Normandy, Brittany & the Best of the North_ With Paris (Fodor's) - Fodor's [162]
Hôtel Mathis Elysées Matignon.
$$$$ | Each room in this boutique hotel has been lovingly decorated with antiques and artworks. Leopard-print carpets, rich aubergine, slate, and mustard walls, and Baroque mirrors make for an eclectic look. Room 43 has a sexy boudoir style, and the top-floor suite has a modern pop-art look. The Mathis’s restaurant is owned separately from the hotel, but shares an entrance. Pros: a block from the Champs-Elysées and Faubourg St-Honoré; large choice in decor of rooms; free Wi-Fi. Cons: some noise from street and bar downstairs; small closets; few services. | 3 rue de Ponthieu, Champs-Elysées | 75008 | 01–42–25–73–01 | www.paris-inn.com | 23 rooms | In-room: a/c, safe, Wi-Fi. In-hotel: room service, laundry service, some pets allowed | AE, DC, MC, V | Station: Franklin-D.-Roosevelt.
Hôtel Plaza-Athenée.
$$$$ | Prime-time stardom as Carrie Bradshaw’s Parisian pied-à-terre in the final episodes of Sex and the City boosted the street cred of this 1911 palace hotel. Its revival as the city’s lap of luxury, however, owes more to the meticulous attention of the renowned chef Alain Ducasse, who oversees everything from the hotel’s flagship restaurant and restored 1930s Relais Plaza brasserie to the quality of the breakfast croissants. Rooms have been redone in Regency, Louis XVI, or Art Deco style, with remote-control air-conditioning, mini hi-fi/CD players, and even a pillow menu. The trendy bar has as its centerpiece an impressive Bombay glass comptoir (counter) glowing like an iceberg. Pros: on a luxury shopping street; new Dior spa; Eiffel Tower views; special attention to children. Cons: vast difference in style of rooms; easy to feel anonymous in such a large hotel. | 25 av.Montaigne | 75008 | 01–53–67–66–65, 866/732–1106 in U.S. | www.plaza-athenee-paris.com | 145 rooms, 43 suites | In-room: a/c, safe, DVD, Internet. In-hotel: 3 restaurants, room service, bar, spa, laundry service, some pets allowed | AE, DC, MC, V | Station: Alma-Marceau
Hôtel Queen Mary.
$$$ | This cheerfully cozy hotel is two blocks from Place de la Madeleine and Paris’s famous department stores. Sunny yellow walls, plush carpeting, and fabrics in burgundy, gold, and royal blue soften the regal architectural detailing and high ceilings. Rooms are handsomely appointed with large beds and such thoughtful extras as trouser presses, Roger & Gallet toiletries, and decanters of sherry. Guests mingle in the bar during happy hour and, in good weather, enjoy breakfast in the garden courtyard. Pros: close to high-end shopping streets and department stores; large beds; extra-attentive service. Cons: some rooms are quite snug; ones on the ground floor can be noisy. | 9 rue Greffulhe | 75008 | 01–42–66–40–50 | www.hotelqueenmary.com | 35 rooms, 1 suite | In-room: a/c, safe, Wi-Fi. In-hotel: room service, bar, laundry service, some pets allowed | MC, V | Station: Madeleine, St-Lazare, Havre Caumartin
Pershing Hall.
$$$$ | Formerly an American Legion hall, this circa-2001 boutique hotel quickly became a must-stay address for the dressed-in-black pack. Designed by Andrée Putman, Pershing Hall champions masculine minimalism, with muted surfaces of wood and stone and cool attitudes to match. Rooms have stark white linens, slender tubelike hanging lamps, and tubs perched on round marble bases. The only trace of lightheartedness is the free minibars. Deluxe rooms and suites face the courtyard dining room, whose west wall is a six-story hanging garden with 300 varieties of plants. The lounge bar serves drinks, dinner, and DJ-driven music until 2AM.