The Palace label has profoundly reshaped the landscape of luxury hospitality. Conceived in 2010, it was awarded for the first time in 2011 to eight French establishments, including Parisian hotels (Le Meurice, the Plaza Athénée) and regional ones (the Hôtel du Palais and Les Airelles). These were the historic Palaces. In earlier years, the title of Palace was reserved for a small handful of hotels, without any particular distinctive criteria. A hotel's renown, its age, its tradition, and its clientele were what earned it the Palace title. At the time, no new hotel could aspire to be considered a Palace.
The new award panel for the Palace distinction has just granted three new Palace labels to three hotels, after reviewing fewer than ten candidates. The Oetker Collection group earns its second Palace label with the Hôtel du Cap-Eden-Roc. The LVMH group also earns its second Palace label with the Cheval Blanc Saint-Barth Isle de France (Saint-Barthélemy). The Peninsula Paris, which opened in 2014, can now claim the Palace label as well.
The “battle of the Palaces,” often mentioned in the media, is certainly exaggerated, but it is real nonetheless. It needs to turn into healthy emulation, to keep this sector dynamic and more innovative. The establishments that earn the Palace label are chosen because they meet a defined set of criteria. There is therefore, at the very least, a norm that all of them respect. Even so, they should not all resemble one another. Each establishment must find its own point of differentiation and offer guests a unique experience. What pleasure would guests find in uniformity?
Today, an establishment just over a year old can lay claim to this title, once reserved for hotels whose history had built their reputation. This label has thus encouraged new entrants into the sector, and the market has widened. To my mind, there are two categories of Palace in France, the older and the newer hotels, according to my own analysis:
Who's missing from this exclusive list? There is no doubt that the Ritz will apply next year for this valuable label, which also comes with dedicated international communication support from Atout France. New hotels, in Paris as in the regions, are eager to apply for this coveted label. It's surprising not to find, this year, within this closed club of Palaces, the Hôtel de la Réserve in Paris. The Michel Reybier Group already holds the Palace label for La Réserve Ramatuelle. It recently announced that La Réserve Paris was the first Palace in Paris to offer a butler service to all its guests. It will therefore have to wait a little longer before communicating as a Palace. To be continued…
19 establishments are now officially recognized as Palaces:
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