The Riviera’s winter migration to St Barths begins in grand style—Robb Report has the full lowdown on what’s hot this season.
When the last flutes of rosé are cleared from Casino Square and superyachts set sail to warmer moorings, a familiar migration begins. Monaco and Côte d’Azur regulars decamp to St Barths for Christmas and New Year, trading Riviera sunsets for the pearlescent glow over Grand Cul-de-Sac. This season, the Caribbean island responds with a refreshed constellation of hotels, villas, beach clubs and culinary headliners—each tuned to the polished, hedonistic tastes Robb Report readers expect. Here’s all you need to know.
Longevity goes luxe
Wellness has shifted from spa day to strategy and Le Barthélemy Hotel & Spa—together with Le Barth Villas— now places longevity at the centre of the St Barths experience. In partnership with Dr Franck Baudino and Saint-Barth Longevity, these new bespoke three to 14-day retreats blend in-villa biomarker testing with expert consultations across nutrition, sleep, cognition and dermatology. From light therapy at dawn and anti-inflammatory cuisine calibrated to your circadian rhythm, to Nordic baths and post-stay telemedicine support for up to six months (priced from €4,500 to €50,000), this is haute hospitality meets integrative medicine.
Celebrity staple
Famed celebrity hideaway Eden Rock, perched above St Jean Bay, is once again the island’s most storied location. New this winter, Rémy’s Club is a discreet mid-century speakeasy— channelling founder Rémy de Haenen’s golden-age soirées—here you’ll find secret cocktails, fine wines, intimate lighting and that low murmur of insider conversation you crossed the Atlantic to find. In the hotel’s spa, the exclusive Korean Lift, developed with SeeMyCosmetics, delivers instant lift and radiance through smoothing, drainage and cellular stimulation. Expect the usual A-listers in residence.
Barefoot luxury
The Gyp Sea hotel—known for its luxe boutique vibe and stylish Bohemian-chic villas—reopens with newly minted Green Globe Certification and a daily poolside brunch (€59; noon–3pm) mixing local flavours, signature dishes and a relaxed atmosphere. Throughout the season, expect rotating sommelier-led dinners and an arts programme curated with the Artists of St Barth— intimate, insider gatherings where collectors, chefs and DJs cross paths. In the heights of Colombier, Gyp Sea is an easy base for guests who want low-key days and high-gloss nights without sacrificing the island’s barefoot ease.
Beachfront living
Le Sereno returns to Grand Cul-de-Sac with its minimalist polish and a newly widened beachfront, making its sandy setting even more desirable. Inside, the spa—using Valmont products—debuts an intensive Face Gua Sha ritual (Elixir des Glaciers), while Al Mare by Raffaele Lenzi with resident chef Davide Mosca serves contemporary Italian hits—think lobster spaghetti and an immaculate Milanese. With 39 suites and three four-bedroom villas (from around €1,150) it is the quiet luxury lagoon address Monaco regulars claim for the season.
Villa life—elevated
For families and friend groups trading penthouses on Avenue Princesse Grace for panoramic decks above turquoise shallows, Eden Rock Villa Rental’s growth (now at 200+ villas) adds fresh inventory to the top end, while Le Barth Villas—part of Le Barthélemy Hotel & Spa—pairs private home intimacy with hotel privileges: concierge, daily breakfast delivery, beach club access, spa and dining advantages. New for 2025, Le Barth Villas introduces its Quiet Villas Collection, a curated set of eight private homes (priced from about €15,500 a week), replete with thoughtful wellness touches including yoga classes and restorative Atma Janzu aquatic therapy sessions.
Renting a villa offers the best of both worlds for those bringing holiday traditions and private chefs with them across the Atlantic. Among the standouts, Villa Captiva sits on a rare private beach in Marigot and is built for privacy, seclusion and serious comfort. Sleeping up to 16 across five discreet bungalow suites, the estate flows between lush gardens and the sea, with a main house that includes an open-plan chef’s kitchen, wine cellar, gym and indoor-outdoor dining for effortless entertaining. Priced at around €90,000 per week in high season and €210,000 over New Year, Villa Captiva is among St Barths’ most coveted rentals.
Beach clubs
Gyp Sea Beach Club is back in St Jean’s with two clever new draws: the island’s first Crudo Bar—raw fish sourced straight from local waters—and a Coco Bar hut dedicated entirely to coconut-forward cocktails (signature Coco Spritz included). Saturdays bring “Sunset Bliss” from 4pm, with guest DJs throughout the season.
Over on Shell Beach, Shellona is open daily from late morning into the afternoon, pairing a Greek-leaning menu with long, sun-dappled lunches under palms, plus sunbeds steps from the water. And at La Guérite’s toes-in-the-sand sibling on St Jean Bay, expect Mediterranean dishes shaped by Caribbean produce from chef Yiannis Kioroglou. Grilled fish and lobster, burrata and tomatoes, the signature La Guérite pasta—all served in a breezy, design-led setting by Caprini & Pellerin.
Tables to book now
The DB Group’s circuit is in full swing— Le Tamarin’s torchlit garden dining room opens nightly from 6.30pm, while Mamo brings its famed Italian cucina and pasta dishes to Gustavia from lunch through dinner. Shellona keeps Shell Beach buzzing with chef Yiannis Kioroglou’s generous Greek plates and an all-day seaside rhythm, while La Guérite Beach delivers Mediterranean classics in a relaxed setting on St Jean Bay. Sella layers a design-led room with Levant-leaning dishes to share, from fattoush to Caribbean tartare. And Le Ti St Barth, the island’s iconic cabaret since 1995, returns with its high-energy show and late nights.
New this year, Lucali lands in Gustavia with pizzas and calzones for evening service—New York technique with a St Barths gloss. Bar des Prés by Cyril Lignac also joins the line up this season, bringing Lignac’s polished nonchalance and Japanese-French signatures to the island. Meanwhile, Riviera resident favourite Bagatelle St. Barth—perched on Gustavia Harbour—is back with French-Mediterranean classics from chefs Rocco Seminara and Jordan Gressiez, plus that famously festive atmosphere. Doors open nightly from 7pm, later on weekends, and dinner often turns into dancing.
