I recently toured the rooms, the spa, and visited the Ritz Bar and Hemingway Bar.

Regarding the rooms, they have beautifully captured the old Ritz elegance while updating the rooms with modern touches. I thought they did particularly good work in the bathrooms, with marble benches in the separate showers, and keeping deep soaking tubs. The fabrics and carpet were of delightfully high quality.

Tip: Rooms on the fourth floor will have little balconies to enjoy room service. They overlook the gardens or the period buildings next door.

I thought the spa was very tasteful though not particularly warm like the George V. Perhaps Chanel spa products are very good, it seemed to me a bit of a black bag, without explanation of what was inside or what was driving the development. Only those non-hotel guests who spend over $500 euro have access to the spa facilities.

For those who used to be members of the gym and pool, you will be happy to know that they are selling memberships again, yearly memberships for approximately $7,000 US, monthly memberships for $2,200 US, and daily memberships for $220 US.

During this trip, I did return to the George V for a lovely massage and enjoyed all of their spa facilities with the exception of the pool. The combination of the quality products I prefer, and the warmth of the decor, make this my oasis in Paris.

The Hemingway Bar is a delight of history, good service, and people watching. If you haven't been I recommend going in to enjoy a drink. I don't drink alcohol and they whipped me up something perfect. Drinks are around 28 euros.

We wanted to enjoy the live piano music at the Ritz Bar and ordered a club sandwich, two scoops of ice cream, and two bottles of water. Our bill was 98 euro. I thought the 14 euro bottles of water were over priced but otherwise I was happy with the quality. The food at the Gallerie George V was far superior, actually everything was better at the Four Seasons.

My bench mark is the Four Seasons in Paris. I was hoping to be blown away by the Ritz but instead it met expectations. The Ritz currently exceeds the Four Seasons with regards to its physical location in Paris, and the size of its pool, on all other counts I prefer the George V.