Bastille Day is more than France’s national celebration. It is also an opportunity to experience the country’s enduring art de vivre — a philosophy where gastronomy, hospitality, culture and design come together to define everyday luxury. From palace hotels that have welcomed royalty and couturiers to Michelin-starred restaurants reinterpreting French cuisine, and museums where centuries of artistic heritage meet contemporary creativity, France continues to evolve without losing sight of its traditions. This Bastille Day, discover the destinations that best embody the evolving spirit of French luxury.

Luxury Hotels in France

The Ritz, Paris

Recognised as one of the most iconic hotels in France, the Ritz Paris was established in 1898 — being the first hotel in Europe to provide electricity, telephones and en-suite private bathrooms in every room. It was a revolutionised hospitality in the late 1800s, located on the glamorous Place Vendôme, the Ritz Paris is also tied to historical icons like Coco Chanel and Ernest Hemingway. Staying at the Ritz Paris was considered a symbol of high society and luxury.

The hotel features personalised suites from these cultural legends who considered the Ritz their “second home,” such as the famous Coco Chanel suite that features interiors that match her original Asian lacquer and gilded mirror aesthetic and the imperial suite that is said to mimic Marie Antoinette’s bedroom at Versailles. Aside from that, there is also the Hemingway Bar that is a tribute to the author who wrote, “When I dream of afterlife in heaven, the action always takes place in the Paris Ritz”.

Address: 15 Pl. Vendôme, 75001 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

Le Meurice, Paris 

Sitting directly between Place de la Concorde and the Louvre, Le Meurice is another legendary 5-star palace hotel located at 228 rue de Rivoli. Established in 1815, the hotel served as a haven for many artists and royalty such as Salvador Dali, Picasso and even Queen Victoria herself. Le Meurice is part of the Dorchester Collection with interiors that are a blend of 18th-century Versailles opulence and modern contemporary designs. It features gilded mouldings, antique mirrors and crystal chandeliers. Other than that, Le Meurice has 160 rooms, the Valmont spa and is home to the popular pastry chef, Cedric Grolet whose hyper-realistic fruit desserts and baked goods have gone viral.

Address: 228 Rue de Rivoli, 75001 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

Hôtel Plaza Athénée, Paris 

The famed Hôtel Plaza Athénée stands out for its century-long ties with haute couture, stunning view of the Eiffel Tower and signature decor of red awnings and ivy. Since opening in 1913, Hôtel Plaza Athénée has attracted many iconic figures from the Monaco Princess, Grace Kelly to the actress and singer, Marlene Dietrich. Known for its blend of classic Parisian aesthetics with art deco glamour, the hotel features Louis XVI-inspired decor with gilded mirrors and silk drapes, while some of their renovated spaces feature modern, bright coloured palettes. What makes Hôtel Plaza Athénée particularly notable in pop culture is its feature on major television and film productions such as Sex and the City and The Devil Wears Prada. 

The hotel’s connection to haute couture began when Christian Dior opened his fashion house directly across the street from the hotel in 1947, as he was inspired by the hotel’s clientele — elegant and cosmopolitan. He loved Hôtel Plaza Athénée, seeing it as one of the most romantic hotels in Paris and thought of it as his second home, where he even included creations called Plaza and Athénée in his first collection.

Address: 25 Av. Montaigne, 75008 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

Up-and-Coming Luxury Hotels in France 

L’Aventure Hotel, Paris 

Designed by Vincent Darre and Martin Bruddnizki, the luxurious 5-star hotel L’Aventure was established in early 2026. The hotel features 15 rooms and is located on Avenue Victor Hugo, just a short distance away from the Arc de Triomphe. The decor features hand-painted surrealist frescoes and eccentric furniture that transition from Haussmannian classic to 1970s aesthetics. L’Aventure also houses a restaurant and nightclub, serving French culinary favourites such as paccheri rigati with caviar, steak tartare maki and seabags carpaccio while the nightclub is known for its deep house music and intimate vibes. While still relatively new, L’Aventure is raved for its location, artistic design and lively dining experiences.

Address: 4 Av. Victor Hugo, 75116 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

Cheval Blanc, Paris

Cheval Blanc Paris is a luxury urban hotel with an intimate presence, with only 72 rooms and suites — this hotel is situated in the historic Art Déco La Samaritaine building on the edge of the Seine. Having opened its doors in 2021, Cheval Blanc was designed by Peter Marino and features art deco decor and French craftsmanship — bronzed screens, straw-marquetry walls and leather-wrapped elevators. It is also part of the LVMH collection and features a Seine river view and amenities such as the Dior Spa, a 100-foot indoor infinity pool and a three-star Michelin restaurant, Plentiude managed by chef Arnaud Donckele.

Address: 8 Quai du Louvre, 75001 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

Bvlgari Hotel, Paris

A name that is highly known in the world of fashion and luxury, Bvlgari opened another hotel in the heart of the golden triangle on Avenue George V in 2021. The hotel features 76 rooms and a two story penthouse that has its own private rooftop garden, kitchen and a 360 degree view of the Eiffel Tower and Sacre-Coeur. 

Designed by Antonio Citterio Patrici Viel and Valode & Pistre, the hotel exterior features renaissance style windows and the brand’s signature Parents motif. Bvlgari Hotel Paris shares the same colour palette and textures as the other existing Bvlgari hotels: marble, silk wall coverings, granite, tapestries and varnished eucalyptus woodwork including the signature eight-point star in the reception area.

The hotel also features a Milanese restaurant, II Ristorante by Niko Romito, a 24/7 butler service for selective suites and the Bulgari spa that spans across two floors, Vicenza stone decor and nine treatment rooms.

Address: 30 Av. George V, 75008 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

Legendary Restaurants in France

L’Ambroisie, Paris

In the southwestern corner of the historic Place de Vosges, L’Ambroisie is considered the knight of French haute cuisine — founded by chef Bernard Pacaud in 1981, the restaurant serves purely traditional French haute cuisine and actively rejects every single modern culinary trend. It offers a deeply traditional, opulent 1980s dining experience where guests are greeted with crystal chandeliers and 18th-century tapestries. Their menu relies heavily on immaculate execution and expensive ingredients which are celebrated through their signature dishes such as the feuillantine de langoustine and a sublime dark chocolate tart. 

Address:  Pl. des Vosges, 75004 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

La Tour d’Argent, Paris

Known as one of the oldest restaurants in Paris and also served as a major inspiration to the popular animated film, Ratatouille is La Tour d’Argent. With a 400-year-old history, it is believed to be one of the first places to introduce the fork to the French aristocracy and dining etiquette. The restaurant is particularly famed for its signature pressed duck, also known as canard à la presse, where it is served in a two-course meal — the first being the roasted breast with a rich sauce au sang and the second being the duck legs served as a confit which is typically accompanied by seasonal vegetables. Aside from that, La Tour d’Argent also offers a four-course lunch and seasonal evening tasting menus.

Designed by architect Franklin Azzi, it features a sixth-floor dining room with a kinetic ceiling made of aluminium slats, carpet inspired by the Seine River and a modern fresco by artist Antoine Carbonne. Outside of the main dining room, they also have an unrivalled wine cellar that holds over 300,000 bottles and an extensive wine menu.

Address: 15 Quai de la Tournelle, 75005 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

L’Hôtel Costes Restaurant, Paris

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Established in 1995 and located in the heart of the 1st arrondissement, L’Hotel Costes Restaurant is a 5-star restaurant. The founders, Jean-Louis Costes and Gilbert Costes, transformed the historic property with the help of the architect, Jacques Garcia — allowing it to become an iconic Parisian institution known for their intimate velvet rooms, Italian-style courtyard and trendy atmosphere. What makes it special is their blend of traditional French gastronomy with international flavours with dishes such as the “weeping” tiger beef, spicy avocado and tuna tartare and creamy prawn risotto.

Address: 7 Rue de Castiglione, 75001 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

Up-And-Coming Restaurants in France

Plénitude, Paris

Plénitude sits on the first floor of the LVMH-owned luxury boutique hotel, Cheval Blanc Paris. Having only opened in 2021, the restaurant garnered three Michelin stars in 2022 and has earned the highest international accolade for its dining experience with the Gin Mare Art of Hospitality title. The split-level dining room offers a view of the River Seine while the interiors are decorated with a calming palette of cream, beige, off-white and warm wood tones that are balanced with vibrant and striking accents.

Established by Chef Arnaud Donckele, one of France’s most accomplished cooks — his main focus is on sauces being the centre point of each dish. Each dish on the menu includes a sauce and guests are invited to taste each complex, layered sauce on their own before combining it with the dish itself. Plénitude has a seven-course tasting menu that includes sardine served with a piquant green eye sauce, plump langoustine that comes with an airy sabayon. Aside from that, diners can take a detour after the main course into a “secret” cheese cave where they can select from rare vintage crockery and choose their desired fromage where they take back with them to their table.

Address: 8 Quai du Louvre, 75001 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

AM par Alexandre Mazzia

Tucked away on a residential Marseille street, AM Par Alexandre Mazzia is a three-Michelin-star restaurant known for its defiance against traditional French fine dining. Founded by chef Alexandre Mazzia, it holds only 24 seats and blends French culinary techniques with African influences — inspired by the chef’s childhood in Congo. It is an intimate, minimalistic restaurant, with an open-concept kitchen where almost all tables have a live view of the chefs — made with the intention for guests to keep their focus entirely on the culinary experience. Some of their signature dishes include the courgette flowers in a green satay and saffron beurre blanc and crystallised seaweed with bottarga, which form part of what Alexandre calls “cuisine of emotion”.  Outside of that, their dinner features an extensive tasting menu of up to 40 small dishes that include “Grand Voyage” and “Allons plus loins”.

Address: 9 Rue François Rocca, 13008 Marseille, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

Prévelle, Paris

After more than twenty years of working in the highest culinary circles, notably at Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée, Roman Meder opened Prévelle in 2025. It stands out for its non-traditional approach to French fine dining. Vegetables and fruits are the main stars — every dish begins with a vegetable or fruit where the chefs have spent time figuring out different ways of roasting, fermenting and extracting juices from root vegetables and utilising the Maillard reaction, whereas protein is treated more as a condiment to accompany it.

Their menu structure includes a seasonal tasting menu or multi-course prix fixe options such as a 2-course lunch or 3-course dinner showcasing unexpected local ingredients. They also feature a wide range of vintage wine and flavours, carefully selected by Roamin Meder and his co-founder, Alexandre Montre. The name Prévelle is named after La Combe au Prevelle, a tiny hamlet in eastern France where Meder grew up — this serves as a bridge between his childhood memories and his high-society culinary journey.

Address: 34 Rue Saint-Dominique, 75007 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here

Iconic Museums in France

Musée d’Orsay, Paris

What was once almost demolished, the French government repurposed the abandoned building into a museum dedicated to French art in 1986. The museum itself has a massive open nave and glass ceiling roof, housing some of the most legendary works known: Van Gogh, Monet, Renoir, Cezanne and Manet. It is also known to be the world’s largest collection of impressionist and post-impressionist artworks where guests can view them in a fluid, changing sunlight environment due to the glass roof on the central hall.

Address: Esplanade Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, 75007 Paris, France

For more information and bookings,click here.

Palace of Versailles

The Palace of Versailles is more than just a museum of pretty things but a blueprint of history. Originally built in 1623 that expanded into a royal residence over the following decade — it was transformed into a museum of the history of France by King Louis-Philippe in 1837. Instead of it being a museum built to display art, the space itself is the “art” in speaking — from the rooms where the monarchy used to stay to paintings, tapestries and sculptures presented in their original settings. What it is also particularly famed for is the hall of mirrors ceiling where it features 30 massive vaulted paintings by Charles Le Brun of Louis XIV’s early military victories over Spain and Germany.

Address: Place d’Armes, 78000 Versailles, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

Musée de l’Orangerie, Paris

Originally built in 1852 by Napoleon III as a winter shelter for the Tuileries Palace orange trees, Musée de l’Orangerie is one of France’s most known museums where it was chosen by Claude Monet to house his momental Water Lilies (Nymphéas) murals. It holds the world’s most definitive collection of dream-like portraits by Marie Laurencin and the colourful landscapes of Henri Rousseau.

Address: Jardin des Tuileries, 75001 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

New and Upcoming Museums in France

Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris

Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain is the first corporate foundation in France dedicated to contemporary art — established in 1984, the Foundation Cartier serves as a place for discussion and artistic experimentation that places contemporary art in all shapes and forms aimed to be accessible to the public. From what used to be in the relatively quiet streets of Montparnasse, it was moved to a grand, monumental 1855 building directly across from the Louvre. The space itself features five moving platforms that can be mechanically raised or lowered to eleven different heights and the architecture of each exhibition changes, giving it an infinite variety of space that matches the art it is exhibiting.Since its opening, it has exhibited artists from all walks of life, breaking down the barriers between practices and fields of thoughts. 

Address: 2 Pl. du Palais Royal, 75001 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

The Palais de Tokyo, Paris

Standing as Europe’s largest contemporary art center, Palais de Tokyo operates differently from traditional museums. Originally built for the 1937 international exposition, its 2012 renovations by Pritzker prize winning architects, Location and Vassal stripped the building down to its original concrete which gives it a raw and unfinished aesthetic. The space itself houses two separate museums: the Musee d’art moderne de la Ville de Paris and the Musee national d’art moderne; however it has no permanent collection and focuses on rotating schedules of exhibitions — allowing the space to be constantly refreshed with emerging and international artists. 

It is also famed for its late operation hours, up until midnight compared to other galleries — it doesn’t operate just as a gallery but a space where visitors can wander around, relax on the terraces that overlook the Eiffel Tower or enjoy its lively restaurants and bookshops.

Address: 13 Av. du Président Wilson, 75116 Paris, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

Centre Pompidou-Metz: Metz, France

Beyond the borders of Paris, there sits Centre Pompidou-Metz in the northeast region of France. Designed by Shigeru Ban, the exterior features a colossal, tent-like wooden roof inspired by a traditional Chinese bamboo hat and covered in translucent white canopy. It is known for being the first cultural institution to be decentralised, the first to shatter French high culture where everything belonged in the capital.

Similar to Palais de Tokyo, they do not have a permanent collection and operate on temporary rotating exhibitions every few months however, art is everywhere — inside, outside and anything it can be placed.

Address: 1 Parv. des Droits de l’Homme CS 90490, 57000 Metz, France

For more information and bookings, click here.

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