The Best Resort Hotels in France in 2016

By Lindsey Olander
July 06, 2016
Credit: Courtesy of L'Hostellerie de Levernois
Whether your French vacation fantasy involves striding through a glamorous 1920s resort on the Côte d’Azur, cozying up in a stone-walled farmhouse in Provence, or bedding down in an 18th-century manor in wine country, there is an exceptional hotel for you on this year's list of top French resorts.

Every year for our World’s Best Awards survey, T+L asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe — to share their opinions on the top hotels, resorts, cities, islands, cruise lines, spas, airlines, and more. Readers rated hotels on their rooms and facilities, location, service, food and drink, and overall value. Properties were categorized as city or resort based on their locations.

In this category, hotels with beautiful rooms and beautiful surroundings took the prize, including Le Mas des Herbes Blanches in Provence (No. 6), which has rooms done in silver-gray and ocher. The hotel also offers classic vistas of the French countryside.

Then there are the hotels that pride themselves on the quality of their consumables, like L'Hostellerie de Levernois, which tops the list, and — befitting its location in the heart of Burgundy — stocks 800 wine labels in its cellar.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the French Riviera, with its beach towns and marinas filled with mega-yachts, is home to four of the top properties this year. The five-star Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat, a Four Seasons Hotel, boasts Murano glass chandeliers and several plunge pools. A T+L reader described it as “one of the most stunning hotels in the world.” 

The Château Eza, in Èze Village, is beloved for its individually decorated suites and “storybook setting” overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.

Art was another theme in this year's list; readers waxed poetic about their stays at La Colombe d’Or, a Provençal inn that was once the haunt of Picasso and Matisse, as well as Château de la Chèvre d’Or, a former artist’s retreat near Nice with bay views.

But food was the most present common element in this year's winners. Six of the top 10 properties feature Michelin-starred restaurants, a testament to our readers’ taste for fine dining — from La Barbacane at the neo-Gothic Hôtel de la Cité in Carcassonne to the Trianon Palace Versailles, with its Michelin-two-starred Gordon Ramsay restaurant.

Read on for the full list.
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No. 10: Trianon Palace Versailles, a Waldorf Astoria Hotel            ​

Credit: Courtesy of Trianon Palace

Score: 86.03

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No. 9: Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée, Nice

Credit: Courtesy of Palais de la Méditerranée

Score: 87.73

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No. 8: La Colombe d'Or, St.-Paul-de-Vence         

Credit: Courtesy of La Colombe d'Or

Score: 88.5

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No. 7: Château Eza, Côte d'Azur

Credit: Courtesy of Château Eza

Score: 88.97

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No. 6: Le Mas des Herbes Blanches, Provence

Credit: Courtesy of Le Mas des Herbes Blanches

Score: 89.00

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No. 5: Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat, Côte d'Azur  

Credit: Manuel Zublena

Score: 89.62

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No. 4: Hôtel de la Cité, Carcassonne       

Credit: Courtesy of Hôtel de la Cité

Score: 91.5

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No. 3: Château de la Chèvre d'Or, Côte d'Azur 

Credit: Courtesy of Château de la Chèvre d'Or

Score: 91.78

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No. 2: Villa Gallici, Aix-en-Provence     

Credit: Courtesy of Villa Gallici

Score: 92.00

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No. 1: L'Hostellerie de Levernois, Burgundy

Credit: Courtesy of L'Hostellerie de Levernois

Score: 92.44

Set on 11 bucolic acres of parkland, this 18th-century manor in the heart of Burgundy is intimate and inviting, with just 26 wood-beamed rooms and suites overseen by a husband-and-wife team. The wine cellar is stocked with 800 prestigious labels and the property’s Michelin-starred restaurant serves food one reader described as “otherworldly.” L'Hostellerie de Levernois sits just minutes from the city of Beaune, Burgundy’s wine capital, but manages to feel like a hideaway nonetheless.

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By Lindsey Olander