St-Jean-Cap-Ferrat: Hôtel Brise Marine

Brise Marine, an ochre Italianate villa set back on a hill above the narrow road that winds around the Cap Ferrat, is an easy-going family-run 18-room hotel surrounded by lush terraced grounds planted with bougainvillea, palms and olive trees—a surprising, low-key hideout in one of the most glamorous locations on the Côte d’Azur. The rooms may be sparsely furnished but all are air-conditioned and have satellite TV and minibars.

My favorite is the spacious rose-walled room 10, which has a sweeping sea view from a huge, curved terrace with old-fashioned sky-blue balustrades. Prices vary according to size—rooms 3, 16, and 18 also have terraces—but all are astonishingly good value in this superwealthy enclave. After a copious Continental breakfast (a large basket of flaky croissants, pains au chocolat and freshly squeezed orange juice) served on the garden patio, wander down to La Paloma beach, a lovely pebbled cove only a 5-minute stroll away.

58 ave Jean Mermoz, St-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, 04.93.76.04.36. Doubles from €150. website

Originally published in the March 2008 issue of France Today

See our complete hotel guide

View Hôtel Brise Marine in a larger map