Masters in Hospitality Management in France: Fees for Indian Students (2026)

  • Last Updated on: July 24, 2026 by
  • Swapna Kanchikacherla
Masters in Hospitality Management in France
Masters in Hospitality Management in France

A masters in hospitality management in France suits students targeting hotel operations, revenue management, food and beverage (F&B), luxury hospitality, tourism marketing, or guest-experience careers. The best-known options are ESSEC (IMHI), FERRANDI Paris, Vatel, Institut Lyfe with emlyon, PSB, Excelia, INSEEC, and a handful of public universities. Tuition spans from about EUR 3,950 per year (about INR 4.30 lakh) at a public university to over EUR 40,000 for a two-year MSc at a top private school. Where you apply, not just the country, sets the bill. This article gives you verified 2026 fees for the major France-based options most relevant to Indian applicants, in INR, the exact IELTS band each one wants, the Campus France steps, and the real post-study work rule. Read the fee table first, then decide your shortlist.

Written by
Swapna Kanchikacherla
Head of European Desk
Specialises in Germany and France student admissions and visa documentation, with a focus on Campus France, APS, blocked-account and proof-of-funds files.
9 Years, 1100 Visas
Reviewed by
Sridhar Kongara
Managing Director
Mr. Kongara Sridhar, Director of AOEC India, has over 12 years of experience in overseas education consulting, admissions, and student visa guidance.
Over 12 years Experience

Key Takeaways

  • France drew more than 100 million international tourists in 2024, the world’s busiest tourism market, so demand for trained hotel managers stays high.
  • A public-university master’s costs the non-EU rate of EUR 3,950/year (about INR 4.30 lakh); private schools run from EUR 12,000/year up to about EUR 42,550 total over two years.
  • ESSEC’s IMHI needs IELTS Academic 6.5 or TOEFL iBT 95; Excelia accepts B2-level English instead.
  • You apply through Campus France (Etudes en France fee INR 18,500); September and January intakes both exist.
  • Non-EU students may work up to 964 hours a year, paid at the SMIC minimum wage of EUR 12.31/hour.
  • Indian master’s graduates can get up to 24 months after study under the France-India arrangement: 12 months, renewable once for another 12 months. This is separate from the 5-year alumni short-stay visa.
Table of Contents
Why study hospitality management in France? Scroll here ↓ Top hospitality management schools in France Scroll here ↓ Gastronomy, luxury, wine and public university routes Scroll here ↓ Fees: public university vs private business school Scroll here ↓ What are the admission requirements? Scroll here ↓ When are the intakes and how does the Campus France timeline work? Scroll here ↓ What will living costs and part-time work cost you? Scroll here ↓ Scholarships for hospitality students Scroll here ↓ What post-study work and hospitality careers follow? Scroll here ↓ Frequently Asked Questions Scroll here ↓

Why study hospitality management in France?

France is the world's most-visited country, which makes it a natural training base for hospitality. In 2024, France welcomed more than 100 million international tourists and earned a record EUR 71 billion (about INR 7.73 lakh crore), according to Campus France's "2024, a record year for international tourism". That volume keeps hiring demand for hotel and F&B managers steady.

For you as a student weighing where to train in hospitality and tourism management, that scale is not an abstract number. More tourists mean more hotels, restaurants, and events hiring people who can run them. France also owns the luxury hospitality name: palace hotels, Michelin kitchens, and Lyon, its gastronomy capital. A hospitality management programme here places you inside the industry, not just beside a textbook. Our France-bound students consistently rate the internship (stage), a paid or credited work placement built into most courses, as the single biggest reason they pick the country over a cheaper English-speaking option.

What a France-based hospitality degree gives an Indian student:

  • Employer access in food and beverage (F&B), events, and luxury hotel operations during the course itself.
  • Both English-taught and bilingual tracks, so you do not need French to start.
  • A public route that keeps tuition low if the private-school fee feels out of reach. Our wider guide to studying in France maps the full picture.

Top hospitality management schools in France

France's hospitality management schools split into business schools and dedicated hotel schools. Institut Lyfe (formerly Institut Paul Bocuse) runs a 120-ECTS MSc in International Hospitality Management as a double degree with emlyon, taught in English, per its Master's programme page for 2026. Entry needs a Bachelor's (Bac+3), and the course carries a built-in internship each cycle.

ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System) is the standard credit measure used across France and the EU. 60 ECTS is the usual full-time workload for one academic year, so 120 ECTS typically represents a two-year master’s.

MSc, MBA, or public Master’s: which route fits you?

Hospitality qualifications in France come in a few different shapes, and mixing them up costs you time. An MSc (Master of Science) suits an early-career applicant straight from a bachelor’s degree who wants a specialist route into revenue management, luxury service, or F&B operations. An MBA assumes you already have hospitality or business work experience and want a leadership or general-management role faster; Vatel’s MBA is the clearest example on this list. A public university Master’s costs far less at EUR 3,950/year non-EU, but expect more French-medium teaching and fewer English-only options than the private schools below.

One more label worth knowing: some French schools call their qualification a Mastere rather than a Master’s. What actually matters for recognition is whether the programme is registered at RNCP Level 7, France’s official classification for master’s-equivalent diplomas, per the Code du travail. INSEEC’s hospitality MSc, for example, carries this registration. Ask any school directly whether its diploma holds RNCP Level 7 status before you compare it against a university Master’s.

Now to your shortlist, split by the angle each school actually serves rather than a single ranking list. This list excludes Switzerland-based hotel schools and separates wine, gastronomy, luxury, and public tourism-management routes from direct hotel-management degrees.

Direct hospitality management:

Business school
ESSEC (IMHI)
 
The IMHI (Institut de Management Hotelier International) MSc is the research-heavy, revenue-management route. Best for you if you want a global hotel-group or consulting career and can fund a top-tier fee.
Culinary + hotel school
FERRANDI Paris
 
Strong on kitchen-to-management crossover and F&B operations. Best for you if food and restaurant leadership, not just front-desk hotel work, is the goal.
Hotel-management specialist
Vatel
 
Campus network with a work-heavy MBA in international hotel management. Best for you if you want the lowest private-school fee and hands-on operations.
Flexible timing
PSB (Paris School of Business)
 
MSc Hospitality Management runs 18 to 24 months, 100% in English, with October or February intakes. Best for you if you want a Paris-based fee below ESSEC’s with flexible start dates.
Tourism school
Excelia (La Rochelle)
 
MSc International Hospitality with strong placement claims. Best for you if you want tourism plus hospitality and a coastal campus.
Paid work built in
INSEEC
 
MSc Hospitality Management, Tourism Marketing & Customer Experience, RNCP Level 7 registered, with a work-study (alternance) option from year one. Best for you if you want paid work built into the degree itself.
Lower-cost private route
ILCI Education
 
Master in Hospitality & Tourism Management, English-taught with a French-language component, at EUR 6,900 in year one and EUR 7,900 in year two. Best for you if you want a lower private-school fee than Vatel or PSB, but verify its brand recognition, internship support, and visa suitability before applying.
Marketing-focused
ISC Paris
 
MSc Hospitality Management & Marketing, taught in French and English, with a regular 2-year track or a fast 1-year track. Best for you if tourism marketing, customer relations, or hospitality brand roles interest you more than hotel operations alone.

Gastronomy, luxury, wine and public university routes

Beyond the direct hotel-management route, France also offers a wine-and-luxury specialism and two public university options. KEDGE's MSc Wine and Hospitality Management, run with Ecole hoteliere de Lausanne, is a one-year, English-taught programme focused on wine, not general hotel operations, per its official programme page. A wine career, not a hotel one, is the better fit here.

Gastronomy, luxury and wine angle:

Double degree
emlyon + Institut Lyfe
 
Pairs a business-school brand with a hospitality institute in Lyon. Best for you if you want a management degree with deep gastronomy exposure.
Wine niche
KEDGE (Wine & Hospitality Management)
 
A one-year MSc run jointly with Ecole hoteliere de Lausanne, focused on wine and luxury hospitality rather than general hotel operations. Best for you if wine, not hotels, is the career target.
Luxury focus
SKEMA
 
Runs a luxury-hospitality MSc within a large business school. Named here for completeness; we could not verify its 2026 fee, so confirm it before applying.
Luxury/gastronomy, optional
GEM Alpine Business School
 
MSc Gastronomy, Hospitality and Luxury Management on GEM’s Paris campus, EUR 13,250 in year one and EUR 13,950 in year two (or EUR 17,950 for the 1-year direct-entry track). Best for you if luxury guest experience, gastronomy, or premium service design is the goal, not general hotel operations.

Public and low-fee routes:

Public, French + English
Universite de Montpellier
 
The Master Management Strategique, parcours Hotellerie-Tourisme runs 1 to 2 years in French and English. Best for you if budget matters more than an English-only campus; confirm the current fee at application.
Public, French-medium
Universite d’Angers (ESTHUA)
 
A 2-year Master Management Sectoriel, parcours Hotellerie, public and French-medium only. Best for you only if your French is strong enough to study fully in it.

One trap to avoid: Les Roches, Glion, and EHL are famous “hotel management” names but sit in Switzerland, not France. If your plan is a French visa and the post-study work permit, filter them out early. For the wider business-school field, our list of top business schools in France gives more context.

Best choice by budget and profile

Your priorityBest-fit school
Lowest tuitionPublic university (Montpellier, Angers) at about EUR 3,950/year non-EU (reference rate, confirm at application)
Lowest listed private-school tuitionILCI Education at EUR 14,800 total, but verify recognition, visa suitability, and placement support before shortlisting
Luxury/gastronomy managementGEM Alpine Business School or Institut Lyfe
Business-school brandESSEC (IMHI) or emlyon + Institut Lyfe
Luxury or F&B/culinary angleFERRANDI Paris or Institut Lyfe
Wine and luxury nicheKEDGE MSc Wine & Hospitality Management
Built-in paid work (alternance)INSEEC MSc Hospitality Management
Easier English entry (IELTS around 6.0)Vatel or Excelia (B2-level)
Flexible start datesPSB (October or February intake)

Match the row that fits your real constraint first and the fee band second; a school with the wrong specialism rarely fixes a wrong-fit choice, however low its tuition.

Fees: public university vs private business school

Tuition for a masters in hospitality management in France ranges from EUR 3,950/year at a public university to EUR 42,550 total at Excelia. ESSEC's MSc in Hospitality Management (IMHI) sits in between at EUR 24,900 for one year or EUR 36,300 for two, for 2026-27. Where you apply, not just which country, sets your bill.

SchoolProgrammeDurationTuition (EUR)Tuition (INR)English
ESSEC (IMHI)MSc Hospitality Management1 or 2 yr24,900 (1 yr) / 36,300 (2 yr)27.12 / 39.54 lakhIELTS 6.5 / TOEFL 95
FERRANDI ParisMSc Hospitality Management2 yr29,300 total31.91 lakhSchool test
PSB (Paris School of Business)MSc Hospitality Management18-24 mo15,790-18,79017.20-20.47 lakh100% English
INSEECMSc Hospitality Mgmt, Tourism Marketing & Customer Experience2 yr12,650 + 14,150 (Sept)13.78 + 15.41 lakhEnglish-taught
Excelia (La Rochelle)MSc International Hospitality (non-EU)2 yr42,550 total46.34 lakhB2
KEDGE (Wine School)MSc Wine & Hospitality Management1 yrabout 24,000about 26.14 lakhEnglish
Vatel BordeauxMBA International Hotel Management2 yr12,000 / yr13.07 lakh / yrIELTS 6.0 / TOEFL 90
ILCI EducationMaster in Hospitality & Tourism Management2 yr6,900 (Y1) + 7,900 (Y2)7.52 + 8.60 lakhEnglish + French course
ISC ParisMSc Hospitality Management & Marketing1 or 2 yr15,300 (1 yr) / 23,200 (2 yr), non-EU16.66 / 25.27 lakhFrench + English
Public university (general rate)Master’s (non-EU differentiated rate)1-2 yr3,950 / yr4.30 lakh / yrVaries

What this means for you: the gap between the cheapest private option (ILCI Education, EUR 14,800 total) and the priciest MSc (Excelia non-EU, EUR 42,550) is more than EUR 27,000 over two years. Pick on fit and funding, not brand alone.

Private hotel and business-school fees

Private schools are where the hospitality management masters fees climb. For the 2026 intake, FERRANDI Paris charges EUR 14,300 in year one and EUR 15,000 in year two, EUR 29,300 total (about INR 31.91 lakh), per its Master of Science page. Excelia’s non-EU MSc is the steepest at EUR 42,550 across two years. Vatel Bordeaux runs EUR 12,000/year, plus small admission and intake fees. ILCI Education undercuts all of these at EUR 6,900 in year one and EUR 7,900 in year two, EUR 14,800 total, though it carries less brand recognition than the schools above.

Three more options fill the middle of the range. PSB charges EUR 15,790 for its 18-month, 90-ECTS track or EUR 18,790 for the full 24-month, 120-ECTS track, both entirely in English. INSEEC’s MSc in Hospitality Management, Tourism Marketing and Customer Experience runs two years, on the September intake, for EUR 12,650 in year one and EUR 14,150 in year two. It also offers a work-study (alternance) option from year one. KEDGE’s MSc Wine & Hospitality Management, run jointly with Ecole hoteliere de Lausanne, is a one-year, English-taught programme at about EUR 24,000. Note that it is a wine and luxury-hospitality specialism, not a general hotel-operations degree.

The public-university route (and the “EUR 243” myth)

Here is what most listicles get wrong. For 2026-27, Campus France’s tuition-fees page confirms a public master’s costs EUR 255/year for EU students but the differentiated tuition rate of EUR 3,950/year (about INR 4.30 lakh) for non-EU students like you. So a “Universite Angers EUR 243” headline is the EU figure, not the non-EU tuition you will actually pay.

Two public routes are worth naming directly. The Universite de Montpellier runs a Master Management Strategique, parcours Hotellerie-Tourisme, in French and English over one or two years. The Universite d’Angers (ESTHUA) runs a similar two-year Master, but French-medium only. Neither publishes a separate hospitality-track fee; treat EUR 3,950/year non-EU as your reference point and confirm the exact figure at application.

From our counselling desk: The biggest money mistake we correct is families comparing a private school's EUR 30,000 fee against a public "EUR 243" figure that Indian students never qualify for. The honest comparison is EUR 3,950/year public versus EUR 12,000 to 18,000/year private. Public is genuinely cheaper, but English-taught hospitality masters at public universities are fewer and fill fast, so start early.

Your real first-year cost

Tuition is not the whole bill. Every student also pays the CVEC (Contribution Vie Etudiante et de Campus, the student and campus-life contribution): for 2026-27 it is EUR 105 (about INR 11,437), payable before enrolment, per the official CVEC portal. Add tuition, CVEC, visa costs and living money, and even a public-route year lands well above the headline fee. Our cost of studying in France guide breaks the full budget down.

What are the admission requirements?

Hospitality management admission in France needs a three-year bachelor's degree (Bac+3), proof of English, and usually an interview. For 2026 entry, Vatel's MBA in International Hospitality Management asks for TOEFL 580 (90 iBT) or IELTS 6.0 Academic plus a one-page personal essay. English bands and extra tests differ by school, so match your profile before you apply.

Schools weigh the same three inputs differently. ESSEC’s IMHI leans on your transcripts and an optional GMAT or GRE score; Vatel wants a one-page personal essay that shows genuine motivation for hospitality over academic polish. Here is how the English bands compare for the MSc in International Hospitality Management and its peers.
School Minimum degree English (IELTS Academic / TOEFL iBT) Other
ESSEC (IMHI) Bac+3 IELTS 6.5 / TOEFL iBT 95 (or TOEIC 850) GMAT/GRE recommended, optional
Vatel Bac+3 IELTS 6.0 / TOEFL 90 One-page personal essay
PSB Bac+3 IELTS 6.0 / TOEFL 80 Motivation and suitability interview
INSEEC Bac+3 English-taught; specific test band not published Work-study (alternance) option from year one
ILCI Education Bac+3 (confirm directly) English programme with French-language course Verify recognition, visa suitability, and internship support before applying
Excelia Bac+3 B2 level (no fixed band) Online video interview
Notice how Excelia’s B2 requirement gives a slightly easier English entry than ESSEC’s 6.5, while the GMAT stays optional across the board. If your IELTS sits at 6.0 to 6.5, you have real options at this level. The public routes at Montpellier and Angers add a different filter: French level, not just English, since Angers teaches its hospitality Master’s entirely in French and Montpellier mixes both languages, so check the exact programme language before you shortlist either.

When are the intakes and how does the Campus France timeline work?

French hospitality masters run September and January intakes, and Indian applicants route through Campus France. For 2026, FERRANDI Paris opens its September intake to applications from 7 January to 30 August 2026 and its January intake from 31 August to 20 December 2025, per its MSc programme page. Deadlines vary by school, so lock yours early.

To apply for a masters in hospitality management in France, you first get an offer, then clear the Etudes en France (EEF) procedure, France’s mandatory online platform for long-stay student visas. Here is the realistic order for a September start:

  1. Oct-Dec 2025: shortlist schools, sit IELTS/TOEFL, prepare your Bac+3 transcripts.
  2. Jan-Mar 2026: submit applications. ESSEC’s IMHI 2026 intake starts 25 August 2026, so apply well ahead.
  3. Apr-Jun 2026: accept your offer, then open the Etudes en France file. In 2026, the EEF processing fee is INR 18,500 for long-stay (over 90 days) student visas, per Campus France India. Attend the Campus France interview.
  4. Jul-Aug 2026: collect your visa, fly out, and validate your VLS-TS long-stay visa online within three months. In 2026, that validation costs EUR 150 (about INR 16,338), per the French Interior Ministry portal.

Miss the EEF window and you miss the intake, so treat these dates as fixed. Our intakes in France guide covers timing across courses.

What will living costs and part-time work cost you?

Non-EU students in France can work part-time to help cover living costs. As of mid-2026, they may work up to 964 hours a year, per Campus France's "Working while studying" guidance. At the mid-2026 SMIC minimum wage of about EUR 12.31/hour, that cap is roughly 20 hours a week, enough to offset rent but not tuition.

Parents, this is the figure that decides your monthly transfer. In 2026, Campus France’s cost-of-living guidance puts a student budget outside Paris at roughly EUR 600 to 800 a month (about INR 65,000 to 87,000); Paris runs higher. Part-time work at the SMIC, within the 964-hour cap, can bring in a few hundred euros a month, but treat it as top-up money, never as your funding plan.

Where students actually place their part-time hours:

  • Campus and hospitality jobs in F&B service or front desk, often through the school’s own network.
  • Alternance (work-study) contracts on some courses, which pair paid work with study and cover more of your costs.
  • Seasonal tourism roles in summer, when the 964-hour cap stretches furthest.

One downside to plan around: do not bank on French housing aid (APL/CAF). Eligibility for non-EU students who are not on a scholarship has tightened and is not guaranteed, so budget your rent in full rather than counting on a subsidy that may never arrive. Add the slower, more paperwork-heavy Campus France admin compared with the UK, and France asks for patience. Our part-time jobs in France guide shows what work is realistic.

Scholarships for hospitality students

France's flagship master's award is the France Excellence Eiffel Scholarship, worth EUR 1,200 a month. For the 2026 cycle, it pays master's students EUR 1,200/month (about INR 1.31 lakh) but the institution nominates candidates and it does not cover tuition, per Campus France's Eiffel programme page. You cannot apply for it yourself.

Here is the honest read on funding a hospitality management masters. The Eiffel stipend is generous, but because your school must nominate you before its January deadline, it rarely fits a self-driven applicant who shortlists late. Realistically, your funding stack looks like this:

  • Eiffel scholarship: best if a school actively backs you; covers living, not tuition.
  • School merit waivers: several private hospitality schools trim fees for strong profiles, so ask admissions directly.
  • CROUS support and housing: the national student-services body helps with subsidised housing rather than cash for non-EU students.

Most Indian students still fund the bulk through an education loan from HDFC Credila, Avanse, or SBI, using the low public-university fee to keep the loan small. Our scholarships to study in France guide lists more options.

What post-study work and hospitality careers follow?

France's general APS (Autorisation Provisoire de Sejour) route lets eligible non-EU graduates remain one year after their studies to look for work or start a company, per Campus France's APS guidance. Campus France India describes a longer India-specific arrangement: this 12-month permit is renewable once, giving Indian master's graduates up to 24 months total.

Here is the precise picture for Indian applicants. Campus France’s general APS page states the permit allows a graduate to stay one year after studies, and lists India among the countries covered by APS. Campus France India goes further: its alumni-visa page confirms a 12-month visa renewable once for another 12 months, giving up to 24 months total to find work or start a business. Do not confuse this with the separate 5-year alumni short-stay visa, which allows limited 90-day Schengen stays for business or tourism and is not a post-study work permit.

On careers, the outcomes are strong at the specialist schools. 100% of Excelia’s hospitality graduates secure a job within six months of graduating, and 80% sign a contract before they finish studying (Excelia). Starting salaries in French hospitality vary widely by role, city, and employer, so we do not quote a single figure. For a realistic timeline on staying and working, see our post-study work visa in France guide.

Where a French hospitality masters typically leads:

RoleWhat it involves
Revenue managerRoom and rate pricing, RevPAR (revenue per available room) targets, and channel strategy across booking platforms.
F&B managerRestaurant and bar operations, cost control on food and beverage spend, and service-quality standards.
Guest experience managerLuxury-service delivery, complaint resolution, and VIP or loyalty-programme handling.
Tourism / customer experience managerMapping the customer journey and destination or hospitality marketing for a hotel group or tourism board.
Event and hospitality operations managerStaffing rotas, vendor coordination, and on-the-ground service delivery for conferences and events.

In the counselling we ran for the September 2025 intake, the students who converted their post-study window into a job were the ones who used their internship (stage) as an audition, not just a credit. Line up that placement early.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, most MSc and MBA hospitality programmes at ESSEC, Vatel, Excelia, and Institut Lyfe are taught fully in English, so you do not need French to start. Learning basic French still helps with part-time work and daily life.

Usually yes. Most schools accept any three-year bachelor’s (Bac+3) as long as you show genuine motivation for hospitality in your essay and interview. Some business-track MSc courses prefer a management or commerce background, but it is rarely mandatory.

Not for most master’s entries. Fresh graduates are accepted, though prior internships or hotel jobs strengthen a file. MBA-style tracks like Vatel value hands-on experience more, so mention any restaurant, front-desk, or events work you have done.

You must show proof of funds covering living costs, commonly cited near EUR 615 a month, held in your own account. The exact figure is set by the consulate, so confirm the current amount with your Campus France adviser before you lock funds.

A public university is clearly cheaper on tuition at EUR 3,950/year for non-EU students, versus EUR 12,000 or more at private schools. Private schools counter with stronger industry placement and English-taught options, so weigh fee against career support.

Sources

Official sources first, then reputable third-party.

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