Hotel Baumaniere les Baux de Provence

Hotel Baumaniere les Baux de Provence

At the foot of the rock of Les Baux-de-Provence, where a citadel dominates natural sites of rare beauty and the village below is classified among the most beautiful in France, Hotel Baumanière occupies a landscape the estate itself describes as wild and peaceful. Its restaurant, L'Oustau de Baumanière, was founded in 1945 and now holds three Michelin stars, a distinction this 54-room, two-floor property does not share with any neighbor. A second restaurant, La Cabro d'Or, serves Provençal cooking on a terrace shaded by mulberry trees; the two keep different weekly closing days, so evenings here are built around what's on-site rather than a trip into town. Guests move between an indoor pool, an outdoor pool, a sauna and steam room at the spa, a tennis court, and a library that rewards slow mornings. Rooms keep to bathrobes, minibars and flat-screen televisions rather than showy decor, and a bike can be borrowed for rides out toward the Alpilles Regional Natural Park or the Carrières de Lumières nearby. Families are welcome, and so are pets, though both extra beds and pets carry nightly surcharges. This suits people who plan a trip around a table and don't mind paying for cooked-to-order breakfast and a per-person city tax on top; it will frustrate anyone wanting spontaneity, since the parking is valet-run and the restaurants require reservations booked directly by phone. Relais & Château membership tells you what kind of place this is: small, independently run, built on craft rather than scale. What stays with you afterward is not the pool but the fact that dinner, for once, is the reason to come. At the foot of Les Baux-de-Provence, Hotel Baumanière's restaurant, L'Oustau de Baumanière, holds three Michelin stars, a rarity among hotels. Expect pools, spa treatments, and quiet village mornings rather than nightlife. Pets and children are welcome, both for a nightly surcharge.