Château de la Chèvre d'Or

Château de la Chèvre d'Or Review

Giving substance to Riviera fairy tales, this extraordinary Xanadu seems to sit just below cloud level like a Hilton penthouse, medieval-style. The "château of the Golden Goat" is actually an entire stretch of the village, streets and all, bordered by gardens that hang to the mountainside in nearly Babylonian style. The fanciest guest rooms come replete with stone boulder walls, peasant-luxe fireplaces, faux 15th-century panel paintings, and chandeliered rock-grotto bathrooms, but nearly all have exposed stone and exposed beams (even the cheapest have views over Èze's charming tile roofs). No fewer than three restaurants, ranging from the nicely affordable grill to the haute gastronomique grand dining room with its panoramic view, spoil you for choice. Children are in heaven with the hotel's fabulous Chicken in Coca-Cola sauce (€30). The swimming pool alone, clinging like a swallow's nest to the hillside, may justify the investment, as do the liveried footmen who greet you at the village entrance to wave you, VIP-style, past the cattle drive of tourists, or the breakfast on the spectacular terrace, which seems to levitate over the bay.