The best luxury hotels in Monaco
An insider's guide to the top luxury hotels in Monaco, including the best for Art Deco interiors, Michelin-starred restaurants, Belle Epoque facades, opulent spas and Mediterranean harbour views.
This five-star hotel has been on Monaco's society scene since the 1920s, despite sitting on the French side of the border. Show-offs arrive by boat to this ultra-luxurious Art Deco hotel's private jetty, and golden-heeled guests dine upon Michelin-starred cuisine. As well as an Olympic-sized pool, there’s a long private beach that’s tailor-made for water sports fanatics with everything from parasailing to FlyFish rafting. India Mahdavi has individually designed each of the 40 rooms and suites. Frescoes inspired by Matisse and Cocteau embellish the walls, while soft furnishings are decked with stripes and figures of eight and bathrooms are walled in white marble. Finally, it’s hard to pick fault with Monte-Carlo Beach Hotel’s myriad dining options.
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This Belle Epoque palace, the discreet sibling to neighbouring H?tel de Paris, is a favourite for jetsetting cognoscenti and celebrities pretending to stay under the radar. The hotel has the advantage of a quiet garden square on one side, while the other side gazes over the Mediterranean port littered with superyachts towards the rock topped with the Prince’s medieval castle. Somehow this hotel pulls off the opulence of a 19th-century palace (think gold leaf and marble pillars) with the friendly convenience of a resort hotel. Belle Epoque details abound such as marble-topped commodes, ornate mantle clocks and decorative urns. Bedrooms features Louis XV-style chairs and colourful wallpaper panels. Wow factors include the stained-glass atrium and the glass-fronted spa.
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Rockstars rub shoulders with royalty at this Belle Epoque hotel in Monte Carlo, offering a lavish spa, Michelin-starred Jo?l Robuchon restaurant, outdoor pool and welcoming rooms that combine classical style with contemporary sensitivity and comfort. Behind the monumental Belle Epoque facade, the place has both pin-sharp classical elegance – and melodious modern rhythm. Designer Jacques Garcia is the bloke you bring in when you want to achieve this mix of the gracefully traditional and the contemporary. As the rest of the hotel, so the rooms combine classical style – period furniture, bandy-legged chairs, flowing fabrics, art and artefacts - with contemporary sensitivity and comfort. Catering is in the hands of Jo?l Robuchon, one of France’s best (or, at least, best-known) chefs.
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For the ultimate Monte-Carlo experience, it’s hard to beat this fabled Casino Square location combined with Mediterranean harbour views. Everything about this landmark palace screams over-the-top decadence, from its three-Michelin-starred restaurant to the world’s largest wine cellar. The sculpted Belle Epoque fa?ade sets the scene for interiors of marbled colonnades and crystal chandeliers. The thermal spa is the place to detox beside the sea, while the private beach resort, with its striped beach cabins, is a free five-minute shuttle ride away. Gastronomy is a strong suit. Set in a Rococo dream with modernist touches, Louis XV restaurant serves up three-Michelin-starred cuisine– try the blue lobster with myrtle berries and ginger – accompanied by wines from the 600,000-bottle wine cellar.
With its sandy-bottomed lagoon and its endless sun terraces bordering the Mediterranean Sea, the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort is a year-round playground for groups of friends and families alike. Everything is on a grand scale from the entranceway to the five acres of landscaped gardens extending towards the sea. It feels as though the whole hotel is achingly dressed to impress: bright-coloured furnishings abound from the lime-green leather in L’Orange Verte restaurant to the blue and turquoise fabrics in the Blue Gin bar. Floor-to-ceiling, Champagne-filled glass cabinets shroud the entrance to the Blue Bay. This Michelin-starred restaurant is open for dinner with a Mediterranean and Caribbean-inspired menu.