Le Royal Monceau, Paris
If you feel like serenading your partner in the middle of the night, or you just feel like expressing yourself musically, you’re in luck if you’re staying at Le Royal Monceau—Raffles Paris hotel: in each room, an acoustic guitar, created in limited edition for the hotel, leans conveniently against one of the walls. Other walls have outsized paintings and empty frames leaning against them. The bathroom might be completely mirrored, with a stark white soaking tub in the middle of the floor.
All these features—not to mention the other works of art distributed among the rooms and public areas—make this hotel a work of art in its own right, and you easily find yourself engrossed in the architecture, the art, the fittings, the furniture, and the ambience. All is the work of Philippe Starck, the celebrated designer who has lent his style to hotels and restaurants around the world.
Starck’s redesign of Le Royal Monceau is the latest iteration of the hotel, which itself dates back to 1928. Its guests have included world leaders like Winston Churchill, Ho Chi Minh, and President Dwight Eisenhower, and celebrities as varied as Madonna, Robert De Niro, and Michael Jackson. Re-opened in 2010 after a two-year renovation, the hotel caters to guests looking for luxury accommodation, and it is one of half-a-dozen Paris hotels classed as offering “palace-quality” rooms and services. Two restaurants—Il Carpaccio, serving Italian cuisine, the other, La Cuisine, serving French dishes—have both been awarded Michelin stars. The hotel’s spa, Spa My Blend by Clarins, is a haven of tranquility and the menu is extensive.
As for accommodation, Le Royal Monceau delivers a portfolio of rooms, suites and apartments, all opulently fitted out à la Starck. And if you can tear yourself away from the hotel, it’s just a matter of steps to the Champs-Élysées, the Arc de Triomphe, and the elegant Parc Monceau. If you want to travel further afield, the hotel offers guided tours of Paris at night in a Jaguar XJ Ultimate and can arrange a private jet to St. Tropez.
