Fodor's Expert Review Hôtel de Sers

Built for the Marquis de Sers, with a horse-drawn-carriage entrance, inner courtyard, expansive salons, and a monumental staircase, this beautiful structure was transformed into a hotel in 1935. Renovated in a bold modern style with hints of traditional aesthetics, Hôtel de Sers is a magnet for the trendier set who appreciate all the 21st-century amenities fit for a modern king and queen.

Eiffel Tower views from this hotel are a big plus, but views over the 18th-century church and courtyard are also lovely and serene—but for the chiming of church bells.

room

This is the rare Parisian hotel where all the rooms are spacious, compared with the city standard, and pleasingly proportioned, with sophisticated color schemes that evoke calm and plenty of style. Rooms with a balcony (or two) can be found on the inner courtyard or streetside (Eiffel Tower views), and some rooms have luminous atrium-like extensions.

YOU SHOULD KNOW Though this is a five-star hotel, they do not have coffee-making facilities. However, complimentary coffee and tea are available in the lounge.

bathroom

Contemporary marble baths are spacious and very well-equipped, with huge showers and ample baths, luxury bath products, and extra-fluffy towels.

lobby

The lobby possesses all the elegance of a prestige hotel in a melange of modern luxe and references of the hotel's 19th-century pedigree in gilt-framed oil portraits. Lounge areas conjure a Parisian living room, but the bar is the real draw for hanging out.

spa

Massages are available in-room, though you can book the small basement steam room for no extra charge.

gym

The mini fitness room offers just the basics to get the blood moving before a nice steam in the hammam.

dining

An à la carte breakfast with plenty of hot and cold choices is served in the restaurant or the leafy garden patio under a retractable roof that's open in warm weather. The well-regarded Restaurant de Sers serves a modern gastronomic menu at lunch and dinner that is creative, seasonal, and particularly sensitive to vegetarians. The Sunday brunch is a lively affair and the only meal served in the restaurant on Sunday.

drinking

Adjoining the restaurant, the contemporary bar and lounge is stylishly clad in blond wood with comfy seating arrangements for settling in for a cocktail and finger food. We find no good reason for the ever-changing colored lighting behind the bar mirror, but guests don't seem to mind.

shopping

For high-end shopping you've hit the jackpot, as the hotel is minutes from Paris's famous Golden Triangle, formed by haute shopping streets Avenues Montaigne, George V, and Champs-Élysées. Here you'll find all the big names—Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Jimmy Choo, Hermès, Aläia, and on and on... For a curated selection of the top designers, head over to Montaigne Market concept store. Yummy.