J.K. Place Paris
In the seventh arrondissement, between Boulevard Saint-Germain and the Seine, just steps from the Musée d’Orsay, sits J. K. Place Paris. Formerly the European Consulate, the totally refurbished retreat at 82 Rue de Lille was a full five years in the making and marks the first venture outside Italy for hotelier group J. K. Place (J. K. Place Paris joins sibling hotels in Rome, Capri, and Florence). The 29-room hotel was designed and decorated by renowned Florentine architect Michele Bönan and features a subterranean Sisley Spa, a heated, marble-clad indoor pool, and a fully equipped Technogym fitness room.
On-site restaurant Casa Tua serves up generous, shareable plates of elevated Northern Italian fare. Around nearly every corner, you’ll find bespoke Italian furniture, eye-catching objets d’art and antique pieces hand picked from legendary French flea markets—think mid-century Hermès desk lamps and smoky mirrored consoles.
And take note, every light-filled room is decorated in its own unique aesthetic, providing guests a fresh perspective with every new sojourn. From $750/night; jkplaces.com
Monsieur George Hôtel & Spa
A quick Métro ride away on the other side of the Seine is the Monsieur George Hôtel, a five-star boutique hotel at 17 Rue Washington. Steps from the Champs-Élysées, Monsieur George was crafted by famed British designer and indisputably chic style icon Anouska Hempel (anouskahempeldesign.com), whose design credits include the Blakes Hotel in London, The Franklin Hotel in Knightsbridge, a number of privately commissioned homes, and (mais oui) the nearby Louis Vuitton flagship. With 46 rooms and three suites over six distinctly designed floors, Monsieur George’s interiors are a vivid fusion of decorative styles that slide into sleek Art Deco accents at one turn and dip into sumptuous Asian palace–inspired details the next. Hempel describes the hotel as having an alluring “mystery, magic, and mischief … a certain sensuality pervades the place.”
Among her favorite decorative pieces is the custom chandelier at the hotel’s entrance. “It was inspired by a design in my pudding room in Holland Park. It was recreated piece by piece by craftsmen in India,” says Hempel. “It’s made from 18 glass hurricane lamps hand engraved with bunches of grapes. It creates a soft profusion of romance the moment you walk into the hotel. It hangs from a mirrored centerpiece on the ceiling, which reflects its crystal sheen around the room.”
For each guest room, the globetrotting Hempel drew inspiration from a range of historic figures and locations, including Benjamin Franklin and the Château de Marly gardens at Versailles. Among the hotel’s other features are a spa by Parisian yoga and wellness club Le Tigre, a topiary-filled courtyard garden, and the Galanga Restaurant-Bar, which provides 24-hour service—after all, you never know when the thirst for a snifter of house-made cognac or flute of Dom Pérignon 2008 will bubble up.
Hempel herself has perfected a sunrise-to-sunset routine at the Monsieur George: “In the morning I would like to be on the top floor in one of the all-white Benjamin Franklin rooms, with a breakfast served out on the balcony. I’d take in Paris, from Montmartre to the Eiffel Tower on the horizon. At lunchtime, I’d be in the restaurant with its doors wide open onto the greenery outside, or in the little Marly garden. And in the evening, I’d be at the piano bar with a chocolate martini.” Santé. From $330/night; monsieurgeorge.com