New Hotel of Marseille

"With its bold graphics and contemporary art, the 100-room New Hotel injects South Beach style into this old port city. Herb gardens that supply the restaurant's Alain Ducasse–trained chef, Jérôme Polio, line the front steps and establish the hotel’s studied character. The sleek reception area was created from a handsome nineteenth-century building, and the adjacent art-filled bar and restaurant overlook a wood-decked pool. Compact white guest rooms are dominated with colorful artwork (including blown-up photos of sixties model Twiggy), wood furniture is stained battleship gray, and bathrooms are stocked with La Compagnie de Provence Marseille’s toiletries based on the city’s famous olive oil soap. The friendly staff, who wear black uniforms with lettering that identifies their duties add to the hotel’s merry atmosphere. Though not in the city center, the quiet residential location at the entrance to Marseille’s port is convenient—a downtown bus stops at the front door, and the Plage des Catalans is a five-minute walk away."