The Legacy of 19th century (guided tour)

In 1875 the arrival of the railway, along with an ambitious architectural
programme, mark the start of significant changes in the town. The southern
district of Costebelle becomes a touristic and athletic destination while the
town also expands eastwards with the construction of beautiful villas on the
Venaudo hill starting in 1930. The minds behind this ambitious modernisation of
the city’s architectural landscape are the entrepreneur Alexis Godillot (known
in France for having invented the eponymous military boot) and the architect
Pierre Chapoulart. Combining new architectural projects with a complete
renewal of the town’s urban plan, Godillot and Chapoulart are behind the
large palm-tree-lined avenues that, from 1865, criss-cross the city centre, a new
building for the national French bank, a casino and a post office completed in
1883. They also install new fountains and build prestigious villas. This building
frenzy gives the relatively small town of Hyères (10,000 inhabitants at the time)
the air of an aristocratic resort.

Some of Godillot and Chapoulart’s outstanding architectural successes
include the town’s first Grand Hotel and the large caryatid-laden Hotel des
Ambassadeurs. To this day, the Moorish villa stands out for the originality of
its casted cement and glazed tiles-facade and the Tunisian Villa (1884) remains
a striking sight. Other significant buildings from this epoch are the neo-classic
Park Hotel surrounded by ancient orange trees and the nearby Rotunda that
used to be the Park Hotel’s dining room and now host the headquarters of the
Tourist Office

Discover our town with this guided tour.

Classification/labels

• Historic

Spoken languages

• French