Paris Hotel Rooms

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Hotel des Saints-Pères
St-Germain-des-Prés (6e)

The late poet Edna St. Vincent Millay loved the garden filled with camellias,
and travelers make this romantic hotel one of the Left Bank’s most popular.
Designed in the 17th century by Louis XIV’s architect, the hotel is furnished
with antiques, old paintings, tapestries, and gilt mirrors, but its 39
rooms have modern amenities such as TVs and minibars. The most
requested room is the chambre à la fresque, which has a 17th-century
painted ceiling. Breakfast is served in the garden in good weather. The hotel
is a stone’s throw from Brasserie Lipp, Café de Flore, and the Deux-Magots.

Hôtel St-Merry
Le Marais (4e)

The prices have not changed in several years at this Gothic hotel to the
delight of regular visitors, but don’t worry — the service is as good as ever!
Located on a pedestrian-only street in the Marais, the hotel was formerly
the 17th-century presbytery of the Church of St-Merry next door (and was
once a brothel as well), and it retains a medieval atmosphere. Beds have
wood screens for headboards, except for Room 9, in which the bed has
flying buttresses on either side (easy to trip over in the dark, but original,
nonetheless!) that make you feel as if you’re sleeping in Notre-Dame. The
rooms are dark with beamed ceilings, stone walls, wrought-iron chandeliers,
sconces, and candelabras. Fabrics are sumptuous; rugs are Oriental;
and bathrooms are pleasantly modern, fully tiled, and equipped with hair
dryers. Staff is very helpful and friendly. Higher prices are for larger rooms
with views. In keeping with its medieval-church-like feeling, the phone in
the lobby is in a confessional, and you won’t find an elevator in the building.
TVs are in suites only. The hotel location is a few short blocks from
the Seine and Hôtel de Ville, and the Louvre is about a 15-minute walk
down nearby rue de Rivoli.

Hôtel Montpensier
Louvre (1er)

Supposedly the former residence of Mademoiselle de Montpensier, cousin
of Louis XIV, this hotel’s high ceilings and windows, the stained-glass ceiling
in its lounge, and its grand staircase create a sense of faded grandeur.
Many rooms on the first two floors, which date from the 17th century, are
either drab or have a faded elegance (depending on your point of view),
while rooms on the fifth floor (an elevator is available) have attractive
slanted ceilings and good views over the rooftops. They are smaller than
the first and second floor rooms, but all the room sizes here are impressive
given the rates. Most rooms are comfortably outfitted with easy chairs,
ample closet space, and modern bathrooms with hair dryers. Reserve at
least a month in advance for July. The prices are terrific for this location,
just 2 blocks from the Jardin du Palais Royal and right down the street from
the Louvre and the Jardin des Tuileries. In August 2006, there were many
Web-only promotions for a few euros off the price of rooms.

Hotel Vivienne
Louvre/Opéra (2e)

Hôtel Vivienne is well located between the Louvre and the Opéra and
offers comfortable rooms at a good price. Accommodations are simply
decorated and very clean, are updated every year; they come with satellite
TV and Internet access. They have the traditional molding found in
classic Parisian apartments; and have soundproofing, something lacking in
most Parisian apartments. The bathrooms vary in size from adequate to
huge, and all have hair dryers and wall-mounted showers in the tubs. Some
of the rooms have adjoining doors, perfect for families; others have small
terraces. A few have views of the Eiffel Tower. The staff is extremely warm
and welcoming. Before venturing from the neighborhood, explore the
Galeries Vivienne and Colbert, gorgeous historic covered passageways
with pretty shops, intimate restaurants, and art galleries. There’s an
entrance at 6 rue Vivienne down the street.

Hôtel St-Jacques
Latin Quarter (5e)

This building was designed by Baron Haussmann (architect of modern
Paris and its grand boulevards) and has been beautifully preserved.
Several of its 35 rooms have restored 19th-century ceiling murals, and
most of the high ceilings have elaborate plasterwork, giving the décor an
old-Paris feel that is accentuated by traditional furniture and fabric-covered
walls. The owners have added their own touches in the hallways, with
stenciling on the walls and trompe l’oeil painting around the doors and
walls and ceiling murals in the breakfast room and lounge. Modern comforts
include generally spacious rooms, an elevator, immaculate tiled bathrooms
with hair dryers and toiletries, double-glazed windows, ample
closet space, fax and computer outlets, safes, and satellite TV. Although
they aren’t accessible by elevator (which stops a floor down), the rooms
on the top floor are less expensive and have great views (be sure to ask for
them specifically). The hotel is in a good location near the Sorbonne,
Panthéon, and the Musée de Cluny, and a short walk from boulevard St-
Germain, boulevard St-Michel, and rue Mouffetard.