A stately silhouette, red-brick façades, slate mansard roofs… The Hôtel du Palais Biarritz, perched above the beauty of La Grande Plage in the French town of Biarritz, stands as a testament to the sediment of time: today a luxury hotel operated by the Hyatt chain; yesterday a summer indulgence of French imperial power.
Indeed, to understand the architecture of the Hôtel du Palais Biarritz, one must travel back to 1854. Napoleon III, then “Emperor of the French”, ordered the construction of a summer residence for his wife, Empress Eugénie de Montijo, Granada-born and nostalgic for Spain. So was born Villa Eugénie, a Neo-Gothic building which, although greatly surpassed in scale by the present hotel, laid the foundations of what it would become.
After the fall of the Empire, the villa was sold in 1881 and converted first into a casino and later into a hotel. However, a devastating fire destroyed the building on 1st February 1903. It was then that the architect Édouard-Jean Niermans, a key figure of the Belle Époque, entered the scene, overseeing the reconstruction between 1903 and 1905.
The imprint of architect Niermans: a nod to the past with a modern spirit
Niermans opted for an intelligent solution: he preserved the exterior walls of the original villa, which became the central core of the new design; at the same time, he reproduced on the façades the original Neo-Gothic style reminiscent of Louis XIII. The interior, however, represented a genuine revolution for its time, with the use of reinforced concrete, then an innovative material. The solidity and spatial flexibility it afforded enabled the creation of a generous layout comprising 120 rooms. In honour of Eugénie de Montijo, the overall plan of the building adopted — with the addition of two new wings to the remains of Villa Eugénie — the shape of the letter “E”.
The result is a building of harmonious façades and roofs, asserting a verticality that seems almost a proud gesture of its former magnificence — listed as a Historic Monument of France since 1993 — with a prominent glazed rotunda overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and housing the main restaurant. The combination of respect for tradition on the exterior and technical boldness within is one of the most characteristic — and, in our view, most compelling — features of the Hôtel du Palais Biarritz.
An interior design that narrates its past
Upon crossing the threshold, one does not encounter a museum, but a carefully proportioned and coherently curated space. Architect Philippe Belloir was responsible for harmonising a series of recent renovations, without relinquishing the preservation of the building’s atmosphere. The interior décor, with its mouldings, mirrors and crystal chandeliers, maintains an elegance free from the excess often associated with early 20th-century eclecticism. Particularly noteworthy are the beautiful murals in the restaurant dining room, depicting the myth of Jason and the Golden Fleece, painted by Paul Gervais. The furnishings, meanwhile, consist of restored pieces or, where necessary, artisanal reproductions to preserve the overall coherence of the ensemble.
A new chapter: restoration and the hotel today
Between 2018 and 2022, the hotel underwent its most recent major transformation, with an investment of close to €70 million. The works, overseen by heritage architect Isabelle Joly and the interior design studio Atelier COS, were surgical in approach. Technical installations were entirely renewed, and comfort levels in the 86 rooms and 56 suites were upgraded. The Spa Imperial, developed in collaboration with Guerlain, occupies 3,000 m² in a separate area — a contemporary intervention that engages in dialogue with the main building without competing with it.
Today, the municipality of Biarritz is the majority owner of the Hôtel du Palais Biarritz, alongside the JCDecaux group and the Caisse des Dépôts, while its operation, as mentioned at the outset, is managed by Hyatt. It is the only establishment on France’s Atlantic coast to hold the official “Palace” distinction, a recognition awarded in 2011 and reaffirmed following its respectful and functional refurbishment. In short, a building that evolved from the dream of an empress into a 21st-century hospitality business — without ever losing its soul.
Sources: Wikipedia 1, Wikipedia 2, Vanity Fair España, Fundación Napoleón, Journal des Palaces, Hôtel du Palais Biarritz.
Images: Hôtel du Palais Biarritz, Guerlain.
