Nice: Boscolo Exedra Nice

Behind its meticulously restored ornate facade, designed by Belle-Epoque architect Charles Dalmas in 1913, the former Hôtel Atlantique on Nice’s main residential boulevard has been completely renovated and transformed into the Boscolo Exedra Nice. The turn-of-the-century look has disappeared (Gustave Eiffel dome and all) and the interior is now decked out in gleaming Carrara marble, with clean, pure lines and giant contemporary  sculptures. Everything is pristine white-on-white: walls, furnishings, fluffy duvets, even the doorknobs in the shape of white roses. You don’t need to be a hotel guest to spend an afternoon at the hotel’s new day spa, stocked with Deep Nature beauty products, and the heated indoor pool is also open to the public. Check out the futuristic bar for morning coffee and delicious Italian pastries, or drop in for a happy-hour cocktail and tapas. The sidewalk bistrot Tazio Fish Market offers a wide choice of seafood along with the local catch of the day, and the seafront Promenade des Anglais is only a 10-minute stroll away.

12 blvd Victor Hugo, 04.97.03.89.89. Doubles from €240. website

Originally published in the March 2009 issue of France Today

See our complete hotel guide

View Boscolo Exedra Nice in a larger map