July 11, 2026 — 5:00amFew destinations have shaped the modern idea of glamour quite like the French Riviera. In the 1950s and ’60s, Brigitte Bardot, Pablo Picasso and Grace Kelly headlined a rotating cast of movie stars, aristocrats and artists that turned the Cote d’Azur into the world’s most-desirable summer playground.COMO Le Beauvallon France has reopened after an extensive restoration.Saint-Tropez, propelled onto the international stage by Bardot’s 1956 film And God Created Woman, became shorthand for barefoot luxury long before the term existed.The Riviera never fell from favour, but its mystique gradually faded as mass tourism expanded and luxury travellers found new playgrounds from Ibiza to Mykonos and beyond.Today, some of hospitality’s biggest names are attempting to recapture that magic, restoring the grand hotels, cultural landmarks and architectural treasures that helped define the Riviera’s golden age.The latest example is COMO Le Beauvallon, a landmark Belle Epoque hotel overlooking the Gulf of Saint-Tropez. After an extensive restoration, it has reopened, featuring a new culinary partnership with multi-Michelin-starred chef Yannick Alleno.Sign up for the Traveller newsletterThe latest travel news, tips and inspiration delivered to your inbox. Sign up now.Debuting in 1914, Le Beauvallon was once among the Riviera’s most-celebrated addresses, hosting guests including Winston Churchill, the French writer Colette, and Audrey Hepburn. After years of decline and then closure, the property has been reimagined as a 42-room luxury retreat under Singapore-based COMO Hotels and Resorts.Poolside COMO Le Beauvallon France.Two-bedroom suite terrace.“The rebirth of COMO Le Beauvallon reflects our ambition to invest in France’s iconic destinations through a contemporary vision of hospitality,” says chief executive Olivier Jolivet. “Our collaboration with Yannick Alleno brings that long-term vision to life, transforming COMO Le Beauvallon into a true culinary destination.”All along the coast, more of the region’s most-storied properties are being restored. Operators are recognising the value in authenticity, architectural heritage and cultural cachet in a saturated luxury sector.In Nice, the acclaimed Hotel du Couvent has transformed a 17th-century convent into one of the Riviera’s most talked-about openings, embracing historic architecture and local character.Bringing the glamour back to Saint-Tropez.Elsewhere, Juan-les-Pins, once the Jazz Age playground of F. Scott Fitzgerald and the international elite, is experiencing its own renaissance through renewed investment in its waterfront and historic landmarks. Off the Var coast, Bendor Island recently reopened after a major restoration project designed to preserve its cultural heritage while introducing a new generation of luxury hospitality.Set on a private estate overlooking the Bay of Saint-Tropez, COMO Le Beauvallon occupies one of the region’s most-coveted positions. Guests can reach the town’s famous harbour via a complimentary eight-minute boat transfer, while yacht moorings offshore and on-site helicopter access acknowledge that today’s Riviera traveller arrives by very different means than the artists and writers who once flocked here.Yet, much of the appeal lies in the careful balancing of history and modernity.For the rebirth of Beauvallon Sur Mer, the property’s beach club and social hub, COMO and Alleno enlisted French designer Dorothee Delaye. Her interiors bridge Belle Epoque refinement with the carefree glamour of the 1950s Riviera, combining fluid wrought-iron curves, yacht-inspired marquetry and sun-drenched Mediterranean hues.Blue views from this Belle Epoch beauty.Open to guests and visitors, the venue evolves throughout the day, from a lively lunch destination into a late-night rendezvous animated by DJ sets, sea-facing dining terraces and rooftop views across the gulf. A striking 25-metre mosaic pool reserved for hotel guests sits alongside direct beach access, while landscaped gardens reveal one of the property’s most unexpected treasures: the 2002 Serpentine Gallery Summer Pavilion by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Toyo Ito.Relocated to the estate, the pavilion appears suspended between sea and sky and now serves as a dramatic backdrop for weddings and private events.The hotel’s 42 rooms and suites feature works from a contemporary art collection comprising more than 300 pieces, while the 28 suites enjoy sweeping views across the bay towards Saint-Tropez.Food, however, is a defining feature of the reopening.Saint-Tropez: A haunt for artists, movie stars and aristocrats.Alleno, one of France’s most celebrated chefs, oversees the culinary program across the property. At Beauvallon Sur Mer, Mediterranean dishes are served against a soundtrack of Riviera conviviality, while the Winter Garden restaurant, set beneath a luminous glass ceiling in the main hotel building, showcases Mediterranean cuisine with Nicoise influences alongside French classics. Nearby, the Riviera Terrace, designed by Paola Navone of Milan’s Otto Studio, offers cocktails and light dining with panoramic views over the gulf.The reopening also introduces COMO’s signature COMO Shambhala spa to the scene, proving that even the Riviera’s most glamorous escapes, once fuelled by champagne, cigarettes, black coffee and late nights, must now come with a wellness chaser.See comohotels.com/lebeauvallonJulietta Jameson is a freelance travel writer who would rather be in Rome, but her hometown Melbourne is a happy compromise.Connect via email.From our partners