The Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat, A Four Seasons Hotel is a famous five star luxury resort hotel, in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat on the French Riviera. The hotel obtained the "Palace de France" distinction, granted by the government for its excellence in service in 2011. In 2024, the Michelin Guide awarded its 3 Key distinction. One of the highest-ranking of all the many "palaces" that sprang up all over the French Riviera, the Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat overlooks the sea from the furthermost tip of the peninsula from which it takes its name.
History
At the turn of the 20th century, Cap-Ferrat was little more than a wilderness of rocks and dense scrubland, vegetation that only changed as real estate began to develop there. At the end of the 19th century, piece by piece, King Leopold II of Belgium purchased the peninsula's only wooded area, and then proceeded to expand his estate by buying up most of the vacant land around.
Shortly before 1900, Leopold sold part of his property to a company founded by a Mr. Péretmère, the son of a coachman from the north who had some savings of his own. He reserved six and a half hectares of the land for the hotel, whose construction began in 1908 with the two wings built at an open angle to each other, then the following year a loggia dining room and the large, central Rotonde were added. By then, the building had its final, distinctive silhouette, remarkably simple for the time. A little later, the Grand-Hôtel was bought by Madame Ferras, a widow and the grandmother of famous violinist Christian Ferras.
Twentieth century
The First World War broke out shortly after the new owner's arrival and the hotel became a hospital. In 1922, two professional hoteliers, Messrs Henri Dehouve and André Voyenne, acquired a majority shareholding and took over the running of the company. They were to remain in charge for over twenty years, a period marked not only by the Great Depression and the Second World War, but also by a complete revolution in holidaying habits.
Since it first became known in the second half of the 19th century, and up until the 1930s, the French Riviera remained almost exclusively a luxury destination. Most visitors were either wealthy individuals of independent means or royalty from northern countries, in particular England and Russia. They came only in winter and for long visits.
Rooms and suites
As of 1 May 2009, the Grand Hotel du Cap Ferrat contains 74 rooms (including 24 suites and the Penthouse) and a 5500 sqft presidential suite, the Villa Rose-Pierre with its sea-view and pine grove.
Restaurants
The Grand-Hôtel serves food from three locations: at the Michelin 1-star Le Cap Gastronomic Restaurant,[1] at La Véranda on the hotel's terrace overlooking the Mediterranean and shaded by Aleppo pines, or at the Club Dauphin Restaurant next to the pool.[2]
Vintage wines
The Grand-Hotel du Cap-Ferrat maintains a collection of well-known vintage wines:
- 140 vintage bottles of Château d'Yquem dating from 1854 to 2003
- 38 vintage bottles of Château Lafite Rothschild dating from 1799 to 2003
Music Festival
The Grand-Hotel du Cap-Ferrat Music Festival Artistic director : Michael Desjardins
The Festival is an up-to-date version of the tradition of salon music, which dates back to centuries past, and of the jazz clubs and Parisian café-theatres where audiences would rub shoulders with the artists. The Rotonde, designed by Gustave Eiffel, is a comfortable venue with outstanding acoustics. The programme spans every genre of vocal and instrumental music from all eras: opera, classical music, baroque music, film soundtracks, international variety, jazz, traditional music, and first performances of original works of contemporary music.
External links
References
- Le Cap, MICHELIN 2021 MICHELIN Guide, 2021, retrieved 23 October 2021^
- Grand-Hotel du Cap-Ferrat DINING Grand-Hotel du Cap-Ferrat, 2021, retrieved 23 October 2021^