As elegant an address as you’ll find anywhere in the city, the Anantara Plaza Nice Hotel is your luxury base from which to explore the French Riviera.

Housed in a 19th-century architectural jewel, steps from Nice’s iconic boardwalk, the Anantara perfectly combines the intimacy of a chic Pied-à-Terre and the glamour of the Cote d’Azur’s grand dame hotels. Opened in 2003, overlooking the Promenade des Anglais and the Albert 1er Gardens, the Anantara Plaza Nice Hotel is the result of an extensive two-year renovation that returned the historic 178-year-old building to its Belle Époque era glory.

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First Impressions

You know you’ve reached a true coastal marque when you arrive at the Anantara Plaza Nice Hotel, where the entrance resembles a luxury car convention. Slipping past the sleek Lamborghinis and vintage Aston Martins, I make my way into the intimate yet bustling lobby, and after brief formalities, I’m whisked up to my exquisite Premium Panoramic Sea View Room With Terrace.

The Room

The Anantara is home to 151 rooms, including 38 sumptuous suites, but to really soak in the coveted location, you can’t go past these 34-sqm terrace rooms. It’s mid-day when I arrive, and the broad patio with its elegant couches is soaked in late summer sun, the ocean shimmering nearby.

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The hotel’s elegant styling is the result of a collaboration between award-winning David Collins Studio, architect Jean-Paul Gomis and interior specialists TBC Studio, who paid homage to the original hotel, which was opened in 1848, while also meeting the expectations of today’s luxury traveller. The moderately-sized room, dressed in soft pastel tones and Mediterranean textures with touches of bronze and wood, features a king-size bed, a broad workspace, plenty of storage space for those indulgent purchases from the boutiques on Avenue Jean Medecin and an elegant marble-lined bathroom with a walk-in rain shower.

I quickly abandon plans to roam the city and instead grab the room’s Bluetooth speaker, slip into shorts and spend the afternoon sipping Espressoda and soaking up the Vitamin D.

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Dining

Another element of the hotel that makes the most of its glorious coastal vistas is SEEN by Olivier, the hotel’s verdant rooftop restaurant, the spot in Nice for sundowner cocktails and contemporary Mediterranean fare devised by Portuguese chef-entrepreneur Olivier da Costa and diligently executed by executive chef Éric Brujan.

SEEN has a number of alter egos; it’s the sun-kissed setting for lingering breakfasts laced with some of the best pastries I’ve had in France, but as the sun begins to set and the coast’s beautiful come out to play, it becomes one of Nice’s most sought-after dining venues. At dusk, the rooftop lounge area serves a comprehensive list of classic and modern cocktails – I mimic the glittering clientele and order from the inventive Spritz menu – while the restaurant captures the flavours of the region with dishes like Bluefin tuna belly tartare with Aquitaine caviar; and Rigatoni with mushrooms and black truffle from the nearby village of Le Rouret.

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If you’re visiting during the weekend, be sure to book ahead for the Veuve Clicquot-soaked brunch, said to be the best in town.

Facilities

In addition to a modern fitness centre, the hotel also features modern sauna and hammam facilities and offers morning yoga and Pilates sessions on the roof. You’ll also want to book yourself in for a signature hot pebble and herb treatment (using oils laced with mimosa and ginger crafted by artisans from Mouans-Sartoux) at the Anantara Spa, home to a trio of treatment cabins, a serene relaxation lounge and a mani/pedi suite designed by Bastien Gonzalez.

Activities

The hotel also offers a host of fascinating private tours and activities, including free-diving lessons with Arthur Guérin-Boëri, the most titled French athlete in freediving history; private yacht excursions to Villefranche; coastal road trips behind the wheel of a vintage convertible; and even helicopter trips to Alba for truffle hunting.

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And if you’re looking to make the most of that summer sun, the hotel can set you up at its private slice of coastal paradise on the world-famous Baie des Anges, complete with dedicated sun loungers and parasols and a menu of chilled Champagnes.