17 Best Hotels in the South of France

"You’d be forgiven for walking right past one of France’s most talked-about openings of the past few years. Set in the Marseille fishing neighborhood of Les Goudes, on the edge of the Calanques National Park, this is classic business-up-front, party-in-the-back territory. The former scuba-diving centre once frequented by conservationist Jacques Cousteau is not only facing the sea, it’s practically in it. Those who come without a swimsuit for a cocktail on the rocks—as in actual rocks—consider yourself forewarned: you will get splashed. Inside, a subtle Seventies dive-school theme flows throughout: a wooden beaded curtain in the restaurant; rough-hewn ceramic vases that look as if they were recovered from an ancient shipwreck; Fernand Léger flame-shaped wall lamps. But that’s all part of the appeal of this five-bedroom hotel and restaurant, founded by a self-dubbed friends collective of design and hospitality veterans, which has fast become the hangout for a creative set; staying here is an instant shortcut to the South of France’s hippest scene. —Sara Lieberman" - Lanie Goodman, Sarah James