Monsieur Cadet Hotel & Spa

The hotel's charming white exterior and mansard roof call to mind a classic Parisian scene. Inside, the dark lobby with its black tile floors, curving lines, and minimalist furnishings, evokes the Bauhaus style. Monsieur Cadet Hotel & Spa (formerly the Meyerhold Spa) is a boutique property with only 29 rooms. Despite the small spaces (made more functional thanks to design choices), the lobby and piano bar never feel terribly busy. The couples that overwhelmingly frequent this hotel are often en route to or from something, using the hotel's convenient location as a base for exploration. Each floor here is individually designed: the Gentleman's Floor, the Ladies Floor, the Dandy -- with color palettes and decor inspired as a vague nod to the types of inhabitant suggested by the name, like pearl and burgundy for the Ladies Floor. The bar offers dim lighting, deep blue velvet, and wall sconces. The space doubles as the breakfast lounge -- which works well enough except that the small round tables don't hold many plates. When the weather permits, the outdoor terrace, with its rattan chairs and overflowing flowerpots, is an excellent perch for breakfast or something from the bar. 

Monsieur Cadet Hotel & Spa is on a quiet, low-traffic street, Rue Cadet, amid the quaint shops, cafes, and restaurants of the 9th Arrondissement. Part of the theater district, it's just a three-minute walk from the Folies Bergère, and an easy 14-minute walk to the Place de l'Opera, which is home to the Palais Garnier (the Paris Opera house), and next to the Galeries Lafayette. At each street corner is a metro stop. Grands Boulevards and Le Peletier, both about four minutes away on foot, excellent for destinations like the Louvre (14 minutes), or the Eiffel Tower (27 minutes). The Gare du Nord is a 17-minute walk away, perfect for travelers with Paris' Eurostar. Charles de Gaulle Airport is 28 minutes away by car, depending on traffic (an hour and 14 minutes by train). Orly Airport takes about 33 minutes by car, or an hour and 10 minutes by train.

The rooms are all individually decorated and the Bauhaus-inspired decor takes full advantage of the space allotted. All rooms come with flat-screen TVs, minibars, coffeemakers, safes, closets, and luggage racks (but there's no space for excess baggage). Wi-Fi is free throughout. Given the tight quarters, rooms at the basic level cannot accommodate cribs. The beds are divine, and the Egyptian cotton sheets, soundproof windows, and blackout drapes help ensure a good night's sleep. It's worth noting that the windows open (a bonus for some guests) but the street-facing rooms on the lower floors can be noisy. The renovated bathrooms include rainfall showerheads, premium organic toiletries, hairdryers, and bathrobes but not much shelf space. Tubs are available in the larger rooms.

The word spa is in the hotel's name, and rightly so. Designed by Elodie Garamond -- the brainchild behind Paris's hippest chain of yoga studios -- it's equipped with a steam room and Turkish bath, and offers traditional facials, manicures and pedicures, as well as Ayurvedic treatments and reflexology. The facilities are free for guests to use and treatments cost extra. For a drink and some people watching, the piano bar and outdoor terrace are available. Breakfast buffet is served in the mornings for a fee. There's an airport and train station shuttle. The multilingual staff can help with concierge services, dry cleaning and laundry, as well as luggage storage. Wi-Fi is free throughout the hotel, but not always reliable.