Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, Villefranche, Beaulieu, Eze and Cap d'Ail

Best Dog-Friendly Hotels in Cap Ferrat and Villefranche

France

4 dog-friendly luxury hotels.

Where can my dog actually go?

This is a walking coast, and that's the reason to bring a dog to it. The Promenade Maurice Rouvier runs a flat, paved kilometre from Beaulieu-sur-Mer round to Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat with water on one side the whole way, the Cap Ferrat peninsula has two linked coastal circuits, and the ridge above Eze gives you open walking with the whole bay underneath. The beaches are the weak part, not the paths. Only three coves in the five communes are confirmed to take dogs, and they're all small, pebbly and away from the main town beaches.

The hotel picture is unusual and worth saying plainly. The entire four-star-and-above pool across Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, Villefranche, Beaulieu, Eze and Cap d'Ail is thirteen properties, and six of those are five stars that publish nothing at all about dogs on their own sites. Not a yes, not a no, nothing. The Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat, the Royal-Riviera, the Chèvre d'Or, Château Eza and Cap Estel are all silent, which is a very different problem from a refusal and it's why we only list four. This isn't a coast that turns dogs away, it's a coast that won't tell you either way until you ring.

The four that do answer are worth the short list. La Réserve de Beaulieu publishes the access rather than just the fee, and states that dogs on a lead are welcome in the restaurants, bars and communal areas, but not in the spa or around the pool. That's a five star naming its restaurants, which almost nobody in France does. The Welcome Hotel in Villefranche has written its own dog guide, with a mat, a bowl, treats and a toy waiting in the room, shampoo, a brush, grooming gloves, a car harness and a booster seat on request, plus its own list of local dog beaches and walks and a named dog sitter. Les Terrasses d'Eze charges EUR 20 a night including tax, is open all year and hands over a written set of pet house rules at check-in. The Carlton in Beaulieu is honest in the other direction and says on its own page that it takes small dogs only.

Two things to plan around. Size is the first: La Réserve caps at 5 kg and charges EUR 100 a day, the Carlton is small dogs only, and neither the Welcome Hotel nor Les Terrasses d'Eze publishes a limit, so Eze is where a bigger dog has the best chance and you should still confirm it. The second is the local bus, which surprises people. Lignes d'Azur only allows small pets in a bag, a basket or your arms, and takes larger dogs on a lead and muzzle on tram lines 1, 2, 3 and B only. Nothing along this coast is a tram, so a medium or large dog can't legally ride the bus between Nice, Villefranche, Beaulieu and Cap d'Ail. The coastal train or a car is the answer.

Daisy's picks

Where Daisy would book

01
Welcome Hotel
The only hotel on this coast that has published its own dog guide. A mat, bowl, treats and toy are in the room before you arrive, with shampoo, a brush, grooming gloves, a car seat belt harness and a booster seat available on request, plus the hotel's own list of dog beaches, dog walks and a named local dog sitter. It publishes no fee and no size limit, so ask for both, and tell them the dog is coming when you book. On the quay in Villefranche old town, with the Plage de l'Ange Gardien at the far end of the bay.
Unknown · max Unknown kg
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02
La Réserve de Beaulieu & Spa
The strongest written access in the destination. Dogs on a lead are allowed in the restaurants, the bars and the communal areas, and not in the spa or around the pool. The limit is 5 kg and the fee is EUR 100 a day, so this is a small-dog hotel and an expensive one, but it's the only five star here that will tell you where she can sit. The Promenade Maurice Rouvier starts a few minutes from the door.
EUR 100 · max 5 kg
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03
Les Terrasses d'Eze - Hotel & Spa
EUR 20 a night including tax, dogs and cats, open all year when much of this coast isn't, and a written set of pet house rules handed over at check-in. No weight limit is published, which makes it the best prospect for a bigger dog, though it's worth confirming. The Parc de la Grande Corniche and Fort de la Revère sit directly above it for open ridge walking.
EUR 20 · max Unknown kg
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Before you go

What happens when you get there

Buses and trams: This is the rule that catches people out. Lignes d'Azur, which runs the buses through Villefranche, Beaulieu, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, Eze and Cap d'Ail, only admits small pets properly enclosed in a bag or basket or carried in your arms, and they mustn't take a seat or bother other passengers. Larger dogs on a short lead and muzzled are allowed on tram lines 1, 2, 3 and B only, and nothing on this coast is a tram. Guide dogs for blind and deaf passengers are admitted and exempt from the muzzle, and category 1 dogs are banned from the network with a fine attached.
Trains: The coastal line is the practical way to move a dog along this stretch, and Villefranche-sur-Mer, Beaulieu-sur-Mer, Eze-sur-Mer and Cap-d'Ail each have their own station within walking distance of the centre. It's a TER Sud service under the Zou! brand from Nice-Ville through to Monaco and Ventimiglia. An animal in a cage or carrier doesn't count as a piece of baggage and travels on your lap. The current dog fare isn't something we'd quote from memory, so check it at the station or on the app before you travel.
Beaches: Three dog-permitted coves are confirmed here. Plage de l'Ange Gardien at the eastern end of the Villefranche bay, reached by a footpath down from the road. Plage Cros deï Pin at Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, named by the Welcome Hotel in its guide but not confirmed anywhere else, so treat it as likely rather than certain. Plage de la Pointe des Douaniers Est at Cap d'Ail, a small pebble beach below the customs officers' path, where dogs stay on the lead going down and can be off lead and swimming once they're on the cove. Plage de Lenval in Nice and Plage de l'Hippodrome at Cagnes-sur-Mer are the nearest larger dog beaches, both a short drive west.
The beaches that aren't: Beaulieu-sur-Mer has no confirmed dog beach. The Baie des Fourmis and Petite Afrique are both supervised municipal beaches, so assume they're closed to dogs in season. In France each commune sets its own dog-on-beach rule by an order renewed every season, and the ones for Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, Villefranche and Beaulieu aren't published anywhere you can read them online. That means we can't give you the exact dates or the exact fine. Read the sign at the beach entrance, which is where the rule is posted.
The coastal paths: The beach rules don't apply to the footpaths, which is where the good walking is anyway. The Promenade Maurice Rouvier links Beaulieu to Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat on the flat, right on the doorstep of both La Réserve and the Carlton. The Cap Ferrat loop and the Pointe Saint-Hospice circuit are both named as dog walks by the Welcome Hotel, as are the Tour du Cap de Nice from Villefranche and the Grande Corniche paths above Eze. No town hall publishes a lead rule for the Cap Ferrat paths, so keep her on the lead. The Sentier Frédéric Nietzsche down from Eze village is a long stepped staircase in full sun, so leave that one to a fit dog.
Fees and size limits: La Réserve de Beaulieu is EUR 100 a day with a 5 kg limit. Les Terrasses d'Eze is EUR 20 a night including tax with no published limit. The Welcome Hotel and the Carlton publish no fee at all, and the Carlton says plainly that it takes small dogs only. Ask La Réserve whether the EUR 100 is per dog or per room, and ask the Welcome Hotel for its fee and any cap, because neither is on the page.
Seasonal closures: Season matters more here than almost anywhere. La Réserve de Beaulieu closes for part of the winter, and it announced a 27 March reopening this year. The Royal-Riviera's private beach only runs from mid-May to the end of September. The Carlton's heated pool runs May to October. Les Terrasses d'Eze is the only larger property here confirmed open all year, which is worth remembering for a winter trip.
Vets: AdomVET runs the out-of-hours veterinary duty service for Nice and Monaco on +33 4 22 53 05 05, with a 24 hour line, evening and overnight consultations, and cover right through Sundays and public holidays. AzurVet at 769 Avenue Pierre et Marie Curie in Saint-Laurent-du-Var, +33 4 97 10 07 10, is a specialist referral centre about 30 minutes west with continuous monitoring for animals it admits, but it takes referrals from a primary vet rather than walk-ins. We won't name a 24 hour walk-in hospital in Nice itself, because we couldn't confirm one against its own address.
Best walks: The Promenade Maurice Rouvier is the one to do first, a flat paved kilometre from Beaulieu-sur-Mer round to Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat with the water beside you the whole way. On the peninsula, the Pointe Saint-Hospice loop and the longer Tour du Cap Ferrat are both on the Welcome Hotel's own list of dog walks. From Villefranche, the Tour du Cap de Nice runs round the headland towards Nice. Above Eze, the Parc de la Grande Corniche, Fort de la Revère and the Sentier du Plateau de la Justice give open ridge walking over the whole bay, all directly above Les Terrasses d'Eze. For swimming, the Plage de l'Ange Gardien at Villefranche and the Pointe des Douaniers Est at Cap d'Ail are the two confirmed coves.
When to go: April to June and September to October are the sweet spot, warm enough for the coves, quiet enough on the paths and clear of the July and August crowds that make the corniche hard work with a dog. High summer is hot on the ridge above Eze and the supervised town beaches will be closed to her, so walk early and stick to the shaded stretches of the coastal paths. Winter is the honest catch, because La Réserve shuts for part of it, the Royal-Riviera's beach only runs mid-May to the end of September and the Carlton's pool May to October. Les Terrasses d'Eze is the one confirmed open all year.

Dog-friendly hotels in Cap Ferrat and Villefranche

Questions we get asked

Dogs in Cap Ferrat and Villefranche

Is Cap Ferrat dog friendly?+

For walking, yes. The Promenade Maurice Rouvier, the Cap Ferrat coastal loops and the corniche paths above Eze are some of the best on-lead walking on the Riviera. For hotels it's harder than it looks, because the whole four-star-and-above pool across the five communes is only thirteen properties and six of the five stars publish nothing at all about dogs. Four answer the question, and those are the four we list.

Which hotels near Cap Ferrat take dogs?+

La Réserve de Beaulieu & Spa, the Welcome Hotel in Villefranche-sur-Mer, the Hotel Carlton in Beaulieu and Les Terrasses d'Eze. Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat itself has no confirmed four-star-and-above property that publishes a dog policy, so Villefranche and Beaulieu are where you actually stay. The Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat and the Royal-Riviera say nothing either way on their own sites.

Can I take my dog on the bus in Villefranche or Beaulieu?+

Only a small one, and only enclosed in a bag or basket or carried in your arms. Lignes d'Azur allows larger dogs on a short lead and muzzle on tram lines 1, 2 and 3 and line B, and there is no tram anywhere on this coast. So a medium or large dog can't take the bus between Nice, Villefranche, Beaulieu and Cap d'Ail. Use the coastal train or a car.

Are there dog beaches in Villefranche or Beaulieu?+

Villefranche has one, the Plage de l'Ange Gardien at the eastern end of the bay, down a footpath from the road. Beaulieu has none confirmed, and both its town beaches are supervised, so assume they're closed to dogs in season. Cap d'Ail has the Pointe des Douaniers Est, where she can be off lead and swim once you're down on the cove. The exact seasonal dates and fines aren't published online for these communes, so read the sign at the beach entrance.

How much do hotels on this coast charge for dogs?+

La Réserve de Beaulieu is EUR 100 a day, which is the top of the range anywhere we've researched in France. Les Terrasses d'Eze is EUR 20 a night including tax. The Welcome Hotel and the Carlton publish no fee, so ask when you book. Nobody here charges a middling figure, it's either EUR 20 or EUR 100.

Where should I stay on the Riviera with a big dog?+

Les Terrasses d'Eze is the best prospect, because it publishes no weight limit and hands you its pet house rules at check-in, though it's worth confirming the size before you pay. The Welcome Hotel publishes no limit either. La Réserve caps at 5 kg and the Carlton takes small dogs only, so both of those rule a big dog out. Remember the bus rule too, because a big dog on this coast needs a car or the train.

Do any five-star hotels near Cap Ferrat allow dogs in the restaurant?+

La Réserve de Beaulieu does, and it says so in writing. Dogs on a lead are welcome in its restaurants, bars and communal areas, and not in the spa or around the pool. No other five star here publishes anything about dogs at all, so anything you're told elsewhere should be got in writing before you book.

Does the Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat allow dogs?+

It doesn't say. Its own site, FAQ and hotel information pages carry nothing about dogs in either direction, so we won't list it as a yes. The same goes for the Royal-Riviera, the Chèvre d'Or, Château Eza and Cap Estel. If you want one of those, ring and ask for the answer in writing, including whether the dog can come to breakfast.

Can I get to Cap Ferrat with a dog without a car?+

Yes, by train. Nice Côte d'Azur is the airport for all five communes, Villefranche is about 20 minutes from the terminals and Cap d'Ail about 35. The coastal line from Nice-Ville stops at Villefranche-sur-Mer, Beaulieu-sur-Mer, Eze-sur-Mer and Cap-d'Ail, each station within walking distance of its town centre. That's rare on this coast and it's what makes a car optional, because the bus isn't an option for a larger dog.

Research updated 2026-09-21. Policies change, always confirm with the hotel.

Where can my dog actually go?

Daisy's picks

Before you go

Dog-friendly hotels in Cap Ferrat and Villefranche

Hotel Carlton

La Réserve de Beaulieu & Spa

Les Terrasses d'Eze - Hotel & Spa

Welcome Hotel

Questions we get asked