Interview Mr. van Straaten
Interview with Hotel Manager Robert van Straaten
July 2023
In a personal interview, hotel manager Robert van Straaten told me a few insider tips about the area around St. Tropez.
La Esplora: Since when do you live in St. Tropez ? What brought you to the south of France back then?
Robert van Straaten: I am a native of Holland and at that time I wanted to learn languages. At that time, Thomas H. Althoff took over a hotel on the Côte d’Azur. And since I wanted to learn languages, I took the opportunity and moved to the Côte d’Azur in 1998. I quickly fell in love with the Côte d’Azur region. In 2001 Thomas Althoff gave me the chance to take over the Hotel Villa Belrose as hotel director.
LA ESPLORA: What makes St. Tropez for you?
Robert van Straaten: When you started to live in places like Monaco, Cannes, Nice, the place St. Tropez was again an extra curtain which went up. St. Tropez is special, St. Tropez is a real resort compared to the other places on the Côte d’Azur – a place to relax. In contrast, Monaco, Cannes, Nice are the cities where business is done. St. Tropez is where you come for your vacation.
I generally appreciate the somewhat smaller hotel business; here you can look after your guests more intensively yourself. And when you get to do that in combination with this crazy influence of the village of St. Tropez for years, it’s already a great story and it’s always exciting. I always say that I could also write some books with exciting stories.
LA ESPLORA: Yesterday I was able to attend a private birthday party at Villa Belrose and was very impressed with your personal involvement yesterday until well after midnight. As hotel director, you are personally there for the guests with passion. Here, as a guest, you actually have the feeling as if you are spending your vacation in a very large private villa.
LA ESPLORA:
Isn’t St. Tropez also a very crazy village for you?
Robert van Straaten: The peninsula of St. Tropez has so many beautiful charming places that offer a wonderful contrast to the crazy St. Tropez with its famous beach clubs.
Only in the summer months up to 8 million people come to St. Tropez; in the winter months St. Tropez belongs then to the approx. 5,000 inhabitants. I also always find it a shame that St. Tropez completely falls asleep during the winter months.
LA ESPLORA: Is St. Tropez worth a trip even in winter? One associates St. Tropez above all as a place of the rich and beautiful in the summer months.
Robert van Straaten: In any case, St. Tropez is worth a trip even in the winter months. The peninsula of St. Tropez offers a very mild climate. There are often warm days around 20 degrees even in winter. When it’s three months chilly in northern Europe, some days in St. Tropez you can enjoy a lunch in a T-shirt and shorts during lunchtime. There are even 2-3 beach clubs which are actually open even during the winter months in St. Tropez. It is often forgotten that the Côte d’Azur used to be a place where the wealthier English or Europeans wintered.
LA ESPLORA:
Which places are particularly beautiful for you?
Robert van Straaten: Gassin is a very beautiful small village and is one of the most beautiful villages in France. Or the villages of Grimaud or La Croix-Valmer with the hotel ‘Lily of the Valley’ are very worth seeing.
LA ESPLORA:
Do you have any special restaurant tips for La Esplora readers in the St. Tropez region?
Robert van Straaten: Gladly. There is the restaurant ‘Auberge de la Môle’, about 20 minutes drive from St. Tropez. The restaurant used to be a former gas station. Thus, the restaurant is often called only “gas station” by the locals. The special thing about this restaurant is that there is only one menu; traditional French cuisine is served there.
A second insider tip is the restaurant at the ‘Grand Hôtel Bain’ in the village of Comps-sur-Artuby in the Verdon Regional Natural Park; a hotel dating back to 1737 in the 8th generation of the family. There you can make a nice day trip. The route offers many fantastic views. Because this route is so spectacular, this restaurant is also a popular destination for Ferrari and Rolls-Royce car enthusiasts meetings.
For example, there is also a place behind Monaco called Gorbio. The place is located only 5 minutes from the Italian border. A tiny little village with excellent restaurants.
LA ESPLORA: One of your favorite places in the world? Where do you like to go on vacation when the hotel is closed?
Robert van StraatenFor me, São Paulo is the future New York with a South American way of life. As a Dutchman, I also love skiing, of course, which you can do wonderfully in the Alps behind Nice in the ski resort Isola 2000 in the winter months.
LA ESPLORA: Your favorite hotel?
Robert van Straaten: Oh, there are many hotels which are great. But the Hotel Fasano in São Paulo is one of my favorite hotels. Or the ‘Hôtel du Cap-Eden-Roc’ in Antibes is also very special.
Many thanks, dear Robert van Straaten, for the interesting interview!
Andrea Bornkessel
Worth reading
Art meets luxurious space
Exclusive Grand Resort Bad Ragaz
