When we think of the French riviera and it's ideal weather with sunshine 300 days of the year, beautiful and endless sunny beaches, charming towns, excellent cuisine, polished yachts, flawless people and glamorous celebrities who would not be tempted to get on the first plane and go to this exquisite part of the world which has so much to offer, Cannes in particular is a perfect choice to mix business with pleasure, which many accomplish during the multitude of Festivals and other annual events at the Palais des Congrès on the Croisette.

There is no better way to beat the winter blues and we do so in great style and favor to stay at the sumptuous Hôtel Barrière Le Majestic in Cannes a place full of elegance and opulence. Overlooking the mythical Croisette, and it’s many luxurious boutiques and many restaurants it is a traditional Palace well known for film stars attending the Cannes Film Festival, a seven-story grand hotel built in 1926 as one of Cannes's original palace and originally an Art Deco masterpiece, the property has been expanded and renovated numerous times, adding to its grounds and voluminous interiors. It is the only hotel with 80 per cent of the rooms with guarantee sea view, the palace also offers 15 meeting-rooms, has 265 bedrooms, including 82 suites and two penthouses one which of 650 meters with its own gorgeous private pool and a breathtaking view of all the bay of Cannes, also unique on the Croisette, the hotel features a private screening room for 35 viewers. As well as all practical amenities on offer including a gym and a heated swimming pool, if you feel like pampering yourself the spa is a wonderful temple of well being with ground-breaking treatments from Clarins's upscale My Blend range and beautifully equipped rooms with colour-therapy showers, hammam and massage beds.

Continuing our visit we have a light lunch under a blue sky and a warm autumn sun at the chic private beach restaurant and bar open all year around and situated within a short walking distance of the hotel which is, not surprisingly surrounded by all the extravagant and extremely glamorous boutiques and the many tempting attractions of the Croisette. Highly recommended would also be a walk to Le Suquet the old quarter and the original fisherman’s residential area of Cannes probably best known as the climbing, winding cobbled lane lined with local restaurants, head up to the clock tower to scan the incredible skyline and admire all it has to offer, after having absorbed the atmosphere you could also board one of the small ferries that depart from the old port and sail across to Ile Saint-Honorat, a delightful island inhabited by 25 Cistercian monks where you can buy wine made locally and enjoy a delicious lunch in the nearby restaurant.

After our afternoon promenade we re-enter the hotel to check into our room and are wrapped in the golden lights of the lobby which is embellished with a series of imposing gilt columns, mustard plush velvet lavish sofas and a lustrous marble floor, the staff are welcoming and extremely helpful and as we are escorted to our spacious and comfortable room with of course, sea view, we enjoy glancing at the many black and white photographs adorning the walls, of the many past and present actors who have stayed here. We spend the cocktail hour in the darkly lit and seductive bar and get ready for our dinner at Le Fouquet’s Cannes the Mediterranean version of the legendary Fouquet’s on Champs-Elysees in Paris featuring grand French brasserie traditions to perfection and the best place to enjoy authentic cuisine at any time of the day or night.

The Fouquet's Cannes Grand menu, developed in collaboration with Pierre Gagnaire, is inventive with, at times an elements of surprise and features the essential ingredients of French brasserie cuisine. It includes for example the legendary Merlan Colbert or the beef tenderloin with black pepper flambeed in cognac front of the guests with a Champs- Elysees sauce adding an unexpected edge and drama to the menu. As we end the night with a delectable dessert, we hear an upbeat Jazz sound and the laughter of the guests travelling through the adjoining restaurant, this will leave a warming memory of the joie de vivre on the Côte d'Azur in a flamboyant hotel.

For more informations on offers and rates of the Hôtel Barrière Le Majestic, Cannes visit: www.lucienbarriere.com