The Maybourne Riviera – a glass eyrie above Monaco

On a rocky spur between Menton and Monaco, The Maybourne Riviera occupies ground that has watched over this stretch of coast for decades. It opened in 2021 on the site of the former Vista Palace hotel, bought in 2014 and rebuilt over six years as the Maybourne Hotel Group's first property outside the United Kingdom. Inside, a sculpture by Louise Bourgeois hangs above the lobby. The MICHELIN Guide awards The Maybourne Riviera Two MICHELIN Keys. With 69 rooms and suites, several dining rooms overseen by chefs including Jean-Georges Vongerichten, and a clifftop spa, it belongs to a small group of hotels that treat the Riviera's light and drop as part of the architecture itself.

01The house

The previous hotel was bought in 2014 by former PSG owner Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, and after six years of construction the Maybourne Riviera hotel in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin was complete, set to open its doors later in the summer of 2021. Opened in 2021, The Maybourne Riviera is the first property outside the UK for the Maybourne Hotel Group, built on a site formerly home to the Vista Palace Hotel, entirely reimagined for the new icon.

The architecture is the work of Jean-Michel Wilmotte, whose approach enhances the site's dramatic topography, building the structure into the cliffside in terraced levels that follow the natural contours of the land. The interiors were shared between several studios: rooms designed by the London-based firm Rigby & Rigby, and designers Michelle Wu, Pierre Yovanovitch, and Bryan O'Sullivan. A monumental sculpture by Louise Bourgeois is suspended from the lobby ceiling, the first artwork guests encounter on arrival.

02Rooms and suites

The hotel counts 45 rooms and 24 suites, with the duplex suites fitted with private infinity pools, all facing the Mediterranean through floor-to-ceiling glass. Décor in the suites is inspired by former local residents Le Corbusier and Coco Chanel, a reference that threads through the furniture, palette and art on every floor. Guests share one further amenity regardless of category: a photogenic infinity pool that appears suspended above the Monaco coastline.

Insider tip

Around 35 minutes from Nice airport and minutes from Monaco by road along the Grande Corniche.

03Where to eat

The top-floor restaurant that made the hotel's reputation has changed chef. Ceto, the marine-focused dining room opened by Mauro Colagreco, has closed and been replaced by abc kitchens riviera. Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten has transformed the top floor into abc kitchens riviera, a concept inspired by his famous New York addresses, making its Côte d'Azur debut, with a modern vision of French cuisine built on light broths, vegetable juices and herb-infused vinaigrettes rather than heavy sauces.

On the ground floor, The Riviera Restaurant opened on 22 September, offering regional gastronomy in its simplest form, available for lunch, dinner, snacks or coffee throughout the day. By the pool, the hotel's own chef presents a cuisine to share at La Piscine next to the infinity pool, while down at the water's edge, the beach club La Môme Riviera is a destination for relaxed dining next to the sea, with fresh and local seafood dishes and a drinks menu of refreshing cocktails.

04The bar

The bar Le 300, named after its altitude above sea level, is a true ode to Mediterranean living. It is the kind of room built for a single, unhurried cocktail before dinner, with the Mediterranean laid out below as the only decoration that matters.

05Spa and wellbeing

Surrenne Riviera is The Maybourne Riviera's next-generation wellbeing and longevity destination, an immersive world where sea meets sky. The hotel develops this wellness axis through a spa signed by André Fu, set among treatment rooms, a gym, studios for Pilates and yoga, and contrast-therapy spaces with sauna, hammam and cold plunge. The infinity pool itself remains the simplest form of therapy on offer, appearing suspended above the Monaco coastline from sunrise to close.

06The neighbourhood

The hotel sits in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, off-the-radar between Menton and Monaco, where architects Eileen Gray and Le Corbusier built their Modernist beach huts, which can still be visited, and where Coco Chanel hosted parties at her villa La Pausa, attended by Cocteau, Picasso and Churchill. Monaco itself is a short drive away, making the hotel as useful for a Grand Prix weekend as for a quiet week of swimming and hiking the coastal path below the cliff.

07Making the most of a stay

Beyond the restaurants and spa, the hotel runs a programme of complimentary extras for guests: fitness classes facing the sea, cooking workshops built around Riviera produce, and guided hikes along the clifftop paths, alongside transfers into Monaco and to Nice airport. In-room dining runs around the clock, and private dining rooms with sea views can be booked for small celebrations, making it as practical for a business dinner as for an anniversary.

For a weekend. For a lifetime.