Luxury Brand Beach Club Takeovers on the French Riviera — Your 2026 Guide
Something has shifted in the Mediterranean summer over the last three years. The great luxury houses — Jacquemus, Gucci, Burberry, Roberto Cavalli — no longer merely dress the people who go to the Riviera's most iconic beach clubs. They are now dressing the beach clubs themselves. Full seasonal takeovers, with the venues restyled from the pool tiles to the parasols, custom capsule collections sold at on-site boutiques, and a coordinated visual identity that turns each address into a walking mood board for the brand's summer.
For summer 2026, the phenomenon has reached its highest expression yet on the French Riviera. Below, the five most significant designer beach club takeovers within reach of Villa Monaco — with the venues, the brands, the dates and the driving distances from the villa gate in Cap-d'Ail.
The Programme
The Five Designer Beach Club Takeovers of 2026
Below, each collaboration in detail — the venue, the brand, the dates, what the takeover actually includes on the ground, and how far the venue is from Villa Monaco.
Jacquemus × Monte-Carlo Beach
10 min · MonacoFor the second consecutive summer, French fashion house Jacquemus has taken over the historic pier and Pool Café of the Monte-Carlo Beach Club — the same iconic Olympic-pool setting immortalised by Helmut Newton. Where the 2025 edition worked with Simon Porte Jacquemus's signature banana yellow, coconut milk white and black stripes drawn from the "La Croisière" collection, the 2026 edition shifts to a Mediterranean blue-green palette inspired by the 1950s Riviera. Custom striped loungers, parasols, beach towels, café furnishings; two Jacquemus boutiques on site; a coordinated window at the Hôtel de Paris in the Principality.
Gucci × La Rose des Vents
10 min · MonacoGucci returns to Monte-Carlo for summer 2026 at La Rose des Vents on the Larvotto — the beach club transformed into an open-air Mediterranean garden to mark the 60th anniversary of the House's Flora motif. Floral prints cover every element of the space; scenic botanical installations amplify the visual impact; a dedicated capsule collection of red-toned ready-to-wear and accessories has been released alongside the takeover, available at the Monte Carlo Gucci boutique. The takeover covers the beach, the restaurant and the terrace — spaces suited equally to morning coffee, a seafood lunch or an evening aperitivo above the Mediterranean.
Burberry × Hôtel Belles Rives
55 min · AntibesThe British house's first full Riviera takeover — chosen deliberately as part of Burberry's 170th anniversary year, and located at an Art Deco hotel with unique literary weight. Hôtel Belles Rives was F. Scott Fitzgerald's residence in the late 1920s, the place where he began writing Tender is the Night — and the novel's protagonist, fittingly, wears a Burberry coat. For 2026, Burberry has reinterpreted its signature check in a bespoke navy blue drawn from the hotel's own palette, running the pattern through the interiors including the original 1920s lift, the private jetty, the beach club doors, and the terraces. Burberry-branded waterskiing, ice lollies on the famous terrace, and sunset service at the Fitzgerald Bar complete the season.
Roberto Cavalli × The Annex Beach
1h · CannesFor the second consecutive summer, Italian house Roberto Cavalli returns to The Annex Beach on La Croisette in Cannes — one of the Riviera's most photogenic beach club addresses, designed by Jacques Garcia. Under creative director Fausto Puglisi, the 2026 iteration is called "Ray of Paradise" and covers loungers, parasols, tableware and beach towels in the House's signature maximalist prints. The takeover launched on 17 May with a private dinner and DJ set at Annex Beach during the Cannes Film Festival — an evening that set the tone for the entire season on the Croisette.
Alo Yoga × Hôtel Martinez Pier
1h · CannesThe most unexpected of the 2026 Riviera collaborations — Los Angeles activewear house Alo Yoga on the famous private pier of the Hôtel Martinez in Cannes. Where the fashion takeovers work with fabric, colour and print, Alo works with rhythm: sunrise mindfulness sessions and yoga classes running on the pier through the summer, with guests transitioning from mat directly to sun-bed. It is a serious sign of where luxury is going — wellness as its ultimate expression, and the beach club as a place to actually feel better rather than only to be seen.
The great luxury houses no longer merely dress the people who go to the Riviera's most iconic beach clubs. They are now dressing the beach clubs themselves.
The Trend
Why Fashion Houses Are Taking Over Beach Clubs
Three summers ago, this list would have been Jacquemus at Monte-Carlo Beach and nothing else. Today, five major houses are simultaneously programming full seasonal Riviera takeovers — and similar patterns are visible in Ibiza (Chloé at Formentera, Jacquemus at Bodrum's Blue Beach), Capri, Costa Smeralda and Saint-Tropez. What began as marketing has evolved into what industry press now calls "takeover culture" — a full cultural and economic system in which the beach club is no longer a seasonal parenthesis, but the primary summer stage for the luxury calendar.
For guests, the effect is meaningful: a lunch at Monte-Carlo Beach in July 2026 is a genuinely different experience from a lunch there in July 2024. The rooms change, the objects change, the boutiques change, the guest list changes. It is why every year on the Riviera now feels a little more like a season, and less like a repeat. And it is why we recommend booking these venues well in advance — the tables that used to require 24 hours' notice now need weeks.
Where to Stay
Villa Monaco — Minutes from Two of the Five
Of the five 2026 takeovers, two — Jacquemus × Monte-Carlo Beach and Gucci × La Rose des Vents — are within a ten-minute drive of the Villa Monaco gate. The others, in Antibes and Cannes, are between fifty-five minutes and an hour away, all reachable in a single evening's drive along the A8 or the Corniche. For a serious summer visitor to the Riviera, staying at Villa Monaco means the two closest are essentially in your neighbourhood, and the more distant three are still short of an hour away.
The concierge team handles reservations at all five venues, including tables at the Cannes venues on days when they appear fully booked online. For a broader guide to the Riviera's beach clubs beyond the designer collaborations — from the party addresses to the quieter coves — see our companion beach club guide.
Frequently Asked
Designer Beach Club Takeovers 2026 — FAQ
Which fashion houses are taking over Riviera beach clubs in 2026?
Five confirmed for the French Riviera summer 2026: Jacquemus at Monte-Carlo Beach Club (Monaco/Roquebrune), Gucci at La Rose des Vents (Monaco), Burberry at Hôtel Belles Rives (Antibes), Roberto Cavalli at The Annex Beach (Cannes), and Alo Yoga at the Hôtel Martinez pier (Cannes).
How long do these takeovers run?
Most run through the summer season into late September or early October 2026. Jacquemus × Monte-Carlo Beach runs until 27 September; Gucci × La Rose des Vents until 30 September; Burberry × Belles Rives until 30 September. The Roberto Cavalli and Alo Yoga collaborations run for the summer 2026 season.
Which are closest to Villa Monaco?
Jacquemus × Monte-Carlo Beach and Gucci × La Rose des Vents are both approximately ten minutes from the villa gate in Cap-d'Ail. The Cannes venues (Cavalli × Annex Beach, Alo × Martinez pier) are about an hour; Burberry × Belles Rives in Antibes is about 55 minutes.
Do I need to book in advance?
Yes, especially in July and August. The designer takeovers attract international press and a significantly larger volume of bookings than the venues do in their off-year form. Advance reservation weeks in advance is now the norm; the villa concierge team is the fastest route to a confirmed table.
What is included in a designer beach club takeover?
The scope varies by collaboration. At the maximum end (Jacquemus, Gucci, Burberry), the takeover covers the physical redesign of the space — loungers, parasols, table settings, interiors — plus on-site pop-up boutiques with capsule collections, coordinated menus, and additional programming such as live DJ sets, waterskiing (Burberry), or wellness classes (Alo). The point is immersion: guests spend the day inside the brand's visual world.
Can non-guests visit these takeovers?
Generally yes — the beach clubs remain open to the public on a table-reservation basis, and the on-site boutiques are accessible without a booking. Access to the private beach and pool areas at Monte-Carlo Beach and Hôtel Belles Rives is typically reserved for hotel or beach club guests; access at La Rose des Vents and Annex Beach is included with a table reservation.