A gigantic sculpture of a Rubenesque woman playing the trumpet greets you in the forecourt. Cascades of fresh flowers pour down from the Baccarat chandelier in the lobby. The carpeting in the hallway leading to your room includes a pattern of cat footprints–an homage, you find out later, to the owner’s beloved pet. Your room looks like Marie Antoinette’s cottage, all pink upholstery and ruffled drapes; it is completely different from the room down the hall, which was decorated by a famous French fashion designer with punk-rock tendencies, and also completely different from the room on the next floor, where the bedspread has a racing motif.
Welcome to Le Negresco, one of the Côte d’Azur’s original luxury hotels, where surprises lurk around every corner. Rising above the Promenade des Anglais on the Mediterranean coast, its Belle Epoque dome illuminated against the night sky, the Negresco is one of the most recognizable landmarks in Nice, and a fixture in the city’s life and culture. Part of the Negresco’s outsized presence is due to the passion of its late owner, Madame Jeanne Augier, who viewed the hotel as a platform for her personal vision of the French art of living well. Her spirit lives on today in the Negresco’s commitment to showcasing the best of French craftsmanship and hospitality–and to staying on the cutting edge of both.
Le Negresco showcases the best of French craftsmanship and hospitality–and stays on the cutting edge of both.
A stay at the Negresco is an education by osmosis in French art and design. Each of the guest rooms and suites has a unique decoration, with themes from Louis XIII through popular culture. Every year the Negresco redecorates a handful of guest rooms, working with top names in interior, fashion, and industrial design to come up with new concepts to add to the mix. The Negresco also staffs its own in-house workshops and enlists outside artisans to craft everything from furniture and textiles to custom cabinet handles; the hotel itself has been designated a Living Heritage institution under a French government program to promote traditional and industrial know-how.
Thinking global and acting local is an important part of the Negresco philosophy. The hotel was among the first luxury establishments in France to adopt environmentally sustainable practices—less plastic, lower energy consumption—which are now becoming the industry standard. When Virginie Basselot, winner of the prestigious Meilleur Ouvrier de France award in 2015, arrived at the Negresco as head chef in 2018, one of the first things she did was to put classic Nice street food on the menu of the hotel’s casual restaurant. Today, her perfect socca and pissaladière share bragging rights with her ethereal cuisine for Le Chantecler, the Negresco’s gastronomic restaurant with two Michelin stars.