Hôtel Château de La Chèvre d’Or

You don’t so much arrive at La Chèvre d’Or as wander into it. A discreet stone passage in Èze leads to what appears to be another village lane. And, in a way, it is. The hotel occupies 45 rooms and suites scattered among medieval houses, connected by narrow passages, ancient staircases and terraces perched some 400 metres above the Mediterranean. It began in 1953, when hotelier Robert Wolf opened a restaurant in a small château. Walt Disney reportedly stayed long enough to suggest buying the neighbouring houses and turning them into guestrooms. Wolf took his advice, and the hotel has been growing into the village ever since. One imagines Disney would have appreciated the result.

The Golden Goat has an older story. Croatian violinist Zlatko Baloković, who restored the property between the wars, gave it its unusual name. Local legends involve golden goats, hidden money and stone walls. The village agrees on the goat. The details remain negotiable. The rooms are wonderfully inconsistent. Some favour gilded mirrors and extravagant bathrooms; others offer pale contemporary interiors and private infinity pools. Nietzsche has a suite named after him, complete with a private pool. The philosopher himself had to settle for the steep coastal path below.

At the highest point, the two Michelin starred restaurant serves ambitious French cuisine against a panorama stretching towards Monaco. Les Remparts and Café du Jardin provide more relaxed alternatives, with terraces that could easily distract from lunch. With three Michelin Keys, La Chèvre d’Or is among France’s most distinguished hotels. Yet its greatest pleasure is wandering through an ancient village and finding that an ordinary looking stone doorway opens onto an extraordinary view.