The lowdown:
It's hard not to be impressed from the moment you arrive at La Maison Champs Elysées. A 20-minute cab ride from Gare du Nord and we are there — minutes from the Avenue Montaigne, the Seine and the Grand Palais, but in a discreet and quiet residential side street. Greeted by a friendly porter, stood in front of an impressive exterior, topped by a classic glass canopy and surrounded by that familiar pale grey stuccoed Parisian stone, our luggage is whisked away and our check-in proceeds swiftly and with smiles all round.
The hotel has 57 rooms, 17 of which were recently redesigned, along with the communal areas, by reknowned fashion designer Martin Margiela. The result is a very clever blend of contemporary fittings with quirky nods to the building's classical heritage — parts of the hotel date back to 1864.
We are led, via a sweeping marble staircase with all its ornate original features intact, to our suite. Through huge wooden doors we find ourselves in the darkness of a dimly lit hallway; black walls, black ceiling and thick black carpet make for a perfect contrast to the finery of the staircase.
Our room is one of those to have received Margiela's magic touch. White on white, with light-reflecting details such as mirror-cube bedside tables and a vast mirrored wall opposite the small walk-in wardrobe, quirky features include the scattered architrave adhered to the walls (the suites all have themes: ours is 'interrupted mouldings'), a black plaster rabbit lamp on the desk and a glass table that appears to be crooked but is not — optical illusions are all over this hotel. One hallway is encased in reflective metal while huge trompe-l'oeil decorate walls and ceilings throughout the hotel.
Minimal and modern, this sort of styling may not be to everyone's taste but nobody can argue that it doesn't make for an ultra-sleek, clean look and one which somehow further encourages true relaxation. There are no irritating distractions in La Maison, nothing that does not either look good or serve a function.
Opposite our superking bed, with its goose-down filled pillows and duvet, and real linen sheets (honestly, the most comfortable bed I have ever slept in), was a huge flat screen television concealed in the partition that divides the sleeping area from the lounge. This television, connected to a mini Mac, may also be used to surf the Internet, though a large iMac sat on the desk in the lounge.
The Saturday night found us eating at Table 8, the hotel's restaurant, along with black-clothed fashion types and older hotel guests. Table 8 is very trendy — one wall is glass overlooking a fantastically verdant vertical garden while the white loose-covered tables and chairs appear to float — their wooden legs stop inches above the floor while they actually sit on grey stands that perfectly match the floor's polished concrete. The short menu was full of on-trend favourites (tuna tartare and seasonal salad) and classic French dishes such (a delicious entrecote steak with fried potatoes and baked figs with honey). It was very relaxing after a day out to simply saunter down to the restaurant here and the dress code is casual — even better.
Included in the price of all suites are well thought out optional extras, including breakfast served in your room, a great choice of recent films (pre dinner we watched something we'd recently missed at the cinema) and the mini bar. So refreshing not to see these added on to the final bill.
The good:
The cool but relaxing, ultra-sleek styling
The super comfy bed
The extra touches, like the mini-bar and breakfast in bed, included in the price
The not so good:
What's not to like?
The verdict:
For a weekend in Paris, for its location, comfort and utter stylishness, La Maison would be very hard to better.
Book it:
Doubles from £305 per night.
La Maison Champs Elysées, 8 rue Jean Goujon, 75008 Paris (+33(0)1 4074 6465; lamaisonchampselysees.com)
