What’s Hot: The New Hotel of Marseille- Le Pharo

The old port city of Marseilles, thriving since the Greeks from Asia Minor established a settlement in 600 B.C., has a chic, new hotel which landed a spot on Conde Nast Traveler's 2007 Hot List. The New Hotel of Marseille- Le Pharo is close to the Vieux Port and just five minutes walk from the city center. A high design hotel, Le Pharo is splashed with color and bold graphics. In the "Victor Kitchen Garden," guests are delighted to discover the aromatic herbs, tomatoes, chilies and peppers which supply the hotel's kitchen, overseen by Jérôme Polio, a disciple of Alain Ducasse. Filled with contemporary art, the hotel is sleek and highly refined. There are 100 rooms, "Le Victor Café" restaurant with a summer terrace, a bar, and a wood-decked swimming pool with solarium. The lobby is a mix of genres, built inside the 19th century Institut Pasteur, and linked to the ultra-modern main building by a long glass corridor.