In a beautiful little beach town home to Hollywood celebs – Clint Eastwood is the former mayor, Doris Day co-owns a hotel - it’s an enduring European sensibility that draws the guests to Carmel.
And nowhere so much as L’Auberge Carmel, a Relais & Chateaux property modelled 90 years ago on a Prague hotel which took the owner’s fancy, and which still evokes the old world on California’s central coast.
Like the A-list names who love the town, L’Auberge has won a slew of awards for both its restaurant and 20 rooms, which have kept their distinctly traditional vibe despite recent renovation. Set just off the main drag, Ocean Avenue, it’s only a few minutes’ stroll from one of the most beautiful beaches in the US too, showcased in the new TV series Big Little Lies.
With its spectacular sands and cypresses, charming Spanish-style streets, world-class golf at nearby Pebble Beach and endless shopping and dining opportunities, you hardly need to escape to a retreat here but L’Auberge nevertheless makes serenity its mission statement.
Rooms are centred around a whitewashed inner courtyard filled with fountains, chic upholstered sofas and outsize chairs on which to while away the day.
Inside it’s all about peace, quiet and furniture to feast the eyes on: canopied beds and antique chairs. Those must-have 21st century mod cons, flat-screen TVs and Bose docking stations, go almost unnoticed - although underfloor heating in the beautiful travertine-tiled bathrooms with walk-in showers, separate tubs and handsome, hand-beaten copper basins, does not.
Hand-made treats are delivered with evening turndown service, to be enjoyed with tea or coffee from the in-room machines while tucked into an oversized robe.
Breakfast is included at the award-winning Aubergine: a 10-minute stroll across Ocean Avenue, you’ll find superb dinners at Grasings too, presided over by an Austrian chef.
And within a half-hour drive sits California’s most beautiful and iconic lunch spot, clifftop Nepenthe overlooking the crashing waves of Big Sur. Since its hippy heyday Nepenthe has been the hotspot of Route 1, the iconic central California coastal road which recently reopened after a 17-month closure caused by storm damage.
A drive down the coast is unmissable, as is a visit to nearby Monterey Bay Aquarium on Cannery Row, immortalised by Steinbeck - as fine a home for ocean creatures as L’Auberge for pampered humans.
Like this? Sign up for more with our JC Life newsletter https://www.thejc.com/subscribe
From fabulous recipes to parenting tips, travel and West End entertainment; insightful interviews and much more: there’s more to the JC than news
