Hotel le Bellechasse

The exterior of this hotel is gray and unassuming, but the interiors are baroque and packed with artistic details, like the original paintings and the contemporary white light fixture that resembles an uprooted shrub and hangs along a wall in the large lobby. Velvet chairs in a variety of eye-catching colors and antique-retro shapes are placed throughout the dark-tiled space and there are plenty of places to sit and relax, including a bright outdoor terrace in the courtyard. The dining/breakfast room is particularly vibrant, with one entire wall covered in a Post-Impressionistic mural of fruit trees before a night sky and another large mural of fish swimming. Some areas of the hotel feel a little dark and cave-like, and guests here are mostly couples, though occasionally business travelers and families pass through.

This hotel is located on a quiet street in the 7th Arrondissement in central Paris, just a stone's throw from the Musee d'Orsay, just across Rue de Lille. For tourists, the location is ideal as the luxury shops of Boulevard St. Germain are two blocks away as is the Seine River. The trendy St. Germain neighborhood is about 15 minutes from the hotel on foot as it the Louvre, while the Jardins des Tuileries are just across the river, a 10-minute walk. For guests who don't mind longer walks, Notre Dame, the shops of Avenue Champs Elysees, and the Eiffel Tower can all be reached in about half hour on foot. However, the Solferino Metro station is a two-minute walk from the hotel, and those same destinations can be reached in 15 to 25 minutes. Charles de Gaulle Airport is about 40 minutes away by car while Orly Airport is a 30-minute drive, though both airports can be reached on public transportation in around an hour. 

Each individually decorated guest room is filled with eye-catching artwork and modern details, and while they start at a cozy 161 square feet (or 15 square meters), they aren't the smallest to be had in Paris. Rooms are exuberantly colorful, with light wood accents and patterns galore, like the red walls and exaggerated sun and butterfly prints that wrap up the walls to the ceilings in the Original Rooms we visited. Good beds have duvets and bed runners and every room has a wall-mounted flat-screen TV, free Wi-Fi access, desk with antique-style chair, iPod docks, safes, air-conditioning, minibar, and plush carpets in red and soft blue-gray tones that match the drapes and velvet seating. Contemporary en-suite bathrooms also have plenty of patterns and textures throughout -- from mottled white mica to black snakeskin and damask-wallpapered walls -- as well as small vanities, bathrobes, toiletries, and bathtub/shower combos with modern fixtures. Some rooms have views of the courtyard or street and all are well-soundproofed, but the colors and patterns combine to make many rooms feel rather dark.

The hotel offers two breakfast options: an express breakfast with juice, coffee, and a pastry, or a buffet, though both are only included with some bookings. Breakfast is served in the hotel's beautiful dining room and on its small terrace, though it may also be taken in guest rooms. The hotel's Le Butterfly Bar has a cocktail, wine, and coffee menu and serves afternoon tea, with room service available until late. Wi-Fi is free throughout the hotel and the front desk is staffed 24 hours a day and can provide concierge services. Laundry service is available for an extra fee and babysitting services can be arranged, and though there is no on-site parking, public garages are within a 10-minute walk.