Perhaps the most iconic hotel on the Atlantic coast, the prestigious Hôtel du Palais needs no introduction. In elegant, historical surroundings overlooking the ocean, its traditional cuisine (such as the "Crêpe Suzy", a tribute to Raymond Oliver) sometimes cedes its place in the spotlight to more contemporary creations. Fish and seafood and the best of the Aquitaine terroir are never far away, a case in point being the abalone delicately confit in seaweed butter, the glazed John Dory with fishbone jus and its "marine garden", or the "rhub'algue" dessert, which brilliantly combines the subtle acidity of rhubarb with the brininess of seaweed. Precise and efficient service.