France is a rustic that fastidiously applies rigorous nomenclature to the whole lot from cheese to wine. (You know the rule: If it’s not made in Champagne, it’s not Champagne.) So after all a nation famed for its exacting tradition and being the most visited in the world—clocking 102 million international tourists in 2025—has a really particular appellation system for its luxurious accommodations.
On June 2, France’s Ministry of Tourism has expanded its record of accommodations and resorts with the highly-coveted “Palace” distinction for the first time since 2022. The designation acknowledges a degree of hospitality that, in the Ministry’s view, exceeds even that of a standard five-star property. There are six newly minted Palace accommodations in metropolitan France: Bulgari Hotel Paris, Cheval Blanc Paris, and Fouquet’s Paris in the capital; Four Seasons Megève in the French Alps; Hôtel Martinez – The Unbound Collection by Hyatt in the South of France; and Royal Champagne Hotel & Spa in—the place else?—Champagne.
Additionally, Palace standing was renewed for 27 different accommodations who reapplied for it, a coterie of city grandes dames, rural retreats, beachfront pads, and opulent alpine lodges that embody iconic names like Hôtel de Crillon, A Rosewood Hotel; Le Meurice; and Airelles Gordes, La Bastide (all three of which have simply obtained CNT Triple Crown standing, our latest—and most prestigious—award but).
The precise standards for what makes a Palace resort are effectively guarded, however applicants are evaluated on their location, design and look, cultural heritage, spa and restaurant venues, and degree of service, amongst different concerns. The distinction is just not everlasting and should be retained by means of a reapplication course of each three years. In 2026, the full tally of Palace accommodations in France now involves 33, the largest the record has ever been.
All the properties—the new initiates and people who re-pledged, so to talk—had been honored at an occasion at the Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild in Paris on June 2. Following the announcement of the six new Palaces, representatives from the accommodations and members of the media had been invited to one thing that resembled a highschool science honest for luxurious tourism: Select Palaces manned cubicles and stations that demonstrated their accommodations’ choices. Le Meurice handed out desserts by celeb pastry chef Cedric Grollet. Hôtel de Crillon served cocktails—and non-alcoholic variations—from its common Bar Les Ambassadeurs. Shangri-la Paris had a spa therapist available for five-minute face massages. Les Sources de Caudalie (one other CNT Triple Crown winner) poured Bordeaux wine from its property’s vineyards. Southwestern countryside resort Les Prés d’Eugénie introduced jars of honey in addition to the bees that made them.
Not current, nevertheless, had been the accommodations whose Palace distinctions weren’t renewed after the newest nationwide analysis: Hôtel Du Palais Biarritz – The Unbound Collection by Hyatt; Mandarin Oriental, Paris; and Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme (a winner of the CNT Triple Crown). Answering a query from the viewers, Christian Mantei, the president of the nation’s tourism improvement company Atout France, defined that any resort that has misplaced its Palace label is welcome to reapply once more subsequent yr. According to chatter amongst the occasion attendees, all three will possible pursue Palace standing after vital property renovations.
Perhaps that’s what France has discovered, the complete level to such meticulous labeling processes. No one will get to relaxation on their laurels, and so the requirements—whether or not of cheese, wine, or luxurious accommodations—are raised ever larger, most frequently to the good thing about vacationers. To subsequent yr’s would-be Palaces: Bon probability.