vuittonsofstyle

May have mentioned this before, but Four Seasons Florence has an incredible 'carte' of non-alcoholic 'wines' made from grapes or apples. The best is one made from a Merlot grape. They even do 'wine' pairings.

offerendum

Absolutely! Really good news

scented

Must revisit Florence in this case! Lovely idea.

Pierre&Cédric

Just a few pics of an entry level room at La Réserve. I love this hotel for its residential feeling.

bhrubin

That does look quite nice, especially for entry level. I imagine the suites are particularly nice and spacious.

We will be back in Paris at the Prince de Galles in Oct 2017--taking advantage of my SPG Plat100 status and upgrade likelihood before that potentially ends with the Marriott takeover in 2018--but I'll certainly consider La Reserve for a future stay.

MegatopLover

Some Paris luxury hotel news for those who follow inside baseball:

The Peninsula Paris has changed management teams. GM Nicolas Beliard has checked out, so to speak, and Katja Henkel has checked in as the new GM. Nicolas had been GM of The Peninsula Bangkok for a good stretch before moving to Paris to open the first Peninsula in Europe. Katja succeeded Nicolas as GM in Bangkok three or four years ago (losing track of time!), joining the group from The Blantyre, the small luxury hotel for leaf-peepers in The Berkshires of Massachusetts.

IMO, as a very long time regular guest, and speaking solely from the perspective of a guest, Katja was the best GM the Peninsula Bangkok had in at least 15 of its 18 years. She had a great team of division managers (who are staying on in Bangkok) and she made a lot of very guest-centric changes and improvements to the property and its amenities, while keeping its very personal and distinctively Thai form of hospitality.

I have not stayed at Peninsula Paris, so can't speak to what it was like under Nicolas's leadership. But I would expect Katja to have a similarly guest-centric approach in Paris. Of course, YMMV.

MacMyDay

I was looking to head back to Paris next month and was considering a suite at The Ritz, but am very much torn on this due to my love of the pool/spa (not the treatments, just facilities just jacuzzi/sauna etc) and knowing it will not beat The Peninsula (unless anyone can tell me otherwise). As The Peninsula rooms weren't great, I'm not in love with the idea of going back there either. Could anyone make any recommendations? MO only seems to have a small pool and "vitality pools" in their couples treatment rooms, so not sure that'll work; La Reserve pool area is beautiful and relaxing, but doesn't have a jacuzzi. Can FS, Shangri-La, Hyatt, Raffles or any others better it whilst not having rooms designed by Wes Craven?

jp-mco

We really liked the Pen Paris but we also really like Le Bristol. Le Bristol doesn't have a jacuzzi though (or none that I know of) but they do have a swimming pool. They do have a spectacular Terrace Suite with private garden and jacuzzi however which may fit your requirements.

http://www.lebristolparis.com/eng/ac...-with-jacuzzi/

JohnRain

The best pool is without a doubt at the Raffles Royal Monceau, but you have to like the "design" type of hotel. The fact that Accor bought the group may (negatively) influence the hotel's destiny though and choosing a hotel because of its pool most probably isn't a good idea anyway.

I'd go for the Bristol or the FS, as they both continue to be exceptional on almost every level.

DavidO

MacMyDay, am curious why you feel the Ritz pool is less worthy than the Peninsula pool?

JonJParr, although Le Bristol gets high marks, I found that its room product (and the hallways) cannot compare with the George V. Here are some comparison photos on a password protected site. The password is FlyerTalk (case sensitive).

MacMyDay

There is no jacuzzi, from what I can tell.

I should have added I've stayed in Le Bristol previously and whilst I very much enjoyed it, I wouldn't look to return. I just thought everything was good, rather than being great; good room; good service; good breakfast; good pool. The Peninsula was mostly brilliant, except the room. There were also never any guests in the pool area at La Reserve or The Pen, which I always consider a positive.

jp-mco

Thanks for sharing that comparison David. I found it really interesting to look at - especially as I have not stayed at George V. We thought Le Bristol was a little like Chateau Saint-Martin - not the best hard product in the area but charming and fantastic service. I think you either like the Oetker style of room or not.

vuittonsofstyle

The chlorine was so strong in the pool at Raffles Royal Monceau that you could smell it as you walked into the Spa. There is no way I would swim in it.

The new FS GV Spa will not open until next year, but from what I have seen, their pool and facilities will be the best in the city.

I find the pool at le Bristol overly claustrophobic and a bit tired, no?

callmedtop

No pool at Le Meurice - is that right?

JohnRain

I'm also quite sensitive when it comes to chlorine but it wasn't an issue whenever I was there. Also, the fact that it's the longest hotel pool in the city and that it has natural light is hard to beat. I agree that the pool of the Bristol isn't the hotel's strongest selling point and that the FS should blow all others out of the water once renovations are over.