Hotel Avignon la Mirande

After exploring the cultural delights of Avignon, ensconce yourself in the oasis of the Rose garden with a preprandial Kir while you take time over the menu. Will it be tuna carpaccio with caviar, or pigeon stewed in the traditional aromatic herbs of Provence, served with artichoke and arugula? Guests find the menus so inspiring that many of them sign up for the cookery courses held in the authentic 19th-century-style kitchens below. And the perfect place to present these meals is the dining room; with candlelight illuminating the Aubusson tapestry and the finely carved Renaissance ceiling, it allows for basking in the atmosphere of rarefied elegance.

Exclusivity does not have to be excluding. Service throughout the hotel, from reception to room service, is attentive and accommodating. Expect the kind of meticulous, white-gloved formality, especially in the restaurant, that has waiters de-crumbing your table between courses and refolding your napkins when you get up to use the bathroom.