If you have no-holds-barred spending on hospitality stays in the French capital for the upcoming Olympics, here are a handful of chic hotels brimming with regality, sophistication, and a touch of whimsy. From Wes Anderson-inspired rooms to modern interior spaces to cater to your penchants, these luxury French hotels will elevate your wanderlust moments.

Hôtel Le Grand Mazarin

Get into a Wes Anderson movie set that incorporates Alice in Wonderland flair without sacrificing modern creature comforts.

The 50 guest rooms and 11 suites—some of which have private balconies with views of the BHV/Marais and the neighbourhood—mostly exhibit that Wes Anderson meets Alice in Wonderland literary salon feel. As the rooms are housed in a historic, fourteenth-century building, each one naturally differs in shape and arrangement, which adds to their allure. Using contrasting motifs, colours, and fabrics that complement each other, Brudnizki’s interpretation of French classicism is further enhanced by the skill of the skilled artisans he hired to complete each piece—many of whom are employed by businesses that bear the French Living Heritage designation (Entreprises du Patrimoine Vivant).

The plush carpets are made by Manufacture Pinton 1867, Maison Pierre Frey creates the quirky fabrics, and the custom lamps with hand-decorated legs and shades created by two different artists, Laura Horrocks and Claudia Cauville, are made by Maison Lucien Gau which has been producing bronze lighting for six generations. Although the décor differs from room to room, a few elements are shared: each room is built around an opulent bed with an Art de Lys tapestry in the Aubusson style serving as a canopy. Small bars include regionally produced delicacies, coffee capsules from Café Joyeux, a network of French coffee shops that hire disabled people, and various beauty goods, like Tata Harper and Augustinus Bader, chosen by the concept store Oh My Cream in Paris. Diptyque bath products are found in every vanity and bathroom space. Regarding cuisine, chef Assaf Granit’s award-winning team creates stellar dishes such as seafood kneidlach and scrumptious Ashkenazi dishes to tantalise your taste buds. The hotel offers a spa with a mosaic-tiled pool and jacuzzi to help you unwind. There’s also a hammam and fitness room with Dynamo spinning bikes. The hotel is a stone’s throw away from the BHV/Marais department store, which features high-end boutiques.

17 Rue de la Verrerie, Paris, France
https://www.legrandmazarin.com/

Hôtel Madame Rêve

For the traveller who appreciates quiet luxury and desires to slink into a pleasurable retreat far away from prying eyes.

Founded by the French entrepreneur Laurent Taïeb, whose hospitality group owns the skyscrapers of the “Tours Duo” in the 13th arrondissement and a few other notable Parisian restaurants, including Kong and Le Trésor, the hotel is housed inside a Haussmanian building that dates back to 1888 and served as the city’s first (and only) 24-hour post office. The post office reopened after nine years of development (albeit it now closes at midnight), and the hotel honours its neighbour and shared residence with well-considered architectural elements, such as the 800 pieces of postal art hanging throughout. The collection was bought from a single collector who only asked for it to be displayed when they sold it. Indeed, signed, sealed, and delivered.

Just a short distance from Les Halles, Palais Royale, and the Louvre, this 82-room hotel is located in the heart of Paris without any ostentatious signage or extravagant flags flying outside. Instead, you either know it’s a stylish hotel that was once a post office, or you don’t. Not even an automated door is there at the entry. Visitors, who include white-haired businesspeople in pink Saint Laurent sneakers and fashion designers with tattoos and beanie hairstyles, have to buzz to enter the little “lobby,” where the fantastic hand-laid floor mosaic quickly fills the nose with the aroma of musk. The hotel also has a 10,000-square-foot rooftop and restaurant with peak summer periods.

Whether it’s the corner Suite 382 facing the Eiffel Tower, 347 with a level view of the Saint-Eustache cathedral, or one of the 40 inner courtyard suites with outside terraces, the property’s colour scheme of woodsy browns and bright yellows is maintained throughout every room. All of the rooms are on the third floor (although there are six levels above ground), and getting to them through the dimly lit hallways is made simple by the signage indicating which street each room faces—Rue de Louvre, Rue Etienne Marcel, Rue Jean-Jacques-Rousseau, and Cour Gutenberg are the four streets that the massive building lines.

There are two restaurants in the hotel. First up is Stéphanie Le Quellec’s majestic, art deco-inspired Kitchen, where simple yet well-prepared classic French cuisine is served all day in a dark setting with 26-foot ceilings and high-back swivel chairs at the bar or on the bright outdoor terrace, which seats seventy. Second, is La Plûme, a Franco-Japanese restaurant that is unquestionably the property’s pride and joy due to its seductive, dimly illuminated dining room and menu, both available for room service. The spa and wellness zones are situated on the first floor. The spa has two treatment rooms where guests can opt for a “sweet” or “savoury” scrub or choose the relaxing “Madame Rêve Modeling” massage. This is the closest you can go to the centre of Paris. Four streets south will get you to the Seine and the recently reopened department store La Samaritaine. Stroll west to the Louvre and Palais Royale or east to the magnificent Bourse de la Commerce Pinault Collection and Les Halles.

48 Rue du Louvre, Paris, France
https://madamereve.com/

Brach

This 16th Arrondissement hotel shakes off its strait-laced vibe, all thanks to the Midas Touch of venerable French designer Philippe Starck.

The hotel’s interior gets the star designer treatment from Philippe Starck. The former 1970s postal sorting facility has now been given a second life by becoming an upmarket hotel in Paris’ Opera district. The interior exudes energy and warmth with plentiful custom-made leather chairs and Masai beadwork tables. Starck weaves his magic in the rooms, creating luminous spaces filled with light while tasteful decor such as African masks, rich rosewood detailing and massive leather headboards complement it. The bathroom accommodates a gorgeous bathtub with sinks hewn from unfinished marble blocks. Suites provide terraces with hot tubs and panoramic views of the Eiffel Tower. Guests can get access to the rooftop vegetable garden and even a henhouse! Splurge on the Georges or Suzanne suites to pamper yourself for the Olympic games. If hunger pangs strike, head for Brach’s all-day restaurant under chef Adam Bentalha’s delightful Mediterranean cooking reels in the gourmands.

The underground workout centre, which evokes a boxing club from the 1930s, had a waiting list from the day it opened. One side of the swimming pool has a 35-person plunge pool with a fantastic sound system. There is also a hammam, sauna, barbershop, and salt cave.

Brach Paris, with its blend of opulent residential neighbourhoods and museums such as the Palais de Tokyo and Fondation Louis Vuitton, is a game-changer for the 16th arrondissement. The neighbourhood’s sophisticated bourgeoisie, excited to have a new destination hangout, cool-hunting locals, business power brokers over breakfast, and a chic Parisian in the crowd letting their hair down.

1-7 Rue Jean Richepin, Paris, France
https://brachparis.com/en/

The Peninsula Paris

Situated in central Paris, this fabulous, sophisticated hotel offers perks and luxurious details that even royalty can appreciate.

A historic hotel from 1908 that had been vacant for decades has been renovated into the first Peninsula brand location in Paris. It is also one of the city’s newest Palace-grade hotels, comparable to five-star establishments but far better. Airy and sophisticated public spaces with a muted cream palette enhanced by restored original wood, ornate stonework, and 40,000 pieces of gold leaf are the product of four years of effort by a stable of talented artisans. The lobby is adorned with a sculpture of 800 Lasvit crystal “dancing leaves” welcoming guests, followed by an extensive collection of abstract art.

Situated in some of the largest hotel rooms in town, each of the 200 rooms features mixed-media artwork by French artist Patricia Erbelding. Numerous technological accents, such as interactive bedside control panels, information-laden in-room iPads, and printer/fax/scanner/copier hybrids for all work requirements, complement the calm home décor. There are 34 rooms, five offering private rooftop gardens with city views. Guests can enjoy the well-stocked minibars, nail polish driers in each dressing room, complimentary Wi-Fi, mood lighting, separate showers and tubs, TVs built into the mirrors, and more.

The spa features six treatment rooms for massages and facials using Biologique Recherche or Dr Barbara Sturm products, two vitality-soaking pools, and a central swimming pool. Impeccable service and attention to detail to meet every guest’s whim make The Peninsula Paris a must-visit for the discerning wanderlust individual.

19 Av. Kléber, Paris, France
https://www.peninsula.com/en/paris/5-star-luxury-hotel-16th-arrondissement

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