{"id":6095,"date":"2025-02-13T15:42:23","date_gmt":"2025-02-13T14:42:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rivieraedition.com\/?p=6095"},"modified":"2025-06-25T17:59:49","modified_gmt":"2025-06-25T15:59:49","slug":"hotel-belles-rives-celebrates-great-gatsby-century-fitzgerald","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rivieraedition.com\/en\/hotel-belles-rives-celebrates-great-gatsby-century-fitzgerald\/","title":{"rendered":"Belles Rives Celebrates a Century of Fitzgerald and The Great Gatsby"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hotel Belles Rives on the French Riviera is this year celebrating not only the centennial of ‘The Great Gatsby’, but also 100 years since its famous author F. Scott Fitzgerald fell in love with the French Riviera<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Fitzgerald so loved the C\u00f4te d’Azur that he and his wife Zelda rented what was then the Villa Saint-Louis in Juan-les-Pins, in the mid-1920s. Today that seaside villa is of course the beautiful H\u00f4tel Belles Rives. It was bought and rebuilt by hotelier Boma Est\u00e8ne in 1930, and has become one of the most famous art deco landmarks on the Riviera coast.<\/p>\n

Perched on the sparkling Mediterranean, it’s the perfect spot for enjoying a cocktail (at Bar Fitzgerald or on the terrace) while you gaze at Ile St Marguerite and watch the sun set over the distant hills of Cannes, in an atmosphere of relaxed elegance.<\/p>\n

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Belles Rives terrace. Photo: Riviera Edition<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Adding to its charm, is its literary history. This is where Fitzgerald began writing ‘Tender is the Night’, inspired by the lifestyle of his wealthy American friends who flocked like moths to the twinkling lights of the South of France, drawn by its everlasting allure.<\/p>\n

This year marks 100 years since Fitzgerald’s great American novel, The Great Gatsby, was published on 10 April 1925.<\/p>\n

To mark this milestone, the H\u00f4tel Belles Rives is inviting the world to celebrate the American legend and his masterpiece by visiting the destination he so loved. The hotel says:<\/p>\n

“In homage to Fitzgerald\u2019s legacy, H\u00f4tel Belles Rives will be hosting a series of exclusive literary events, dinners, and themed experiences throughout 2025, each designed to bring guests closer to the world of the Lost Generation.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Special menus at Belles Rives’ Michelin-star restaurant La Passag\u00e8re feature the period’s culinary delights, while curated cocktails at Bar Fitzgerald bring Gatsby-era glamour to life. (Try the the Sparkling Scott which is a cocktail of Champagne, rose, lime and raspberry; or the Gatsby which consists of Ballantine\u2019s Brasil Whisky, Hammam tea syrup and roasted pine nuts, fresh mint, ginger ale and lime.<\/em>)<\/p>\n

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A life-sized photo of F. Scott Fitgerald beckons guests to enter Bar Fitzgerald at the Hotel Belles Rives. Photo: Riviera Edition<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Photo: Riviera Edition<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Guests will be guided on a tour\u00a0through the history of the hotel and its former residents, offering insight into how these surroundings shaped Fitzgerald’s timeless work, says Belles Rives. (In fact that the mesmerising green light that blinks from the port when you’re out on the terrace is said to have been the inspiration for Daisy’s green light in ‘The Great Gatsby’.)<\/p>\n

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The green light at the port that may have inspired Fitzgerald in The Great Gatsby. Photo: Riviera Edition<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A couple of events already on the Belles Rives calendar include:<\/strong><\/p>\n