The era of luxury hotels began in Cannes with the opening of the Beausite in 1842, followed by that of the Grand Hôtel in 1864, and continued with the building of a large number of prestige establishments.             

In a few decades the French Riviera was to become the leading winter resort for the whole of European high society. By 1900 there were more than 5000 rooms available in the town of Nice alone. Its oldest luxury hotel, the Hôtel des Anglais, later known as the Ruhl, was founded in 1875.

Then came the Riviera in 1892, the Grand Hôtel Excelsior Regina in 1897, the Winter in 1900, the Majestic in 1908, L’Hermitage in 1910 and the Negresco in 1912. The Grand Hôtel du Cap-Eden Roc in Antibes was built in 1863 and enlarged in 1914.

The Hotel Métropole, built in 1891, rapidly became part of this circuit of supremely luxurious establishments which attracted a refined, cosmopolitan clientele.

The founder of the Métropole was Charles Ferrand, who came from Grillon in the Vaucluse region, and gained experience as maître d’hôtel of the Grand Hôtel in Monte-Carlo. The Métropole opened in December 1891. At that time neither gas nor electricity was available in Beaulieu: homes were lit by candles or oil lamps. Beaulieu had been a commune in its own right for scarcely a year, and had a population of only 550.

Originally Mr Ferrand entered into partnership with Mr Ferrari (former owner of the Hotel d’Angleterre in Monaco) to run the two prestige establishments of the town: the restaurant, La Réserve, which was not yet a hotel, and the Métropole. Charles Ferrand was a busy man, for he was also owner and manager of the Café-Glacier-Restaurant of the Grand Cercle d’Aix-les-Bains.

In 1902 Charles Ferrand became sole owner of the Métropole. He undertook major transformations, in particular making electric light available to clients as from the following season. He also launched the project of using the promontory jutting out to sea at the eastern end of the enormous plot for a restaurant, competing in splendour and comfort with the most famous establishments of the region. This was to become La Réserve, subsequently converted into a hotel. 

Right from the start, the Métropole was host to celebrities from the aristocracy, business, the sciences, politics and the arts. The Princess of Bulgaria, ex-President of the Republic Casimir-Perier and the Emperor and Empress of Austria (Sissi) were among the first to honour the hotel with their custom.

The establishment quickly became an outstanding success. In April 1899 the local press wrote: … “The Hotel Métropole is still, so to say, full to the brim.
The number of arrivals over the last two weeks is such as to cause anxiety to its amiable owners, Messrs Ferrari and Ferrand, who find themselves obliged to extend their season at least until the end of May, as the comfort of the site is admirably suited to a near-summer holiday season, to the greater benefit of the guests of the Métropole.”

The Belle Époque was at its height and prestige clients arrived in ever-greater numbers. Princes and Princesses, like the Princess of Hohenlohe, and ambassadors and their suites, such as General Azar-Aga, Persian plenipotentiary in Paris, stayed at the Métropole where fashionable events followed hard on one another’s heels.

In 1910 a charity fete was organised in the salons of the hotel for the benefit of the victims of the great flood in Paris. A supremely elegant gathering of all the Riviera’s artistic, literary and society personalities crowded into its gardens.

The Viscountess of Jessaint, Princess Piedemonte, the Count of Brulatour, the Countess of Weinberg and the Prince of Hohenlohe, to name but a few, were among the leading lights of this event that would be remembered as one of the high spots of the last hours of Old Europe.