Old-World French Summer: Hôtel La Ponche in Saint-Tropez

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Where would we stay if we were attending this year’s Festival de Cannes? In our imaginations, its Hôtel La Ponche, brand-new, old-world lodgings in nearby Saint-Tropez on the French Riviera. Though the hotel only opened in June, it has a storied history: In a past life, it welcomed the likes of Picasso, Jean-Paul Sartre, and Simone de Beauvoir; And God Created Woman, starring Brigitte Bardot, was filmed on the beach out front.

Now, after eight months of renovations, and with new interiors by the designer Fabrizio Casiraghi, its 21 guest rooms are available for stays. Take a (virtual) tour:

Photography courtesy of Hôtel La Ponche.

the sunny exterior. hôtel la ponche was once run by the parents of simone duck 9 — Above: The sunny exterior. Hôtel La Ponche was once run by the parents of Simone Duckstein (this is where the fishermen of Saint-Tropez gathered to celebrate the end of World War II), then by Simone herself, who welcomed movie stars who mingled in the guest rooms (“only faithful to their room number,” according to Simone). The spirit of the hotel remains intact; Simone continues on as its ambassador.

the summery entry, with checkered floors and bright yellow light fixtures. 10 — Above: The summery entry, with checkered floors and bright yellow light fixtures.

How to go about updating an iconic space? Casiraghi, the of-the-moment Paris-based designer, approached it with an entire narrative in mind, according to the lodgings: “Here it is: He is a man in his forties, living in Paris, in the 16th or the 8th district. He inherits his grandmother’s house. So he is going to make it a vacation home for his friends. He will hunt here and there for objects, armchairs, lights, without ulterior motive. Just thinking of the South, lazing about, la dolce vita. A bit of Capri, a little Positano. But above all, Saint-Tropez. The Pompidou years, the ’60s, the sea, vacations. Each object I choose is the result of a long and complex reflection, because the house speaks with them. In the bedrooms, there will not be more than one or two paintings and, most importantly, what we like at the end of the day: a good shower, a good soap, a nice towel.”