a grand estate turned luxury hotel
Tucked into the rolling hillsides of France’s bucolic Avignon is the latest in the proliferation of grand manor houses that have been transformed into sweeping luxury hotels, allowing guests to live like aristocrats — if even just for the night. Since its opening last summer, the all-suite La Divine Comédie hotel has breathed new life into one of the region’s most spectacular 19th-century private residences, transforming its sweeping foyers and salons into a quirky hideaway within the heart of the historic city.
The property features just five spacious suites de curiosités nestled across its nearly 28,000 square feet. Brought to life by renowned French interior designer Gilles Jauffret (who is also one of the property’s owners), each suite features its own distinct personality — weaving a narrative about the kinds of eccentric characters that have called the estate home over its considerable history.
Those enchanted by the sea can settled into the Anatole suite, which sets off its neutral palette of cool greys and ocean blues with painstakingly detailed model sailing ships and gilt-framed oil paintings of scenes from life on the ocean. Guests with a more romantic bent can check into the plush Aphrodite suite: The spacious accommodation features a similarly neutral colour scheme, allowing its ethereal canopied round bed to take centre stage. It also features a sprawling 300-square-foot terrace, where guests can enjoy an aperitif while watching the sun set over the estate’s expertly manicured garden. The other three suites feature equally stylish tributes to ancient Naples, Venice and the Napoleonic period’s fascination with the orient — each boasting views of the garden and glimpses of the gothic Papal Palace over the property’s stone walls.
The dreamy garden outside is a worthy rival to the interior’s ultra-stylish décor. One of the largest private gardens in Avignon, it boasts over 100 varieties of trees and plants as well as a spa, wellness centre and oasis-like swimming pool.
When not enjoying a quiet moment in one of property’s endless nooks and hideaways, guests can slip out of the estate’s front gates and make the short walk into the centre of the city. There, they can take a tour of the Palace, slowly wind their way through the many boutiques and markets, or enjoy a glass of wine while dining on the bounty of Provence.
