Best Hotels in Cannes 2026: La Croisette Palaces, Boutique Stays & Film Festival Glamour

Our top Cannes hotel pick for 2026 is Hôtel Martinez for the most complete Palace experience on La Croisette — Art Deco glamour, a two-Michelin-star restaurant, and the bay's most photographed curve of balconies — with Hôtel Barrière Le Majestic Cannes for the best position directly opposite the Palais des Festivals, and Five Seas Hotel for the finest boutique stay in the city, a rooftop pool two minutes off the Croisette. Cannes is the glitziest stop on the French Riviera and, outside the Cannes Film Festival fortnight, one of the most genuinely relaxing: a genuinely great Cannes hotel requires knowing not just the name but the exact position on the seafront, the real gap between Palace grandeur and boutique intimacy, and when to avoid the town entirely.

We've ranked 15 hotels across the key Cannes neighbourhoods — from the Croisette's Palace row to the cobbled hill of Le Suquet, from the Carré d'Or to Rue d'Antibes. The city's anchor landmarks — the Palais des Festivals, the Forville market, the Lérins Islands a short boat ride offshore, and day trips to Antibes, Grasse, and Saint-Paul-de-Vence — are all within reach of every hotel on this list. Compare live Cannes hotel prices or search UK flights to Nice (NCE) — the gateway airport for the Riviera, around 30 minutes from central Cannes by car or train.

At a glance — here's how the 15 hotels below compare on location, ideal traveller, and standout feature before the full reviews:

The Scout's Take: La Croisette vs Le Suquet vs Carré d'Or

Three Cannes neighbourhoods, three very different holidays — choose the wrong one and you'll spend your trip walking past the version you actually wanted.

La Croisette is Cannes at full glamour: the seafront boulevard lined with palm trees, the Palace hotels, the private beach clubs, the Palais des Festivals and its red-carpet steps. Stay here for the postcard experience — waking up to the bay, walking onto a private beach, and being inside the part of Cannes that appears in every photograph of the place. It's also the most expensive ground in town by a wide margin, and during the film festival, effectively unaffordable unless you're booking a year out.

Le Suquet, the old town climbing the hill above the Vieux Port, is Cannes before the festival — cobbled lanes, the 12th-century castle (now the Musée de la Castre), and a sunset view over the bay from Notre-Dame-d'Espérance that no Croisette hotel room can match. Hotels here are smaller, quieter, and noticeably cheaper, with the Croisette a five-to-ten-minute walk downhill.

Carré d'Or and Rue d'Antibes, the shopping triangle and main commercial street just back from the seafront, give you the best value-to-position ratio in the city: two streets from the Croisette, surrounded by restaurants and boutiques, at rates 30–50% below a true Croisette address.

Our rule of thumb: first trip, want the postcard → Croisette. Return visitor who wants quiet and character → Le Suquet. Budget-conscious but still central → Carré d'Or / Rue d'Antibes. Attending the festival → book the Croisette six to nine months out or don't come that week at all. If Cannes' prices put you off entirely, our Nice hotels guide covers the more affordable, more lived-in sister city thirty minutes up the coast.

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Our 15 Cannes Hotels for 2026

The Croisette Palaces (Hotels 1–5)

The cluster of grand hotels along La Croisette is the reason Cannes is a global byword for glamour. These five properties anchor the seafront and define what a Cannes hotel stay can be at its absolute best.

1. Hôtel Martinez — La Croisette, central seafront. The most complete Palace hotel in Cannes: built in 1929 in pure Art Deco style, the curved façade follows the line of the bay so that even mid-tier rooms catch an angled sea view, and the upper-floor suites have some of the most photographed balconies on the Riviera. La Palme d'Or, the hotel's signature restaurant under chef Christian Sinicropi, holds two Michelin stars and looks directly out over the Mediterranean — reserve weeks ahead for a window table.

The hotel runs its own beach club, Z Plage, directly across the boulevard — sunbeds, a seafood restaurant on the sand, and direct sea access without crossing public beach territory. The Spa L'Occitane is the most comprehensive wellness facility among the Croisette Palaces, with a sea-facing relaxation room.

Best for: Honeymooners and anniversary trips — the Art Deco glamour and La Palme d'Or dinner are hard to beat anywhere on the Riviera. Food travellers who want to eat at a two-Michelin-star table without leaving the hotel.

2. Hôtel Barrière Le Majestic Cannes — La Croisette, directly opposite the Palais des Festivals. The white 1926 façade is one of the most recognisable in Cannes, and the position — literally across the boulevard from the red-carpet steps — makes this the traditional base for festival juries, major productions, and anyone who wants to walk to the Palais in under five minutes. The rooftop and several upper floors look straight down the Croisette towards the Esterel hills, a view that rivals anything else in the city.

La Petite Maison de Nicole, the hotel's Michelin-recognised restaurant, brings the Nice institution's Mediterranean cooking to the Croisette. The hotel's private beach, La Plage du Majestic, is one of the largest on the seafront. During the festival fortnight, this is the most photographed hotel entrance in the world for two weeks straight.

Best for: Film festival travellers who want to be inside the action. Guests who prioritise the single best Palais des Festivals position on the Croisette. Anyone who wants the most "Cannes" photograph of their trip taken from their own balcony.

3. Carlton Cannes (reopening as Regent Cannes) — La Croisette, central seafront. The most historic hotel in Cannes: opened in 1911, its twin domes — famously said to have been modelled on the silhouette of a celebrated courtesan of the era — are the single most recognisable architectural feature on the entire Riviera coastline. The hotel has just reopened after a major renovation under the Regent brand, restoring the Belle Époque public rooms while modernising the suites and adding a contemporary spa.

The Carlton's beach club has anchored the central Croisette for over a century, and the hotel's position — equidistant between the Palais des Festivals and the Carré d'Or — makes it the most central of the three true Palace addresses. Expect interiors that balance the restored 1911 grandeur with a noticeably fresher, lighter aesthetic post-renovation.

Best for: Heritage and architecture lovers who want the single most iconic Cannes building. Travellers who want a freshly renovated Palace experience. Guests who value being exactly equidistant between the festival end and the shopping end of the Croisette.

4. JW Marriott Cannes — La Croisette, Palais des Festivals end. The most practical Palace-tier hotel for families: a large indoor-outdoor pool, generously sized rooms by Croisette standards, and a position right at the start of the boulevard that puts the Palais, the old port, and Le Suquet's old town all within a short walk — useful when travelling with children who don't want long transfers between sights. The rooftop bar has one of the best sunset views over the bay and the Lérins Islands.

Service here leans more international-business-hotel than the heritage Palaces, which some guests prefer for its consistency and others find less distinctively Cannes. Either way, the position is unbeatable for a family that wants to walk everywhere.

Best for: Families who want Croisette glamour with practical pool access and central positioning. Guests who prioritise location over heritage theatre.

5. Hôtel Barrière Le Gray d'Albion — Rue des Serbes, one street back from La Croisette. The value entry point into the Barrière group's Cannes portfolio: the same group that runs the Majestic operates this slightly more modern, slightly less expensive sister property just off the seafront, with access to the group's beach club privileges on the Croisette. Rooms are contemporary rather than heritage, and the position — two minutes' walk to the sea — delivers most of the Croisette experience at a noticeably lower rate.

The hotel's own restaurant and bar scene is lively without the formality of the true Palace hotels, and it's a popular choice for business travellers attending events at the nearby Palais.

Best for: Travellers who want Croisette proximity and Barrière-group beach access without true Palace pricing. Business travellers attending Palais des Festivals conferences.

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Boutique & Design Hotels (Hotels 6–10)

Cannes' boutique scene clusters around Rue des Serbes, Boulevard Carnot, and the hillside of Le Suquet — smaller hotels with stronger personalities and, in several cases, the best rooftop pools in the city.

6. Five Seas Hotel — Rue des Serbes, two minutes from La Croisette. The finest boutique hotel in Cannes: around 45 rooms, a five-star rating, and a rooftop pool with sweeping views across the bay towards the Lérins Islands that genuinely rivals the Palace hotels' beach clubs. Sea Sens, the rooftop restaurant run by twin Michelin-starred brothers Jérôme and Laurent Tauleigne, is one of the best hotel dining rooms in the city outside the three true Palaces.

The scale here is the whole appeal — personal service, a design-led interior that feels more contemporary Riviera than heritage Belle Époque, and a position close enough to the Croisette to use the beach clubs while paying boutique rather than Palace rates.

Best for: Couples and design-conscious travellers who want the boutique experience with a genuine rooftop pool. Food travellers who want Michelin-level cooking without Palace-level pricing.

7. Hôtel Belle Plage — La Croisette, opposite the public beach. The best mid-range sea view in Cannes: a smaller, independently run hotel directly across the boulevard from the public beach, with several rooms offering a genuinely uninterrupted Mediterranean outlook at a fraction of what the Martinez or Majestic charge for the equivalent view. The interior is contemporary and unfussy rather than heritage-grand, which suits travellers who want the location without the formality.

Breakfast on the small terrace, with the sea visible over the boulevard's palm trees, is one of the better-value mornings on the entire Croisette.

Best for: Couples and sea-view seekers on a mid-range budget. Travellers who want a true Croisette address without Palace pricing.

8. Cavendish Hotel Cannes — Boulevard Carnot, near Rue d'Antibes. A converted 19th-century townhouse turned boutique hotel, two minutes from Rue d'Antibes' restaurants and shops and a 10-minute walk to the Croisette. The scale is small and the service personal — this is the kind of hotel that remembers your name by the second morning. Rooms are individually decorated rather than chain-uniform, with high ceilings typical of the building's era.

The position suits travellers who want to be central to Cannes' everyday life — markets, bakeries, local restaurants — rather than its seafront performance.

Best for: Solo travellers and couples who want boutique character at a reasonable rate. Travellers who prefer Cannes' working streets to its postcard boulevard.

9. Eden Hôtel & Spa Cannes — near Rue d'Antibes. A genuinely good-value four-star with a compact spa, ten minutes' walk from the Croisette and steps from Rue d'Antibes' shops and restaurants. The pool and spa facilities are a notch above what's typical at this price point in Cannes, making it a sensible choice for travellers who want to unwind after a day on the beach without paying Palace spa rates.

Rooms are clean, contemporary, and quiet — this is a hotel built for comfort rather than theatre, and it delivers reliably on that promise.

Best for: Spa-focused travellers on a controlled budget. Couples who want a calm base a short walk from both the seafront and the shopping streets.

10. Hôtel Renoir Cannes — Rue Edith Cavell, near Rue d'Antibes. A mid-range boutique with a small rooftop pool — a genuine rarity at this price point in Cannes — and a position close to Rue d'Antibes' restaurant strip. The Art Deco-inflected interior nods to the city's golden era without the price tag, and the rooftop terrace is a popular spot for an evening drink with a partial view over the rooftops towards the bay.

This is one of the better-kept secrets among Cannes' mid-range hotels — rooms book up quickly in summer despite limited name recognition outside France.

Best for: Mid-range travellers who want a pool without Palace pricing. Couples and small groups who prioritise a relaxed rooftop atmosphere.

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Mid-Range & Family Hotels (Hotels 11–15)

Not every Cannes stay needs to be a Palace. These five hotels deliver strong locations, family-friendly practicality, or genuine old-world charm at prices that leave money for beach clubs, boat trips, and the restaurants of Le Suquet.

11. Canopy by Hilton Cannes — Plage de la Bocca, western Cannes. A modern beachfront hotel directly on the sand at Cannes-La Bocca, a short tram ride from the Croisette and considerably quieter than the central seafront, especially during festival season when the centre becomes unmanageable. Rooms are contemporary and well-equipped, with direct beach access that doesn't require crossing a busy boulevard or paying for a sunbed at a private club.

This is the practical choice for travellers who want sand and sea without Croisette prices or crowds, accepting a 15–20 minute tram or taxi ride into the centre.

Best for: Families and beach-focused travellers who want direct sand access away from the festival crush. Budget-conscious sea-view seekers.

12. Mondrian Cannes — La Croisette area. The newest hotel on this list, opened in 2025 in a building that previously served as Carlton overflow accommodation, now reimagined under the design-forward Mondrian brand. Expect a more playful, contemporary aesthetic than the heritage Palaces — bold colour, statement lighting, a younger crowd in the bar — while retaining genuine Croisette-adjacent positioning.

As a new opening, expect rates to be competitive through 2026 as the hotel builds its reputation; service standards have been strong since opening.

Best for: Design-conscious travellers who want a contemporary alternative to Cannes' heritage hotels. Guests who want to try the newest property on the Croisette.

13. Hôtel Splendid Cannes — Vieux Port, overlooking the old harbour. Family-run since 1871, the Splendid is Cannes' most enduring independent hotel — a white Belle Époque façade looking directly over the yacht-filled Vieux Port and across to Le Suquet's hill. The position is excellent: five minutes to the Croisette, five minutes up to the old town, and the port views from the upper floors rival anything on the seafront proper.

Rooms are comfortable rather than opulent, but the genuine multi-generational family ownership gives the Splendid a warmth and consistency that larger chains rarely match.

Best for: Travellers who want Belle Époque charm and harbour views without Croisette pricing. Guests who value independent, family-run hospitality.

14. Best Western Mondial Cannes — Rue d'Antibes. The best straightforward value pick in central Cannes: clean, well-run rooms two streets back from the Croisette, on the city's main shopping street, with connecting room options that suit families. Nothing here is glamorous, but the position is genuinely central and the rate is consistently the most reasonable for a hotel this close to the seafront.

This is the hotel to book when the goal is a comfortable, central base rather than a Croisette view — and the savings fund a beach club day pass or two instead.

Best for: Budget-conscious families and couples who want central Cannes without paying for a sea view they won't spend much time looking at.

15. Villa Saint Barth — Le Suquet, hillside above the old port. The best-kept secret in Cannes: a converted hillside villa run as an intimate B&B-style boutique, a handful of individually decorated rooms, and a terrace with sunset views over the Vieux Port and the bay that no Croisette hotel can replicate from sea level. The climb up Le Suquet's cobbled lanes is part of the experience — the reward is genuine quiet and a view locals consider the best in the city.

Breakfast is taken on the terrace, the host relationship is personal, and the Croisette is a five-to-ten-minute walk downhill whenever the seafront calls.

Best for: Couples and return Cannes visitors who want quiet, authentic charm over seafront glamour. Sunset chasers — this terrace is unmatched at dusk.

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Cannes Hotels by Traveller Type

Best Cannes Hotels for Couples

Hôtel Martinez is the most romantic Palace choice — Art Deco glamour, La Palme d'Or's two Michelin stars, and a balcony view over the bay that defines the Cannes honeymoon experience. For intimacy over grandeur, Five Seas Hotel's rooftop pool and small scale deliver a genuinely private feel two minutes from the Croisette. Villa Saint Barth above Le Suquet is the third option — sunset over the old port from a hillside terrace beats any seafront balcony for atmosphere.

Best Cannes Hotels for Families

JW Marriott Cannes is the definitive family Palace-tier pick: an indoor-outdoor pool, generously sized rooms, and a position that puts the Palais, the port, and Le Suquet all within an easy walk. For mid-range budgets, Best Western Mondial Cannes on Rue d'Antibes offers connecting rooms and a genuinely central position without Croisette pricing. Canopy by Hilton Cannes on Plage de la Bocca suits families who want direct beach access away from the central crowds.

Best Cannes Hotels for Business

Hôtel Barrière Le Gray d'Albion is the business traveller's pick for Palais des Festivals events — Croisette access, the Barrière group's beach club privileges, and rates noticeably below the true Palace addresses. JW Marriott Cannes, at the Palais end of the Croisette, suits conference attendees who want the shortest possible walk to events.

Best Cannes Hotels for Film Festival Travellers

Hôtel Barrière Le Majestic Cannes, directly opposite the red-carpet steps, is the traditional industry base during the festival — book 6–9 months ahead, as productions and sponsors block rooms well in advance. Carlton Cannes (Regent Cannes) and Hôtel Martinez are the other two true Palace options that fill first. If you're not attending the festival, avoid the mid-May fortnight entirely — every hotel on this list triples its rate.

Best Cannes Hotels for Sea Views

Hôtel Martinez's curved Art Deco façade delivers the most reliably angled sea view among the Palaces. For a budget-friendly sea view, Hôtel Belle Plage opposite the public beach offers uninterrupted Mediterranean outlooks at a fraction of Palace rates. Five Seas Hotel's rooftop pool gives a panoramic bay view that beats most ground-floor sea-view rooms elsewhere in the city.

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Cannes Neighbourhood Intelligence

A few things to plan around your hotel choice:

• Festival-week pricing is not a typo — if a Croisette hotel quotes a rate three or four times higher than the rest of the year in mid-May, that's correct, not a booking error. Either commit to the premium six to nine months ahead or simply avoid the fortnight; the weeks immediately before and after the festival are calmer and far better value.

• Book beach club sunbeds ahead in July and August — Z Plage at the Martinez and the other Croisette beach clubs fill up by mid-morning in peak summer. A short message to the hotel concierge the evening before secures a spot; turning up at 11am in August often doesn't.

• Le Suquet at sunset is free and unmissable — climb to Notre-Dame-d'Espérance and the old castle (Musée de la Castre) in the last hour before dusk. The view over the bay, the Lérins Islands, and the curve of the Croisette from up here is the best free experience in Cannes, and most day-trippers miss it entirely.

• Forville market mornings (Tuesday–Sunday) — the covered market hall just behind the old port is where Cannes actually shops: fish straight off the boats, Provençal vegetables, cheese stalls, and a handful of stand-up bars serving a small glass of rosé with a plate of socca. Arrive before 10am for the best produce and the least crowded aisles.

• The Croisette's two ends feel different — the Palais des Festivals end is busier, more commercial, and noisier with traffic; the Palm Beach / Pointe Croisette end (eastern peninsula) is quieter, more residential, and a 25-minute walk or short bus ride from the centre. Choose your hotel position based on which version of the boulevard you want.

• Day trips need a car or a short train hop — Antibes (Picasso Museum) is 15 minutes by train, Grasse (perfume houses) is 45 minutes by bus or car, and Saint-Paul-de-Vence with the Fondation Maeght is best reached by car or organised tour, around 45 minutes. Monaco is roughly an hour by train via Nice. None of these require an overnight stay — all are comfortable as a half-day or full-day trip from a Cannes base.

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Beyond the Hotels: 15 Best Things to Do in Cannes (2026)

Cannes rewards a little planning. The biggest mistakes first-timers make: visiting during the film festival without realising it (book elsewhere or budget accordingly), assuming the entire Croisette beachfront is free (most of the central stretch is private beach clubs), and skipping Le Suquet entirely in favour of the boulevard.

1. La Croisette Stroll — The 2km seafront boulevard lined with palm trees, Palace hotels, and luxury boutiques. Walk it in the early morning before the heat and crowds, or at golden hour for the best light on the bay.

2. Le Suquet Old Town — Climb the cobbled lanes to Notre-Dame-d'Espérance church and the 12th-century castle, now the Musée de la Castre (Mediterranean archaeology and ethnographic collections). The view from the top over the bay and the Lérins Islands is the best free panorama in Cannes.

3. Palais des Festivals + Walk of Fame — Even outside festival season, the red-carpet steps and the handprints set into the Allée des Stars draw a steady stream of visitors. Free to view, five minutes from the Croisette's central hotels.

4. Marché Forville — Cannes' working food market (Tuesday–Sunday, behind the old port). Fish, Provençal produce, cheese, and stand-up bars serving socca with rosé. The most authentic morning in Cannes.

5. Plage de la Croisette (public stretches) — Plage du Festival and sections near Palm Beach are free and open to everyone, with sand and sea access without a sunbed fee. Mix a free public beach morning with a paid beach club afternoon.

6. Île Sainte-Marguerite — A 15-minute boat ride from the Vieux Port to the larger of the two Lérins Islands, home to the Fort Royal where the legendary "Man in the Iron Mask" was imprisoned. Pine forests, clear water, and a genuinely different pace from the mainland.

7. Île Saint-Honorat — The smaller Lérins island, home to a working Cistercian monastery where the monks produce and sell their own wine. Quieter than Sainte-Marguerite, with a contemplative, almost otherworldly atmosphere.

8. Cannes Film Festival Timing — If you're not attending, simply avoid mid-May; if you are, book 6–9 months ahead and expect every price in town, not just hotels, to rise sharply for the fortnight.

9. Le Cannet — Bonnard Museum — A short bus or taxi ride to the hillside town of Le Cannet, where the Musée Bonnard celebrates the painter Pierre Bonnard, who lived and worked here. A quieter, art-focused half-day away from the seafront crowds.

10. Day Trip to Antibes — 15 minutes by train. The Picasso Museum, housed in the Château Grimaldi where Picasso once worked, and the atmospheric old town and ramparts make for an easy half-day.

11. Day Trip to Grasse — The world capital of perfume, 45 minutes by bus or car. Tour a historic perfume house (Fragonard, Molinard, or Galimard all offer factory visits), and blend your own scent if time allows.

12. Saint-Paul-de-Vence + Fondation Maeght — A hilltop medieval village roughly 45 minutes inland, home to one of Europe's finest modern art foundations (Miró, Giacometti, Chagall). Combine the village's galleries and cafés with the Fondation's sculpture garden for a full day.

13. Monaco — Around an hour by train via Nice. The Casino de Monte-Carlo, the Prince's Palace, and the Oceanographic Museum make for a glamorous full-day trip, easily combined with lunch in Monaco's old town.

14. Mougins Village — A picturesque hilltop village inland from Cannes, long associated with Picasso (who lived his final years here) and now known for its concentration of excellent restaurants. A relaxed half-day or dinner trip.

15. Mandelieu-La Napoule — A short drive or bus ride west of Cannes, home to the fairy-tale Château de La Napoule and a quieter stretch of beach. Good for an afternoon away from the Croisette's intensity.

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Where to Stay: Cannes Neighbourhoods at a Glance

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How Cannes Compares to Nice and Monaco for Hotels

Cannes, Nice, and Monaco sit within an hour of each other along the same stretch of coast, but they deliver three distinct hotel experiences. Nice is the Riviera's lived-in capital — a genuine working city with a long pebble beach, the Promenade des Anglais, and a hotel market that's noticeably more affordable than Cannes at every tier, from grand belle époque properties to simple guesthouses in the old town. See our full Nice hotels guide for the complete breakdown — Nice is less glitzy than Cannes but more textured, with a larger Old Town and a beach that's free its entire length.

Monaco is smaller and pricier still — a principality rather than a city, with a hotel market concentrated almost entirely around the Casino and Port Hercule, and rates that match or exceed Cannes' Palace tier even outside any festival period. Monaco suits a day trip or a one-night splurge more comfortably than a full stay; Cannes offers far more hotel variety across more price points for a longer holiday.

Saint-Tropez, further west, trades Cannes' relative accessibility for a more secluded, harder-to-reach glamour — no train station, a longer drive from Nice airport, and a hotel market even smaller and pricier than Cannes' Croisette. Cannes is the more practical glamour base of the three: Nice airport thirty minutes away, a proper train station, and a hotel range from £90 budget rooms to £900-plus Palace suites within the same compact town.

What Cannes has that neither Nice nor Monaco can match is the Palais des Festivals' global cultural weight and the twin-domed Carlton's century-old silhouette — Cannes earns its reputation as the most photographed stretch of the French Riviera honestly, festival or no festival.

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