Archive for hotel paris

Ritz Hotel Paris – One of the Finest Palaces in the World



Depending on your budget and your accommodation requirements, you can find a number of Paris hotels all over the city. No matter where you plan to stay while visiting the city, you can always find any five stars or budget hotels that can meet your room requirements and experience the Parisian way of life as much as you want to. But, choosing which hotel to book an accommodation can be a daunting task for most, especially those taking their first trip to the City of Lights. There are a lot of factors to be considered and a little research is required for you to find the best hotel deal in the city. Although there are a lot of online booking sites that offer detailed information regarding a particular hotel, plus vivid pictures detailing the various features of each accommodation, it can still be deceiving for untrained eyes. The most practical way of choosing a hotel room is by reading reviews and asking friends who already experienced booking a room in the hotel you may prefer to stay at. By having a firsthand feedback from people you know, you will be able to make a decision that you know you won’t regret once you are there.

Paris is considered to be the hottest tourist spot in the world and it is only important that you get the best accommodation the city can offer. If you want glamour and elegance all in one place while you are in Paris, try booking an accommodation on one of Paris’ grandest hotels, the Ritz Hotel Paris. This particular hotel is considered by most travelers to be one of the finest palaces in the world, and you can always bank on its quality service and world class amenities that always define luxury, elegance, and glamour. Located in the fashion capital of the world, it attracts a lot of tourists annually. With varying room types to offer, it is one of the most well decorated with different structural designs to offer to different kinds of visitors with varying tastes for an accommodation essential for experiencing comfort and elegance.

Regarded as one of the most prestigious hotels in the world, Ritz Hotel Paris is one among the seven recognized Parisian Palace Hotels, and is the oldest Ritz Hotel in the world being established in 1898. The Ritz has all in all 103 rooms that overlook either the gardens or the city rooftops, which makes a dramatic backdrop if you want to enjoy the beauty of the entire city while you are in your room. Each room has its own mini bar and a personal safe for important documents and personal properties. Visitors and guests can also enjoy free access to the hotel’s health club with its well equipped fitness center and an in house pool. Every room is also equipped with modern amenities, like cable television, high speed Wi Fi access, CD players, and air conditioning units during the summer.

There is more to Ritz Hotel Paris than can be explained in words, and you only have to experience a night on one of its elegant rooms to better understand the meaning of luxury while living in Paris.

Boutique Hotels and Luxury Hotels in London, Paris, Rome and Amsterdam That Attract Celebrities



You know how it is. You’re having a quiet drink at the hotel bar and Angelina Jolie asks for a light. What do you mean it’s never happened to you? Well, all I can say is that you’ve been staying in the wrong hotel. Allow us to mark your card with a view to a bit of celebrity-spotting in some of the top luxury hotels and boutique hotels of Europe.

If you happen to be in Paris and want to catch a glimpse of Jolie, try the award-winning George V or, to give it its full name, the Four Seasons Hotel George V Paris. She has stayed at this Paris luxury hotel in the past. And, if a place is good enough for George Clooney, it should do for you and me and I’m reliably informed that George and the cast and crew of Ocean’s Twelve stayed at Hotel Le Bristol.

Another classic luxury hotel in Paris is the Ritz. This was the last point of departure for Princess Diana and Dodi Al Fayed that tragic August night in 1997. The Ritz has always been a mainstay for the rich and famous including Coco Chanel who lived in a luxury suite there for more than thirty years. These days, you might at any one time bump into likes of Nicole Kidman, Gwyneth Paltrow or Uma Thurman.

Luxury Rome hotels abound and there are several for top celebrity spotting. The Hassler, at the top of the Spanish Steps, has welcomed everyone from Juan Peron to Audrey Hepburn and event the Kennedys. George Clooney likes this one a lot, while just recently it hosted the photocall for the movie Get Smart with Anne Hathaway and Steve Carell. Not far away is the Hotel de Russie. This historic hotel was a favourite of Picasso and today is a popular meeting place for the bright young things from the worlds of fashion and media.

The Hotel Eden is another luxury boutique hotel in the heart of Rome, which prides itself on its elegance and tact when dealing with VIPs and celebrities. It would never release its guest list, of course, but sources tell me that the likes of Jane Fonda, Pierce Brosnan and Richard Gere have been guest here.

Few luxury hotels in London have names that resonate throughout the world like the Dorchester, for instance. It was here that Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton spent one of their honeymoons back in 1964. Recently pictured arriving were Jerry Springer and Forest Whitaker. And Michael Jackson and Tom Cruise have been guests here, too.

The Ritz is the Grande Dame of London luxury hotels and has played host to any number of top celebrities over the years, including Edward VII, Winton Churchill, Charlie Chaplin and Judy Garland. It has never lost its charm and these days has had celebrity guests like Julia Roberts, Johnny Depp and Hugh Grant.

One of the newer luxury hotels London is The Lanesborough, a former hospital in fashionable Knightsbridge. It’s pricey, but you could be lucky enough to run into Madonna, Jim Carrey or Leonardo di Caprio.

Amsterdam is one of the most laid-back capitals in Europe and a popular destination for celebrities. The Intercontinental Amstel is arguably the most beautiful and prestigious of the Amsterdam luxury hotels and has welcomed royalty, government leaders and film stars including Jennifer Aniston who took a room with a river view and the Rolling Stones. The Dylan Hotel in Amsterdam has also been much visited in the past by royalty. These days it is host to international personalities who welcome the discretion and privacy that are the hallmarks of this Anouska Hempel-designed luxury boutique hotel in Amsterdam. It’s so discreet, in fact, that I couldn’t possibly reveal any names.

The End of World War II Parade – Celebrating the Rejuvenation of Paris



The City of Lights, the Fashion Capital of the World – the monikers of Paris are many. However, it is universally agreed that the historic city sitting sedately upon the banks of the magnificent River Seine is the most romantic in the whole of Europe. What sets the French capital apart from the other grand dames of the Continent is not only its poetic atmosphere and proliferation of art – it is also the air of liberation and love of expression that permeates the culture of Parisians. This precious love of expression and freedom saw sudden and brutal suppression during the Nazi era.

The liberation of Paris was surely neither the most significant nor the most dramatic victory seen by the Allies during WWII, yet surely it was the most joyous and romantic liberation of its history. Grandparents and great grandparents still pass down the tales of the emotional dizziness and joy of Parisians dancing in the streets as they sped the Germans out of their beloved city. It is also important to realize that Hitler had ordered the city to be burnt rather than see it surrendered and but for timely diplomatic intervention Europe’s crown jewel and its unrivalled treasure trove of art and history may have been lost to today’s generations. Today, though most European countries celebrate May 8th as Victory in Europe Day to commemorate the surrender of Hitler’s Third Reich and the end of the Second World War, none can hold a candle to the celebrations of the Parisians who still exult in the release of their beloved city from the Nazi chokehold.

The annual Victory Day Parade held in Paris is still a red-letter holiday for the French. The roads are closed down for the procession of soldiers in full dress regalia playing brass and drums to the cheering of thousands of onlookers who throng the pavements waving tri-color flags in a reenactment of 1944. There are few sights grander or more proud than the regiments marching down the Avenue of Champs Elysees.

For the traveler looking for a luxury Paris hotel in a situation ideal for viewing the parades from the best vantage point, the Millennium Hotel Paris OpĂ©ra is highly recommended. The elegant Paris city hotel offers the best in Parisian hospitality and prime access to all of the city’s greatest monuments.