ThriftyTourist

At this hotel, the Amex FHR benefits included:
•Noon Check-In
•Room Upgrade
•Daily Breakfast for Two
•4pm Late Check-Out
•EUR 85 of food and beverage credit
•Free access to the exclusive and private Monte Carlo Casino
•Free access to the private Monte Carlo Beach (normally rates are between EUR45-130)

The flight from Paris to Nice was roughly an hour and for $94, I’m still surprised that I receive a meal on board. The airport is located 13 miles from Monte Carlo and you have a few different modes of transportation available to you. You can either splurge again and take a 6-minute helicopter ride from the Airport to the hotel for EUR 125 per person or take a 40-minute “Limo” ride from the Airport in a Mercedes S350 for EUR 160 (up to 3 persons). Or you could be Thrifty like me and take the Nice Airport Express Bus for EUR 20, which drops you off across the street from the Hotel de Paris.

The very scenic bus ride took approximately 40-minutes to get into the city and stopped at 4 stops before we arrived at the Monte Carlo Casino stop around 10am, where our hotel was located. It was a short 5 minute walk to the hotel, which would have been shorter, but we were lugging around a couple big suitcases due to our 3-week European vacation. The sidewalk leading to the hotel is cluttered with tourists snapping picture of exotic cars and passing them with large suit cases was a challenge.

We arrived at the front of the hotel and I noticed that you had to walk up a small 10-step staircase to get to the main doors. A doorman was stationed outside the door and after we made eye-contact, I expected him to offer me some assistance to carry my suitcase up the stairs. After a few brief seconds, I realized he wasn’t going to help me so I began lifting my own suitcase up the stairs and as we got near the final steps he rushed over and asked if we were checking in. I didn’t realize it at the time, but unfortunately, this was the first of many experiences I had where the hotel staff refused to acknowledge someone like me either because of my age or my attire, until I made it known that I was a hotel guest.

My frustration with the doorman quickly subsided as we walked into the hotel and into the grand lobby which is anchored by a large chandelier and impressive mosaic skylight at the center of the lobby. The hotel’s bar and restaurants border the sides of the lobby with ample seating for those who care to people watch as guests of the hotel enter and exit the lobby.

Just past the lobby, the doorman showed us the check-in desk where we were seated for the short 10-minute registration process. Although we arrived early, around 10am, there were no issues with the early check-in time. I also inquired about a late check-out and was told that I could extend my stay to 6pm and then could call tomorrow to see if I could extend it even later. We were notified that while we booked a city-view room, we had been upgraded as an Amex FHR benefit to a sea-view room. The sea-view room is located on a higher floor, is slightly larger and has different, upgraded furnishings, compared to a standard city-view room. We were shown the direction of the elevators and were told that our luggage would be delivered by the bellman in a few minutes.

Being an older hotel, the elevators were “refined”, but felt safe. Our room was located on the 5th floor of the 7-story hotel. A sea-view room is approximately 450sqft, depending on the location of your room and is decorated in warm mahogany “empire style” furnishings. The room had a small entryway that was adjacent to the bathroom and led directly into the main bedroom. The bathroom featured a double sink and a separate area for the toilet and a shower/tub combo. While the bathroom was nothing to get excited about, my wife was incredibly impressed by the Swiss La Prairie bathroom amenities. Apparently a 3.4 oz La Prairie body lotion bottle sells for approximately $70. My wife requested and was generously given more bottles to take home. She calculated her La Prairie amenities to exceed the amount of money I paid for our one-night stay, which made me feel a bit better about the cost of our stay.

The bedroom itself wasn’t anything spectacular at all and contained a King sized bed, a desk, dresser with flat screen TV and two night stands which contained a computerized panel to control the lighting and other features of the room. The view however was amazing. We overlooked the main Monte Carlo yacht harbor, or what I like to call the parking lot for the rich and famous. Past the harbor was nothing but the Mediterranean Sea.

While it was only a 2-day trip to Monaco, I felt it was more than enough to see in-person the glitz and glamour that is personified in our media. The Hotel de Paris is a decent hotel, but definitely not worth the price of its nightly rate. If I return to Monaco, I’ll stay at one of the chain hotel and hopefully on a reward stay.

The pictures that I was linking to show up extremely big and make it hard to look at, so I left out the pictures.

oneworld82

What attire are you referring to?

ThriftyTourist

When walking into the hotel for the first time I was wearing jeans and a polo shirt. When coming back from the beach, I was wearing Shorts and a T-Shirt. The rest of the hotel clientel were in their 50's or older (men) and I was in my early 30s.

GetSetJetSet

I've stayed there a few time, never again. Hotel is a dump in need of refurbishment, and they are outright crooks.

GodAtum

Thank you for your report. I stayed at the Four Seasons in Monaco last year and loved it. I had a great sea view room with balcony; the staff were lovely and extremely helpful; and the food on the roof restaurant was excellent

I did eat lunch at Alain Ducasse which was delicious too. i didnt manage to look around the Paris hotel or casino though.

FCO36

Are you sure you stayed at the Four Seasons? because there's no Four Seasons in Monte Carlo...? There is the Metropole Hotel (which for me is the only place to stay), the Hermitage, the Fairmont, the Meridien...

GodAtum

Sorry the fairmont!

GetSetJetSet

You ate lunch at the Ducasse restaurant (which is in the Hotel de Paris), but didn't have a chance to look around the hotel? Or do you mean the dreadful Bar et Boeuf?

sheikhwa

When walking into the hotel for the first time I was wearing jeans and a polo shirt. When coming back from the beach, I was wearing Shorts and a T-Shirt. i am full fun of this trip nice

oneworld82

Having lived near Monaco most of life, I can tell you I know many people working at this hotel. Unfortunately, they never received the kind of training you would expect from a World Class hotel, but this is still a small town that can rely on cheaper French and Italian workers after all, and getting training done here (in a fairly rural area of Europe after all - don't let the ritziness fool you) can be hard.

That being said, the Hotel de Paris is a place of style and luxury. I strongly believe that a certain style and decor should be maintained by its guests at all time. "Fitting in" is very important. I feel that - if you want to go to the beach while in Monaco - you should probably stay at the Le Meridien or the Beach Hotel. Anything less than smart casual would be very inappropriate if you ask me - especially if you do not fit the demographic of the hotel.

I am not trying to be snob or stuck-up. It's just the way that Europe is (or New England) and we have to accept that. After all, traditions aren't that bad when they serve the purpose of maintaining elegance.

GodAtum

yes the Ducasse restaurant. i did have a look at the lobby but did not go into the casino.