There are 31 Palace hotels in France

In 2010, France’s Ministry of Tourism introduced a new category of hotel that would be recognized as better than 5 star: Palace Status. If you see this demarkation on the outside of a hotel, rest assured, you are staying in the very best of the best. In fact, only 31 hotels across the whole of France have earned the honor.  While 5 star hotels offer bilingual services, spa facilities, concierge, etc – Palace hotels offer those certain “je ne sais quoi” factors such as history of the hotel site, environmental policy, character, et al. Check out the list, and you’ll certainly see that it is chalked full of the most famous and esteemed hotels France has to offer, and unless I’m overlooking one, the only redeemable with points is the Park Hyatt Paris.

The 31 hotels currently deemed “Palace” worthy:

1. Hôtel du Palais – Biarritz (Pays Basque)
2. Hôtel Le Park Hyatt Paris Vendôme – Paris
   • Both of these hotels are bookable with Hyatt points
3. Hôtel Les Airelles – Courchevel (Alps)
4. Hôtel Berrière Les Neiges
5. Hôtel L’Apogee – Courchevel
6. Hôtel Le Cheval Blanc – Courchevel (Alps)
7. Hôtel Le Bristol – Paris
8. Four Seasons Hotel George V – Paris
9. Hôtel Lutétia – Paris
10. Hôtel Le Meurice – Paris
11. Hôtel Le Plaza Athénée – Paris
12. Hôtel Le Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat, a Four Seasons Hotel – Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat (Côte d’Azur)
13. Hôtel La Réserve – Ramatuelle (Provence)
14. Hôtel Le Byblos – Saint-Tropez (Provence)
15. Le Château de La Messardière – Saint-Tropez (Provence)
16. Le Royal Monceau – Paris
17. Shangri-La Hotel– Paris
18. Mandarin Oriental – Paris
19. Hôtel Le K2 – Courchevel (Alps)
20. La Réserve Paris – Paris
21. The Peninsula – Paris
22. Le Royal Evian – Evian-les-Bains (Alps)
23. Le Cap-Eden-Rock – Antibes (Côte d’Azur)
24. La Bastide de Gordes – Gordes (Vaucluse)
25. Les Sources de Caudalie – Martillac (Gironde)
26. Les Prés d’Eugénie – Eugénie-les-Bains (Landes)
27. Cheval Blanc St-Barth Isle de France – Saint-Barthélémy Island
28. Byblos Saint-Tropez
29. Château de la Messardière – Saint Tropez
30. Château de Saint-Martin & Spa –Vence
31. Villa La Coste – Le Puy-Sainte-Réparade

How does a hotel gain Palace status in France?

It’s a two phase process whereby the ministry of tourism awards the distinction:

• an initial investigation phase conducted by ATOUT FRANCE based on objective eligibility criteria. These mandatory criteria include having the following available to guests: fitness area, spa, multilingual team, concierge service and more.

• an evaluation phase is conducted by an experienced panel, based on a set of assessment criteria including: location, appearance, history of the site, character of the establishment, involvement of staff in seeking excellence, gourmet restaurants, respectful environmental policy, and more.

Booking the Park Hyatt Paris or Hôtel du Palais Biarritz with World of Hyatt points

If you’re looking to score a deal, search for the Park Hyatt Paris in calendar mode. Remember both Chase Ultimate Rewards and Bilt Rewards are transfer partners of Hyatt and 35k would be the off peak rate at category 8 hotels.

Personally I love visiting Paris in the winter – the temps don’t get too cold, the city is gorgeously dressed for Christmas, and it’s far less touristy. Just be prepared for some cloudy days, sporadic rain or even some snow.

And here is the Hôtel du PalaisBiarritz which is a category 7 hotel… starting late October through Feb 25k a night. You will find 30k nights in June/Sept as well.