The Hôtel du Palace
The Hôtel du Palais was originally the imperial summer residence that Napoleon III had built in 1855 for his wife, the Andalusian noblewoman, Eugénia Maria de Montijo de Guzman. The Villa Eugénie, as it was known at the time, and its surrounding estate was sold by the Empress in 1881 to the Banque Parisienne and transformed into a hotel-casino, called the “Palais-Biarritz”, and then into the Hôtel du Palais in 1893.
A terrible fire ripped through the building on 1 February 1903. But Biarritz’ emblematic Hôtel du Palais rose from the ashes and was rebuilt, with an additional new wing, under the watchful eye of two architects, Dourgnon and Niermans, who preserved the style and original E-shape floor plan (representing the E of Eugénie).
The hotel has been continually welcoming an international clientele, including key figures from the world of politics, finance and art since 1905. The Hôtel du Palais is the only 5-star Palace Hotel on the Atlantic Coast.
