1. The Hôtel du Couvent reaches 38th place in The World’s 50 Best Hotels 2026, unveiled on September 15 at the Carrousel du Louvre in Paris. The Nice-based hotel confirms its ranking for the second consecutive year.
2. Three Côte d’Azur establishments feature in the world’s top 50: the Hôtel du Couvent in Nice (38th), the Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo (40th) and the Hôtel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Antibes (44th). The Maybourne Riviera in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin features in the extended selection (51st to 100th).
3. Six French hotels in the top 50 in 2026, up from four the previous year, with Parisian palaces Crillon, Bristol, Cheval Blanc and Plaza Athénée alongside the two Côte d’Azur addresses.
4. An establishment opened in June 2024, led by hotelier Valéry Grégo (Groupe Perseus), which entered the world’s top 50 in its very first year of operation.
A concentration of hospitality excellence that positions the Côte d’Azur on the global stage
The presence of three Côte d’Azur establishments in the world’s top 50, plus The Maybourne Riviera in the extended selection, illustrates a density of exceptional hospitality that is rare at the international level. Across just a few dozen kilometres of coastline, the Côte d’Azur concentrates an offer that competes with the world’s leading luxury hospitality capitals.
The Nice Côte d’Azur Metropolitan Tourism Board praised “an international recognition that illustrates the richness and the upgrading of Nice’s hotel offer, with increasingly qualitative addresses to meet the expectations of a demanding international clientele.”
The World’s 50 Best Hotels ranking, organised by the William Reed group, is based on votes from an international panel of travellers, journalists and luxury tourism experts. In 2026, six French establishments feature compared to four the previous year.
Nine Côte d’Azur establishments awarded Michelin Keys 2026
Three days after the global ranking was published, the Michelin Keys 2026 awards, unveiled on September 18, confirmed this momentum. Nine establishments across the Nice Côte d’Azur territory were recognised in this third edition. The Château de la Chèvre d’Or in Èze and the Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat received the highest distinction of three Michelin Keys. Château Eza (Èze), La Réserve de Beaulieu (Beaulieu-sur-Mer) and Le Negresco (Nice) received two Keys. The Hôtel du Couvent (Nice), Maison Albar – Le Victoria (Nice), the Royal-Riviera (Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat) and the Château Saint-Martin (Vence) each received one Key. Michelin Keys, modelled after the Michelin Stars for restaurants, recognise establishments on five criteria: architecture and interior design, quality of service, personality and character, value for money and contribution to the local experience.
An upgrading trajectory that fuels the territory’s economic attractiveness
This concentration of international distinctions is part of a continuous upgrading of the Côte d’Azur’s hospitality offer. Recent openings including the Anantara Plaza Nice Hôtel, the DoubleTree by Hilton, the Palais Ségurane and Mama Shelter have diversified and enriched the destination. This trajectory will continue with the announced arrival of Vatel Group, which has secured its building permit for a 1,000-student campus at Grand Arénas including a training hotel open to the public, and the setup of Ferrandi, two internationally renowned schools that will strengthen hospitality education on the territory.
With hotel occupancy reaching 92% in Nice in July 2026 and 15.23 million commercial passengers handled by the Aéroports de la Côte d’Azur in 2025, the territory has the fundamentals to sustain this upgrading: international air connectivity, major events and depth of tourism offer.
Sources: actu Nice, MCE / Ouest-France, La Revue des Restaurants, OTM Nice Côte d’Azur, Les Petites Affiches des Alpes-Maritimes
