Grand Hôtel Nord-Pinus

An 18th-century former hôtel particulier, the Grand Hôtel Nord-Pinus has long played a central role in the life of Arles.

Reborn as the “Hôtel du Nord” in 1875, it has welcomed for nearly 150 years artists, writers, bullfighters, singers and discerning travelers. Its façade still incorporates Roman columns from the 4th century, vestiges of the ancient forum, a reminder of Arles’ role as a Mediterranean crossroads since antiquity. It was on this very square, the Place du Forum, that Vincent van Gogh painted his famous Terrace of a Café at Night (Place du Forum) in 1888.

At the end of the 1930s, a new chapter began: the hotel was acquired by Jean Bessières, the clown known as Nelo, and his wife Germaine Gilbert, a cabaret singer and close friend of Édith Piaf. For three decades the hotel attracted an storied international clientele.

The Cintra bar became legendary on bullfighting days, as a place where artists, writers and singers mingled; Giacometti sent a letter to Picasso, addressed to the Nord-Pinus, while Allen Ginsberg sent one there to Jack Kerouac and Neal Cassady. Guests included F. Scott Fitzgerald, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone Signoret, John Huston and Maria Callas.

In many ways, the Nord-Pinus embodied the spirit of its time: a Mediterranean outpost of the Café Society of the 1940s, later echoing the Beat Generation of the 1950s and 60s. In 1973, Helmut Newton photographed Charlotte Rampling in Room 10 — her first nudes. Over the years, celebrated toreros dressed here before their duels, later stepping onto the hotel’s balcony to receive the acclamation of the crowds in the square below.

After a dormant period, the Grand Hôtel Nord-Pinus reopened in 1989 under Anne Igou. Very soon, she was joined by a silent partner, Maja Hoffmann — long based in Arles and the Camargue, and an influential patron of contemporary art. Nord-Pinus marked the starting point of her involvement in Arlesian hotels. Fashion designer Christian Lacroix opened his first boutique in a corner room of the hotel; photographer Peter Beard spent a winter here, leaving his handwritten traces on the lobby walls; Peter Lindbergh made it his base in Arles. The expansion of the Rencontres internationales de la photographie played a decisive role in enhancing the hotel’s reputation, ensuring the presence of renowned photographers and their entourage every July.

Following Anne Igou’s departure, Maja Hoffmann planned to restore the failing infrastructure, reinforcing the hotel’s foundations and amenities to ensure its future and breathe new life into it, in line with the spirit — as one of the corner stones — of Les Maisons d’Arles she is developing.

For this revitalization, she turned to designer and curator Duro Olowu, a cosmopolitan world traveler and occasional guest at the hotel.

His mission: to optimize the ambience and comfort of the rooms and subtly reimagine the reception and public areas. From the outset, Olowu emphasized his desire to “embrace the spirit of a private home” and to “highlight the innate elegance and singular character of the Nord-Pinus,” while respecting its unique history and vital ties to the local community.