Rosewood Hôtel de Crillon

When I told my French mother-in-law where we were staying in Paris, she gasped. This was THE HOTEL, she said – the best, the swishiest, the most glamorous place to stay in Paris and therefore, the whole of France. Good, I thought. We arrived on an awkward day – the entire area (the hotel is positioned right on Place de la Concorde, with the Musèe de l’Orangerie, Jardin des Tuileries and the Louvre all within walking distance) was closed, due to the Rugby World Cup. When I approached a police officer by one of the barriers, he almost bowed when I told him where we were trying to go, and ushered us through. It was the kind of service we quickly came to expect.

We checked in via an inviting little salon laden with elaborate wood detailing and plush chairs – it felt like stepping into a glamorous time machine. Each guest is assigned a butler. It was unclear what their role was, beyond calling themself a butler, but honestly, that was sort of enough. The staff were delightful and cheery, the only hiccup being when I asked the concierge Metro directions to a flea market on the outskirts of town – they were adamant we must get a taxi to such a ‘dodgy area’. I smiled tightly, and eventually we were allowed to risk the journey. We floated past the gilt tables, laden with sweeties, and past the other guests, each of whom looked like royalty and were followed by a man carrying Hermès, Dior and Chanel shopping bags. Which is when I suddenly understood the point of a butler.

Hôtel de Crillon has a history – it has welcomed the likes of Louis XV and Marie Antoinette, and the interiors lean gratefully into that grandeur. The hotel was built at Louis IV’s request and later served as a residence for Count de Crillon until becoming a hotel in 1909. It reopened in 2017, after a four-year renovation by the Lebanese architect Aline Asmar d’Amman, as a Rosewood hotel. The lobby sees a long hallway branch off into the bars, three restaurants (one hidden behind a secret door), a pâtisserie and then down to the spa. Breakfast is served in Jardin d’Hiver and Bar Les Ambassadeurs, which is pleasingly regal – the ceiling is a registered landmark that the architects worked to restore and highlight the bar’s stately atmosphere. Breakfast options include scrambled eggs with caviar, and most guests add a mimosa. It was a hot morning, but the bar was dim and opulent – instruments were propped, waiting for the evening’s band, and the walls shimmered with purple mica stone. Nonos & Comestibles down the hall is led by Michelin-starred chef Paul Pairet, serving lunch and dinner, and the Butterfly Pâtisserie offers treats at teatime. And then there's the Michelin-starred L’Ecrin, which offers a fine-dining experience where the food is matched to the exquisite wines, instead of vice versa. But step outside the hotel for a simpler dinner, and the whole of Paris is within walking distance, or a Metro stop or two. A favourite discovery, down the road, was Doki Doki, the city’s first handroll sushi bar – very chic, and terribly delicious. 

There are 124 rooms, designed around a palette of gold and grey. The bathrooms are decadent marble, with tellies in the mirrors, and bath tubs the depth of the Seine, or thereabouts. Beds are suitably divine, with crisp white Rivolta Carmignani Italian linens, and French pillows and duvets by Drouault. There are 10 signature suites, including the Grands Appartements, designed by Karl Lagerfeld. Suite Louis XV overlooks the Place de la Concorde, Eiffel Tower and Grand Palais; and the Suite Duc de Crillon boasts the original woodwork from the former private chapel of the namesake duke (the rest is displayed in New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art). Our window looked down into the courtyard, the centre of which is dissected by the glass roof of the swimming pool below. 

The spa is an underground maze of curved corridors, which opens onto the swimming pool. Comprising 17,600 ‘gold scales’, the modest pool glitters beneath its glass roof. Heated stone beds and eucalyptus steam rooms are secreted around the corner, along with a grooming salon, barber and fitness area. Unlike a business hotel though, the gym appeared rarely used – guests congregate instead upstairs in the bar, where the champagne list is comprehensive, and cocktails can be ordered by rolling a dice. Decadence is king here, rather than ab-work, or indeed, sweat. Which I appreciated.

This is high luxury, without either intimidating service or stuffy interiors – a truly elegant and timeless experience, and the perfect base from which to rediscover Paris. One day I’ll bring my mother-in-law.