KatW

wripro

That's a great bucket list!

offerendum

Nice goal!

United747

Review is up.

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/luxu...-george-v.html

I'll try and post more pics when the tech issues are resolved

So would I!

MacMyDay

Some pictures for your fine folks of our stay in Hotel de Crillon (Premier Suite) and The Ritz (Deluxe Suite)


What a dichotomy. There was significant hype around the 4 year renovation project of Hotel de Crillon, but for once it lived up to it. What a superb hotel in almost every regard. The design was just spot on, with a beautiful blend of old and new. Every detail was clearly thought through to give them an edge over their competition; just the focus on in room amenities and toiletries reveals that, but every other area of the hotel is simply wonderful, from the bar, to the pool, courtyard and lounge. I rarely see a presidential suite worth paying for, but after some long negotiation and maybe for a truly special occasion, I'd consider it here. The downside was my normal nemesis in food, although it fared a lot better than most: we had a wonderful dinner and breakfast, but followed it up with a rather substandard lunch, only saved by the pastry chef being a gift from god. Definitely worth the hype and I would definitely return.

The Ritz, on the other hand, felt like it had already past its best before date. I feel it exists in the realm of properties like Burj al Arab in that the desire to stay is more a box ticking exercise, but one that you know will leave you disappointed. The only one who gained were the hotel accountants. There is a complete lack of value for money here, ranging all the way from the obscene €76 for a caesar salad, to €40 for a coffee, to €48 for a club sandwich which tasted worse than a packaged one from Pret, to €25 to watch Die Hard. It is all well and good charging obscene fees, but you then have to deliver on them and The Ritz only delivered bad news. Even the free breakfast felt like a rip off.

Housekeeping must have been on strike, as we had a spiders web by the side of our bed, dust everywhere and the terrace uncleaned during our stay. The spa was absolutely packed and the pool truly the busiest I've ever seen in a hotel (whereas at Crillon it was empty the entire time), the room completely lacked any resemblance of blackouts and even lacked a door to punish the eyes even more, half the hotel feels like a shopping mall and just to emphasis it, I will repeat once again how bad the food was. I already knew that I did not like the design, so normally I would forgive it, but I just cannot. Those golden swans will haunt my dreams until the day I die. There was clearly a lot of money spent here, but it could have been better spent by giving it to charity. It was one of those properties that the more time I spent there, the less I liked it.


The Peninsula and Hotel de Crillon are my current favourite Paris properties.

bhrubin

chinmoylad

No La Reserve for you @MacMyDay?

MacMyDay

I've passed my Starwood quota for the decade after staying in Grande Bretagne a few months ago. Don't go getting greedy now.

Stayed in 2016; went for dinner there last week. I love the suites there, but for me the major benefit of a 40 room hotel is the focus on service and it wasn't there in 2016 - not sure now. I feel city hotels of that size benefit you the most if you're a repeat guest as they can truly tailor an experience to you. Even if they offered the worlds best service, in a city hotel I'm out a lot so don't need it; give me a great spa like The Peninsula any day.

Like Bill, for the last 3 or 4 years I've really enjoyed going to visit other hotels, so we also went to see Hotel Lutetia, the wildly delayed refurbishment by Set Hotels, ye of Cafe Royal fame. It's on the other side of the river, so a 30 minute walk from the rest of the commonly discussed luxury hotels. As with Cafe Royal, the spa is their main selling point and is probably the best I've seen in Paris, but otherwise it all felt far too similar in a property trying to be luxury but being unprepared to spend money on it. Only 50 of the 184 rooms were finished and large parts of the hotel looked like a building site as a result. I am surprised guests would choose to stay here at this point. The rooms were the biggest let down, with us politely trying to pretend to want to spend more than a few seconds inside a Junior Suite after the door opened and we just saw the standard emptiness that only Set know how to do. Whilst I am no fan of the style of The Ritz and Le Bristol, I do not think it possible to accuse them of being cheap. Lutetia felt exactly that.

scented

I am so glad I can ignore the Set Hotels ever since I set foot into Conservatorium. At least one group off my list.

wripro

MacMyDay,

Thanks for the reviews. Too bad about the Lutetia. I was seriously considering it for my next visit but now am very glad I booked the Crillon.

bhrubin

offerendum

Thanks for the pictures! I�m glad I�m not the only one who has some disturbing emotions if you my think they postpones the comma when they fixed prices.

BENLEE

If what you wrote is indeed true about the Ritz Paris, the standards must have fallen perpendicularly off the cliff. Two years ago I tried this hotel and I still rated them as one of the most amazing property I have ever stayed. Not only was everything sparkling, luxurious and clean, the food were among the best I have ever tasted in a hotel. I am actually contemplating a return next year. And no, golden swan taps do not bother me.

Anyone else has recent similar bad experience?

Nizar

Any recent stays at La Reserve ?
Has the food improved from earlier reports here circa ~2016 ?
Is La Reserve seen to be in the same league as Hotel De Crillon etc or not really ?

BESVISOR

I know this doesn't directly answer your question but I continue to get great feedback on Hotel De Crillon and clients are beginning to repeat stays.
Don't know much about La Reserve yet.