “The Biblical Message,” and the modernist artist personally collaborated with landscape architect Henri Fish to create the garden, which includes a collection of agapanthus and a planted pond. It is opened each year on Chagall’s birthday.
Manon Manor
Le Domaine de Manon is a business in Grasse where fourth-generation grower Carole Biancalana grows cabbage roses, tuberose and royal jasmine, which form the basis of Christian Dior fragrances. The first blooms in spring and the second is harvested from August to October – the farm is open to visitors every Tuesday morning.
E-1027
Reservations are required for Eileen Gray’s first modern villa in Roquebrun-Cap-Martin, just a stone’s throw from Le Corbusier’s Cabanon, but it’s worth a patron’s trip to see this 1920s masterpiece. Meanwhile, drive about 40 minutes along the coast to the pink maximalist Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. Its shape is inspired by the Edwardian Île de France cruise ship.
marseille
Provence markets have plenty of these (obviously), but in winter, bricks and mortar is your best option – and there’s no better choice than Marseille on the French Riviera. Maison Empereur, Le Père Blaise and Oeuvres Sensibles are institutions in their own right.
Villa Carrillos
French archaeologist Theodore Reinach built the gorgeous, kitschy Villa Carrillos at the end of the Baie des Fourmis for his visit to Delos, evidenced by Greek ruins dating back to the 2nd century B.C. The building, completed in 1908, includes baths decorated with Greek mosaics, lemonwood furniture by Parisian cabinetmaker Louis-François Bettenfeld and a colonnade filled with Provençal lamps and Doric columns.
St. Peter’s Church
Jean Cocteau moved to Villefranche-sur-Mer in 1924 and immediately began persuading locals to allow him to paint myths inspired by the life of St. Peter on 14th-century church murals. What he didn’t reveal: He also planned to cite his own works, including “Orpheus” and his bizarre frescoes at the Villa Saint-Jean-Saint-Sospir in Cap Ferrat.
Lascaris Palace Museum
When it comes to museums in Nice, you have plenty of options, from the Matisse Museum to the Sims Archaeological Museum in Nice and the aforementioned Marc Chagall Museum, but there’s something particularly fascinating about this 17th-century Baroque museum;
