zerbib

Had a great experience at the Jules Vernes on the second floor terrace of the Eiffel Tower. Lunch or dinner either are good and then you can stay after the meal and see the views outside...

BluHorseshoe

I had a stay here in October. At check in, they gave me a certificate for breakfast for two one morning at La Scene. I was sure glad it was free, the prices on the menu were super high! The breakfast was very good and the restaurant itself is beautiful. I can't comment on dinner there, but I can say that the service was exceptional and it was absolutely beautiful.

oliuk

Had a great stay here last week. Booked a cash+points room, art deco deluxe for 16.5kpoints and $315.

Was upgraded as spg gold to mosaic suite, offered welcome drinks voucher, and 4pm check-out. Also offered drinks whilst we waited for the room to be ready (under 10 minutes.) Beautiful bar area, very accomodating staff, happy to give us champagne although front desk had indicated we could have 'a hot beverage' :-)

Although we didnt have dinner here, I did sample the Sunday Brunch. It is serious. Very serious indeed. Probably the best buffet going and worth every penny of the approx $140 a head (food no alcohol).

Overall a nice property in a good location. I agree that the design is very severe and quite dark although personally I liked it a lot, definitly very male.

The hotel doesnt, to me, have a huge wow factor even though it is very nice. I think being adjacent to the four seasons really makes you wonder what its like next door every time you step outside. We did have an ammusing moment when the doorman was hailing us a taxi which chose to completly ignore him in favour of the doorman from four seasons.

Best bits - the staff were very polite and helpful, a huge plus point for me at any hotel. Balcony was lovely and would have been much appreciated in summer. Concierge very attentive, responded to emails quickly pre-stay and made a great recommendation for dinner at 'Le Restaurant' at L'Hotel (which serves a very reasonable 7 course tasting menu for 135e, a bargain by paris standards for a michellin starred restaurant).

Worst bits - a strange smell in the bathroom that was barely noticable but never seemed to go away. Terrible wifi signal in the room, inexcusable really.

DP81

Has anyone had a stay here recently? I'm curious if your SNA clears, do they still comp the minibar? Thanks!

jaejaez

Yes I think non alcoholic beverages in the minibar are free, regardless of what rate you're on. This may have changed though (I was there last Nov) so best to double check.

Link to my wifey's blog for those that wanna see more (not v professional) photos:

La Scene
http://blog.naver.com/dalgizoa/50187591612

Bar Les Heures & Fitness Center
http://blog.naver.com/dalgizoa/50187998271

Corner Room
http://blog.naver.com/dalgizoa/50189327139

Common Areas
http://blog.naver.com/dalgizoa/50189405532

Neighborhood (incl Four Seasons)
http://blog.naver.com/dalgizoa/50189486957

Goodmorning2U

I visited Paris recently and went by, again, to visit the Prince De Galles. The rates and redemption costs used to be very similar to the Westin but the current large disparity between the two, with the Prince De Galles being higher, is justified because of the renovated rooms and public spaces. The only point I can add which hasn't been addressed so far is the need for a spa area accessible by all of the guests. Currently, you have to book a treatment for one of a very few rooms and there is no real relaxation area. With the rates they charge I think its worth it to pay a bit more and go next door.

owner1

Stayed in an Maccassar suite last October and confirmed that the mini bar was NOT comp at all..

akatuva

Recently completed a stay here in mid-July and would have to say it was a pretty significant disappointment. I had booked the room here in back in February for as part of a very special trip / birthday celebration for my SO.

On check-in, I received no recognition or explanation of Platinum / VIP level benefits and got a regular SPG key pack and had to ask about Plat welcome amenity. Was placed in a room which was supposed to be an "upgrade" but was slightly larger than the standard Art Deco room and was literally submerged halfway underground. We affectionately referred to it as the "bomb shelter". When you looked up out of the window, the view was of the hotel's mechanical equipment. This was despite the fact that the hotel had several higher end suites available and I had reached out to the hotel to coordinate upgrades for this special occasion.

Managed to get moved to a better room after the first 3 nights of the stay, and was moved to a Mosaic Suite (typically given for Gold upgrades) despite the fact that again, there were Macassar and other higher level suites available. At least the new room had some sunlight. Also, got upgraded to an SPG Gold key pack - so at least there was some progress there. Unfortunately, the new room had really poor air conditioning, but we were out of the room most of the day for sightseeing, so we just lived with it.

Overall, service was ok, though sometimes slow. The staff was very polite and gave good effort. There were still several missteps though. Requested an iron that was delivered filthy and covered with brown stains on the plate (turned out it was filled with dirty water inside). Requested WSJ as the newspaper for morning delivery and didn't receive it any day of the stay. Room service orders were incorrect or overcharged a few times. Again, not a big deal, but for a hotel that is a Cat 7 Starwood property, my expectations were just higher than that.

Bottom line to me is that when paying for a Starwood Cat 7 property, the SPG program is what makes the difference versus going Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, Shangri-La, etc. Here, there was no recognition or extra effort and so we ended up cancelling the last few nights of our stay. Later in the week, we booked Le Bristol through the Amex Platinum Fine Hotels & Resorts program and received much better treatment / upgrades than at the Prince de Galles.

Earning Starpoints here isn't worth it, especially if it's a special occasion trip versus a business trip. Use Virtuoso or FHR to enjoy one of Paris' other hotels and you still get the breakfast amenity, late checkout and room upgrade.

MikeFromTokyo

Are earning starpoints and booking through Virtuoso or FHR mutually exclusive? I am less familiar with SPG, but with Hyatt this type of third-party booking is the exception which is fully eligible for points and stay credit. I would be surprised if this is not also the case with Starwood, as they even have their own TA program, "luxury privileges."

It is a shame to hear of poor platinum recognition, have there been other reports of upgrades?

I am contemplating a stay as a "present" to a good friend who needs a few more nights to requalify for platinum. I also was thinking that booking under her name and spg account might score us a nice platinum upgrade - this would be a paid stay confirmed already in a high category room or jr. suite.

Would spg plat benefits possibly stack nicely with Virtuoso or FHR, like Hyatt Daimond does at PH Vendome?

akatuva

MikeFromTokyo, let me clarify what I was trying to say. If you are an SPG Plat considering this hotel, in my opinion, the recognition is poor and the value proposition is not great. Instead, think about using Virtuoso or FHR to book George V, Le Bristol, Mandarin, etc and you still get some of the benefits you would get at an SPG property as a Plat.

Certainly if you book through Virtuoso or FHR for Starwood properties (although PDG I don't believe is in FHR's roster), you should earn Starpoints and get stay credits.

MikeFromTokyo

Oh , I see what you mean - as the recognition is poor there is little incentive to choose it over the above (much better) hotels you mention.

I was afraid that might be the case, so will stay at George V. I was hoping platinum status might make PDG a value proposition, but I see that is not the case.

Frankly, I am not sure if I would like staying down the street from the best hotel in town, when by paying a bit more I can be at the George V.

bhrubin

I was at the PDG last year in early October...and was upgraded to Mosaic Suite from standard room as SPG Plat. I got recognition, and I was treated very well. That being said, I discovered I definitely prefer the Vendome area of Paris, so I will save money/points by continuing to stay at the Westin Vendome--where I also always got upgraded as SPG Plat. (I'll be back at the Westin in October as a result.)

I love the style of the refurbished rooms/suites at the PDG, but I am pretty happy with the Westin, all in all.

I think some people assume SPG Gold gets you upgrades, which it often doesn't, and that SPG Plat gets you suite upgrades all the time--which it can, but depends on season/occupancy.

If you're SPG Plat going at a high occupancy time of year, don't expect the suite upgrade and be happy with a room category upgrade if you get one. It's a POSSIBILITY, people...not a guarantee. If you're not happy with that, then pay more to get the room you want or pick another hotel. The whining here is laughable.

kamel123

I recently spent a long weekend in Paris where I split my stay between PDG and GV - had previously staid at PDG, but was my first stay at GV (wanted to finally stop wondering what it's like two doors down...).

Of course there is no question GV plays in a higher league. Service is clearly better, and public areas much nicer. But for SPG Plats, there are scenarios where I would believe PDG can be the better choice. For example, I paid >1,200 EUR for a deluxe room at GV, which I found just about OK (limited view, low ceilings, pseudo-traditional decor that was kind to the eye but nothing special). At PDG, I paid ~650 EUR and used an SNA to upgrade to a Makassar suite, which was quite impressive overall, with marble fireplace, art deco furniture, lots of Makassar veneer, two dressing rooms, high quality fabrics, view down Avenue George V etc. and of course in sparkling new condition after the renovation.

I have also staid at the Westin Vendome, which I consider perfectly acceptable. If you can get a room/suite "with a view" (it's a separate category) it can even be very nice at night, with a view of the Louvre, Tour Eiffel etc. all lit up. Of course, again a different league. Hosts many conventions/incentive trips for North American corporates, and the gatherings of assorted salespeople in the lobby (complete with beer cans in hand) can be a bit of a turn-off.

I don't know, for my next stay I would be most curious to experience the new Peninsula - rooms look great on pictures, and I like the style better than GV.

bhrubin

I would love to see the Peninsula redefine the highest level of luxury offered in Paris...if nothing else, so that the adoration received by the FSGV might abate somewhat. I still believe that while the FSGV is a fantastic hotel (even as much as I do not prefer it at all), it is not the be-all, end-all hotel as so many people like to believe it is. Of course, for the rates charged by the Paris palace hotels and the like for just a standard room, they better deliver near perfection...and they rarely do IMO.

MikeFromTokyo

Agree completely that FSGV is not the be-all, end-all, and that service is not always prefect.

I am very excited about trying the Peninsula, but am a bit worried about its size. I have heard that it has a lot of public event space, which might make it less intimate of a property.

For Hyatt Diamonds, I think PH Vendome is the best value proposition it town.