A clutch of new top-end properties are revitalising Paris’s luxury hotel scene, reports John Brunton.
There is a new French revolution going on in the world of Parisian luxury hotels, as the cosy club dominated for years by the likes of Hôtel de Crillon, George V, Plaza Athénée and Le Bristol is being muscled in on by a raft of new openings and refurbishments.
The past year has seen the arrival of stunning properties from Shangri-La (last December) and Mandarin Oriental (in June), while Raffles has masterminded a multimillion-pound relaunch of Le Royal Monceau, radically redesigned by Philippe Starck. The coming years will also see players such as W and Peninsula enter the top end of the market. Four Seasons has embarked on a major refurbishment of all the George V rooms, while rumours abound that both the Ritz and Plaza Athénée are considering temporary closure for major refits.
And although all of this is happening during a supposed economic downturn, room rates are not dropping. The average price of a double room in a four-star property is now f250, and after a slight dip in 2009, occupancy in luxury hotels is heading upwards at the same rate it increased by in 2003-08 (15 per cent, from 63 per cent to 78 per cent).
“Luxury is not in recession, it is as simple as that,” says Philippe Leboeuf, general manager of the Mandarin Oriental. “I don’t see the number of new places bringing down rates. It is so expensive to run a hotel that you can’t jeopardise your image by lowering them.”
Sylvain Ercoli, general manager of Le Royal Monceau, is stimulated rather than worried about the new level of competition. “You wouldn’t believe how dynamic the hotel market is right now – this morning, I saw an article in the Figaroscope [the weekly supplement of Le Figaro] on three new boutique hotels opening up,” he says. “Let’s not forget that Paris is probably the most visited city in the world and there has been a serious lack of choice at the top end of the market – certainly compared with London, where there are far more ‘palace’ properties.
“Luxury brands have been looking at Paris for a long time because there has been an opportunity at the top end for expansion. I’m delighted with all the new openings – the more there are, the better for everyone. It puts Paris back on the map.”
Michel Jauslin is general manager of the Park Hyatt Paris Vendôme, which in May was awarded official five-star “palace” status by the government, one of only four hotels in the capital to have earned the accolade (the others are Le Meurice, Le Bristol and the Athénée). He also welcomes the new players on the block.
“Competition is always healthy – it challenges you to improve constantly,” he says. “We have 30 per cent fewer luxury rooms in Paris than London, and if London can have that amount, there’s no reason why we can’t. I think there is space for everyone. These newcomers also boost interest in the city, which creates more demand.”
Ercoli is a strong believer that in a city such as Paris, the hotel can be your actual destination. He identifies a new trend “whereby the old ‘golden triangle’ [the high-end hotel district] of Avenue Montaigne, George V and Champs Elysées is changing following our own reopening on Avenue Hoche, the positioning of the Shangri-La on Avenue d’Iéna, and the choice of Avenue Kléber for the Peninsula”.
He adds: “This has to be great news for the hotel market as there will be a knock-on effect with new four-star and boutique properties looking to locate in different parts of the city.”
Activity at the four-star level includes the arrival two months ago of the Martin Margiela-designed Maison Champs Elysées (see overleaf). Major refurbishments have also taken place at the Seven Eiffel, the Majestic and Le Buci, while the Marignan Champs Elysées is closed for a full renovation. The latest, unconfirmed, buzz concerns the opening of a funky Buddha Bar boutique hotel.
Of all the new properties, it is the Shangri-La that stands out. Its renovation of a palace is stunning, but the location is also a bold step, near to the Eiffel Tower, outside the “golden triangle”. General manager Alain Borgers explains why the group chose Paris for its first European hotel.
“For us it was a question of opportunity,” he says. “Our owner loves Paris and everything French – food, art, fashion – and had been looking for the right property for a long time. It was really this unique building becoming available for purchase that was the deciding factor rather than economic reasons, although the feasibility surveys for increasing the Parisian luxury hotel market were encouraging, too.”
With all this going on, perhaps the happiest man in town is Paul Roll, managing director of the Paris Convention and Visitors Board. “This burst of openings demonstrates that these new ‘palaces’ are becoming destinations within a destination,” he says. “It confirms that Paris was behind Europe’s other major cities in terms of luxury properties – now we are catching up.”
And the openings are not letting up. Starwood is due to launch a
90-room W hotel in January next year and has closed its Luxury Collection Prince de Galles property for a year of refurbishment, probably transforming it from a four- to a five-star property in the process. The iconic Samaritaine department store, offering the ultimate view over the Seine and closed since 2005, will be turned into an 80-room luxury hotel by its owner, Bernard Arnault. And Peninsula’s 200-bed palace is due to open its doors in 2013.
Shangri-La
Immediate impressions of the Shangri-La cannot fail to take the breath away. The late 19th-century palace in which it is housed was originally the opulent private home of Prince Roland Bonaparte, grandnephew of Napoleon. Walking through the entrance, you find yourself in a grand but not overpowering lobby, where sumptuous French decorations are offset by subtle Asian touches, delicate Chinese porcelain vases and demure young hostesses gliding past in traditional yellow silk cheongsam costumes.
The ground floor is dominated by the hotel’s outstanding bars and restaurants – the Bauhinia is modelled on the Shangri-La’s classic Asian coffee shops, contrasting with the sober décor and very French haute cuisine of L’Abeille restaurant, while Paris’s first authentic gastronomic Cantonese dining room, the Shang Palace, is set to open in early September.
Most of the 81 rooms don’t quite live up to the “wow” factor of the rest of the hotel, though seasoned Shangri-La guests will find everything they expect – from free wifi to immaculate marble bathrooms. The designers have made brilliant use of the interiors of this classified “Monument Historique” to create some of the most opulent meeting rooms in Paris, while the seventh-floor Shangri-La suite features spectacular views over the city. There is a gym, with a pool opening in December and a spa being added next year.
- 10 Avenue d’Iéna; tel +33 153 671 998; shangri-la.com
- Rooms from €650
Mandarin Oriental
Anyone who’s anyone in Paris is busy chattering about the brand new Mandarin Oriental. Located on the home of Parisian fashion, Rue Saint-Honoré, the understated art deco façade does not prepare visitors for the attractive modern interiors, and the vast courtyard garden created by architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte, who oversaw much of the renovation of this former office building.
With 99 rooms and 39 suites, the Mandarin has chosen to create spacious accommodation (ranging from 37 to 350 sqm) rather than maximise the number of possible rooms. They are luxurious and decorated with cloth reproductions of Man Ray artworks. Each features a panoramic window and several have terraces overlooking the interior garden.
Thierry Marx, executive chef for the hotel, runs Sur Mesure gourmet dining room, and there is a spa and pool. Wifi costs R15 per 24 hours – there is no business centre, though you can plug your laptop into the in-room TV. There are four meeting rooms and an events terrace.
- 251 Rue Saint-Honoré; tel +33 170 987 888; mandarinoriental.com
- Rooms from €885
Le Royal Monceau
Closed for two and a half years, Parisians were beginning to despair of ever seeing the reopening of Le Royal Monceau, a legendary palace hotel dating from the twenties. No one knows just how many tens of millions of euros were invested by Qatari Diar in this restoration, and while Philippe Starck tends to steal the headlines with his typically flamboyant, eye-catching interior design, what is more interesting is that while the hotel has been extended, the number of rooms has been reduced, giving more emphasis to space. The 85 rooms are between 35 sqm and 50 sqm, although the real difference is in the 61 suites, which range from 55 sqm to 190 sqm.
The state-of-the-art screening room, Le Cinéma des Lumières, is the hottest venue in town for multinationals making presentations, and the dining options are also excellent, from the hip La Cuisine restaurant and the exquisite Pierre Herme macarons served at teatime, to the gourmet Italian cuisine in the smart Il Carpaccio and the buzzy Le Bar Long. Wifi is free and there is a fully equipped business centre.
- 37 Avenue Hoche; tel +33 142 998 800; leroyalmonceau.com
- Rooms from €620
Villa and Hotel Majestic
Situated by the Arc de Triomphe, this discreet, elegant 25-room property reopened last year following a two-year renovation that has transformed it into one of the city’s best options for travellers seeking the personal touch. It is privately owned by the Bavarez family, which operates two other luxury properties in the capital, Hotel Raphaël and the Régina.
The renovation of the property concentrated on making rooms larger and creating 27 residential apartments with kitchenettes. While wifi is charged in the rooms (it costs g10 for 24 hours) and there is no business centre, this is still a popular address for business travellers – the front desk can also provide laptops for accessing the free wifi in the lobby. Rooms come equipped with LCD TVs and iPod docks.
What really stands out here, though, is the wellness centre – a fabulous indoor pool, designer spa and hammam, sauna with ultra-sonic heating and a cutting-edge gym with a personal trainer.
- 30 Rue La Pérouse; tel +33 145 008 370; majestic-hotel.com
- Rooms from €350
La Maison Champs Elysées
The French like mixing fashion with hotel design and at La Maison Champs Elysées, the reclusive couture createur, Martin Margiela, was given carte blanche to transform this grand three-storey Napoleon III mansion, just by the Champs Elysées and Avenue Montaigne, into a 57-room luxury property.
There is a gourmet restaurant overlooking a private garden and Havana cigar fumoir, plus ten salons and meeting rooms, the style of which ranges from opulent palatial to minimalist high-tech. Apart from free wifi internet, guests have access to free minibars and movies, and an Apple Mac Mini in each room.
- 8 Rue Jean Goujon; tel +33 140 746 465; lamaisonchampselysees.com
- Rooms from €203
Hotel Konfidentiel
Open since May, the Konfidentiel is a wonderfully eccentric new addition to the luxury hotel scene, housed in a narrow 15th-century mansion with six suites, each one occupying an entire floor.
Inspired by French history – think Marie Antoinette, Louis XIV and Molière – the décor resembles a flamboyant Baroque boudoir. Not only is wifi free but so are local and international calls. Breakfast is included in the room rate, and can be served as late as the guest wishes.
The building is too small for conference rooms, a spa or gym but there is gourmet dining in the romantic basement restaurant – which can be hired for meetings – and nearby are two of Paris’s hottest foodie venues – Spring and Yam t’Cha. The hotel’s location is central, in a tiny street just by the Louvre.
- 64 Rue de l’Arbre Sec; tel +33 155 344 040; konfidentiel-paris.com
- Rooms from €299
Hotel Seven Eiffel
This privately owned property has a cosy, funky atmosphere. Following a year-long renovation to upgrade it to four-star standard, the designers have created a bright, modern address with contemporary interior décor, both in the hip lounge bar and the 32 rooms and open-plan suites.
Wifi is free, with guests offered the use of iPads and laptops, and while there are no meeting rooms, the hotel can arrange access to a nearby congress centre. Hidden away on the fifth floor is a rooftop terrace that can be hired for functions and is perfect for sunset cocktails. The hotel is near the Eiffel Tower and right by one of the quintessential Parisian streets, Rue Saint-Dominique, lined with boutiques, bars and cafés.
- 17 Bis Rue Amélie; tel +33 145 551 001; hotel-7eiffel-paris.com
- Rooms from €130
