Hi Hotel ~ Nice, France

The term design hotel has found wide currency in recent years, and has devolved into a vague superlative, almost without referent. Today any hotel built after 1900 calls itself a design hotel, as though in opposition to those hotels which were not designed but which assembled themselves, of their own free will, from free-floating clusters of furniture, bedding, and masonry.

So it may strain the reader's patience when we refer to Hi Hotel as a design hotel, but there is really no more concise way to put it. Every aspect of the Hi Hotel, from the décor to the toiletries, was designed by Matali Crasset, a Philippe Starck protegé, and the style is somewhat familiar to those who have seen Starck's work — but somehow even more whimsical, more vibrant. A variety of schemes come in a variety of colors, from “White & White,” which resembles a hospital room, to “Digital,” whose walls are covered in foot-high pixels of blue and green, and “Monospace,” in bands of blue, white, and red.

The location is certainly no less striking than the hotel itself — just a block from the storied Promenade des Anglais, and surrounded by restaurants. The cuisine here is truly unique, with more than a little Italian influence, as Nice was part of Sardinia until 1860. Nice has more galleries and museums than any French city besides Paris, and a remarkable veriety of architectural styles. Shops and cafés abound, of course, and the Baie des Anges is a short walk away. And honestly, if the phrase Côte d'Azur didn't immediately paint a picture in your mind, you wouldn't have read this far in the first place.

3 Avenue des Fleurs Nice, France 38 Rooms
Rates from €180.00

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