This summer, I checked into the L’Occitane Hotel & Spa in Mane, right in the heart of Provence. Was it peak tourist season? Absolutely. Did that make it any less special? Not really. Let’s just say dealing with tourists isn’t a French superpower, but it all added to the charm.

The property itself has been around for ages—it used to be a convent—but the hotel and spa setup is fairly new. Most of it has been modernized, but the history still peeks through, especially in the reception area. Fabien and Valérie Piacentino, the Maîtres de Maison, have nailed that balance of elegance, simplicity, and genuine Provençal warmth. Their goal is to make guests feel right at home. We were keen to find out if we’re going to leave the place feeling as recharged as their website claims. It’s definitely a unique space that requires a thorough review, so let me take you through the whole experience with photos.

Getting There

Well firstly we landed in Nice, and rented a car, therefore doing a whole roadtrip along the coast and staying in other luxury hotels along the way - don’t worry I’ll keep reviewing more as we progress with this blog. This way I wanted to get the real feel for why people are so obsessed with Côte d’Azur. To make your life easier you can of course fly to Marseille and either rent a car or request a hotel transfer. It takes approximately 2 hours to get from the airport to the hotel, and the drive is a little underwhelming.

The Welcome & Our Room

From the moment we arrived, the staff was super warm and welcoming. We booked a standard room, which ran €900 a night in August. Pricey, sure, but typical for five-star hotels in Provence during peak season. We stayed three nights, so we had plenty of time to soak it all in.

To get to our room we walked past a huge hall with a beautiful bar. Our room was on the ground floor and had its own private patio, which flooded the space with natural light. It was huge, probably the biggest room we had during the whole trip, and beautifully designed—minimalist, airy, and effortlessly chic. They also loaded us up with thoughtful touches like L’Occitane toiletries, robes, slippers, and beach bags. Everything about it just felt easy.

The Spa

The spa is probably the main reason why people come here. Remember to book all your spa treatment way in advance because we barely managed to find any space a week before arrival.

They have a total of 10 treatment rooms where you can relax and enjoy every type of wellness need. L’Occitane has 4 objectives in mind - beauty, regeneration, balance and detoxification. We went for a deep tissue massage as well as a soothing massage, followed by facials. I must say these were the best and most tailored treatments to our needs that we received during our whole trip across the south of France, worth every penny.

Leaving the treatment rooms I felt so blissful that I was tempted to buy all the L’Occitane products on display, forgetting that they are widely available in London where I was coming back to.

Apart from treatments, the hotel has a separate spa facility- the 2,500m2 space offers just the right balance between an authentic ambience and a feeling of comfort and serenity. The facility has an enormous inside swimming pool, an outside nordic swimming pool, two saunas, two sensory showers, a hammam, a multi-sensory pool, a cyclone shower, a salt grotto and a relaxation area. What else can you possibly need. Life really felt easy.

Our only decision of the afternoon was should we go to the sauna before or after the pool, and deciding whether the cold plunge after a sauna was too crazy. I must add that at peak summer the spa didn’t feel suffocating. Yes, on Friday and Saturday we had to rush post breakfast to secure the best outdoor seats but apart from that most saunas or pools felt quite empty.

The spa clearly catered more to the French population too, which could explain why we were seeing significantly less foreign tourists than in other five star hotels. It felt more authentic and I liked that. The spa is also 16+ which means no screaming kids (sorry to all the moms). However, L’Occitane has another outdoor pool outside of the spa facilities which is kids friendly, so no one gets omitted.

Activities

If you’re feeling active, there’s plenty to do. You can book yoga, a HIIT class with their trainer Adrien, or rent an e-bike to explore the nearby villages and mountains. All of these activities come at an extra cost, but if you don’t want to spend extra money, make the most of the gym facility in the spa with all the best equipment. We all know I’m not a fan of going to the gym and working out by myself but this space somehow made me feel tranquil and motivated. Highly recommend checking it out.

Dining: All the French Goodness

Whats a five star hotel in Provence without incredible food and French wine? L’Occitane has 2 main restaurants along with 2 bars which also serve food. Le Feuillée has one Michelin star, taking culinary inspiration from Burgundy where the head chef was born.

The food was fresh and delicious. Not to mention the space - the restaurant continues onto the outdoor terrace with tables scattered under a plane tree decorated in tasteful lighting. When the evenings are warm there’s nothing more pleasant than enjoying a glass of good wine under the full moon. Overall, I didn’t feel like I needed to leave the hotel for any of our meals which says a lot.

Breakfast Done Right

Oh this one came as a surprise. As I mentioned, L’Occitane was one of our last stops on our roadtrip around the south of France. One of the biggest disappointments in these 5-star hotels have been our breakfasts.

Not only do most hotels charge additionally for breakfast upon arrival (what?), but they are also quite terrible to put it bluntly. One hotel which will remain unnamed offered us a “continental breakfast” for €30 which included 4 mini pastries, some bread, jam, and a few pieces of ham. Sorry but I don’t want a continental breakfast when I’m in France.

This is why when we came down for breakfast at L’Occitane our expectations were low. But wow, I could not be happier with what we found. Not only was the buffet filled with extraordinary options like fresh pastries, eggs, fruit, cured meats, they also had a full menu of items included which we could order to the table, of course I went for some pancakes. Also had the best cappuccino and orange juice I’ve ever had. I think the first morning we spent a good hour at the breakfast buffet exploring all the options.

The Goodbye

By the time we checked out, I was genuinely sad to leave. This place didn’t just live up to the hype—it exceeded it. Between the spa, the food, and the thoughtful details, L’Occitane is officially on my “must return” list.

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