Experience the glamour of the Côte Fleurie, home to a US film festival, a 1920s celebrity boardwalk and pretty colourful parasols. The fashionable resort is in the Calvados area of Normandy, where the Touques River meets the sea. Just two hours by car from Paris, it has boutiques, golden beaches, a large upmarket casino, horse racing tracks and polo matches. Deauville has its own airport, so you can fly direct, or take a train straight from London. It’s an ideal destination for a short chic beach break, with hotels that are defining features of the town, many being of architectural and historic interest.
Deauville, Normandy
Royal Barriere Hotel
(5 stars) Built just a year behind the other two hotels on our list, this palatial seven-floor residence looks right onto the beach. At the rear, a sunny terrace has a kidney-shaped pool as a focal point, with plush loungers and parasols. 259 bedrooms – some with sea-facing iron balconies – including a suite named after the screen legend Liz Taylor. All of the interior spaces are lavishly decorated, with the prolific use of royal red, chandeliers and heavy drapes with tiebacks. There are two restaurants, the larger and grander Cote Royal and the cosier, more intimate l’Etriet. Those wishing to get active can hire bikes for free or play tennis, and those wishing to relax can make use of the spa.
Deauville, Normandy
Hotel Barrière Le Normandy Deauville
(5 stars) Fully renovated in 2016, but originating from 1912, this Barrière group property sits close to the beach, tennis courts and a horse training track, with many rooms affording views of these attractions. A grand dame of Deauville, its picture-postcard exterior has ensured its place as a local landmark. The piano bar is a convivial spot for a cocktail and there’s a glass-roofed pool, a kids’ club, a brasserie, 271 bedrooms and a direct passage linking the casino. Hotel Barrière Le Normandy Deauville’s decor has Anglo-Norman and Belle-Epoque influences, with antique pieces, chandeliers and bucolic wallpapers.