Olympic athletes may be sleeping on viral “anti-sex” cardboard beds and eating in industrial-sized dining halls, but guests at the summer games may be living in the lap of luxury. If you’re planning a visit to Paris – for the international sporting extravaganza from 26 July to 11 August, the Paralympic Games from 28 August to 8 September or at a later date – enjoy the capital’s spectacular new hotels, wonderful restaurants and museums excellent Here’s a look at the City of Light’s coolest new addresses, from a Belle-Époque-meets-Japonism hotel to an extraordinary fashion gallery.
WHERE TO STAY
Balancing Japanese simplicity with French glamour, Hôtel Hana is the fashion world’s new favorite boutique. Located a short walk from the Opéra Garnier and the Galeries Lafayette and Le Printemps department stores, the 26-room property feels as precious as a Meiji lacquer wedding chest. Located in a former office block on the edge of Paris’ Little Tokyo district, the hotel’s interiors were created by high-profile designer and architect Laura Gonzalez (who restored Cartier New York) and Olivier Leone (co-founder and director the art of Nodaleto shoe brand). Rooms (from $425 a night) have exquisite thatched and iroko wood walls, lacquered wood closets, and decorative marble bathrooms, with wrought-iron Juliet balconies for people-watching on the rue du Quatre-Septembre below. Book a soothing massage in one of the basement treatment rooms or happy hour in the plunge pool, which you’ll have to yourself. Even if you can’t stay at the hotel, book a dinner at Hanabi. From wagyu steak with sansho pepper sauce and smoked tarama with seasonal vegetables (said to be the best in Paris) to Japanese green tea tiramisu, each exquisitely plated dish is a taste sensation.
Harking back to the golden age of travel, this newly renovated Left Bank hotel is as perfectly positioned as an Art Deco ocean liner. It’s smooth sailing, thanks to mahogany-clad, brass-accented interiors filled with art by Milanese architect and designer Fabrizio Casiraghi. The former Holiday Inn is conveniently located on the border of Saint-Germain-des-Près, a short walk from the main restaurants of the Left Bank, the Bon Marché department store, the gourmet emporium La Grande Epicerie and the famous bars of Montparnasse. The 138 rooms and suites (from $271 a night), meanwhile, feel like sleeping on a luxury train, with folding moldings, leather-covered nightstands and a framed relief above each bed. There’s a gym in the basement, along with a lounge called Poppy, open for entertainment on select nights. After a day of sightseeing, grab a lemon wedge martini at the ground-floor bar, then tuck into transatlantic delicacies like lobster and New York cheesecake at the Grands Voyageurs restaurant. It’s all about the journey.
WHERE TO EAT
Panorama is the best thing since sliced bread. In fact, the best thing in the restaurant IS 100% naturally fermented sliced bread made from heirloom flour – a key ingredient in many of her creative dishes. Baker Arthur Coquelle (formerly of Ten Belles, Paris’ famous sourdough destination) and chef Sebastian Cusick-Kampmann (former chef at Inver in Scotland, who has a green Michelin star and Servan in Paris) have created a creative group of Bread-themed dishes, from roasted and glazed carrots on the aforementioned bread with cumin labneh, pickled carrots and sabayon mousse ‘vin jaune’ to mussels on focaccia with smoked mussel butter. The hip restaurant, located on rue Saint-Maure in the Folie-Méricourt district, has outdoor seating, plenty of vegetarian options, DJ sets every other Saturday and a five-star rating on Google reviews. Cook shall we say more?
One of the hardest reservations to score in Paris, Amâlia is haute gastronomy at its boldest and most delicious. A collaboration between two Italian chefs with Michelin-star resumes, Cecilia Spurio (formerly of Pierre Gagnaire and Alléno) composes the desserts while Eugenio Anfuso (a veteran of Astrance and L’Ambroisie) prepares the flavors. For lunch in the quiet minimalist space, guests order à la carte, and for dinner, they choose between tasting menus: Le Petit Chemin 80 euros and Le Grand Menu from 120 euros. “A crescendo of flavors leading to the sublime dessert!” greeted a delighted fan.
We are ready for this romantic restaurant and secret garden in L’Eldorado. Not far from Montmartre and Pigalle, this Rive Droite boutique hotel in the Batignolles district marries bountiful florals with flea market finds, Arcadian murals and rattan furniture. And then there’s comfort food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Choose from classics like steak frites, club sandwiches, sole meunière and vol au vent stuffed with scallops, lobster, spinach and lemon mushrooms, which can be enjoyed al fresco under green and white umbrellas. Boss kiss.
It’s hard to imagine a more charming location for a city restaurant. Place Mon overlooks Place Samuel Rousseau, a leafy park bordered by the Sainte-Clotilde Basilica, a magnificent 19th-century neo-Gothic church with twin spiers illuminated at night. However, somehow the interior of the Rive Gauche restaurant is as magical as the exterior. French designer Florence Lopez has created a jewel-like setting in shades of aquamarine, peridot and morganite, with lush murals by painter Sacha Floch Poliakoff, ceramic works by Bela Silva and a mirrored room by contemporary artist Matthias Kiss. Enjoy signature cocktails and classic dishes like “Suprême de poulet de ma grand-mère” and glazed salmon with green beans at this grandest of bars.
WHERE TO PLAY
Nearly 2,000 color-coded, 3D-printed miniatures surround the jaw-dropping white spiral staircase at La Galerie Dior, the fashion house’s biennial museum adjacent to its flagship store on Avenue Montaigne. And you don’t need to be a fashionista to admire the French house’s timeless designs and rich history. It’s all here, from the iconic 1947 New Look collection, the ivory grass jacket and pleated black skirt, and archival sketches and photographs to the towering gowns of the brand’s founder and six subsequent designers. With hundreds of originals on display, many on display for the first time, plus a museum shop and an airy café serving champagne, this fashion wonderland is well worth a visit.
No time to visit Versailles? A trip to the luxurious Hotel de la Marine, on the Place de la Concorde, is the next best thing. The 18th-century palace first housed the Garde-Meuble, the office responsible for the king’s furniture collection and crown jewels, then became the Ministry of the Navy after the French Revolution. Today, it is a museum featuring the restored apartments of the King’s Garde-Meuble Intendant, salons and rooms used by the navy and precious works from the collection of Sheikh Hamad bin Abdullah Al Thani. Like Versailles, the building has lavishly furnished apartments, gilded walls, elaborate crystal chandeliers and an enchanting mirror-walled room called the Cabinet of Glace. Marvel at the opulence, then relax with a cup of tea at Café Laperouse, overlooking the inner courtyard.
French billionaire and founder of luxury group Kering François Pinault has been collecting works of art for more than 50 years. Hundreds of his paintings, sculptures, photographs, objects and video and sound works are exhibited in a historic domed building near Les Halles. The former grain and goods exchange building was painstakingly restored by leading Japanese architect Tadao Ando over a decade. For those who favor romanticism or modern over contemporary works by Cindy Sherman, Damien Hirst and Jeff Koons, the light-filled central rotunda adorned with 19th-century murals is a stunning masterpiece.
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