For the first stop of my trip to Paris and Cairo, I spent a couple of nights at the 40-key La Reserve Paris, which is regarded as one of Paris’ top properties, as it hasFrances Palace distinction.
Continue reading: Review: La Reserve Paris (Stunning French Palace Hotel)
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
We have reached peak OMAAT: going to Paris to eat avocados which are obviously imported and far from a local specialty
PSA - The property is a member of Leading Hotels of the World and is bookable with points. A lot of points but nonetheless bookable with points.
PS - To set expectations, the suite shown is not your base suite but your one-notch-up suite and can go for $5k per night.
A superb small luxury Hôtel with excellent food in a prime location. Very expensive and totally not in the usual Miles&Points territory. Couple of years ago I had lunch there and was seated at a table next to Bella Hadid and her entourage. Restaurant prices are eyewatering.
Good review, always been curious about this property.
I thought the Peninsula offered free non-alcoholic minibar but maybe I remember wrong or that has changed in recent years.
I think you missed an opportunity to explain hotels in France.
There is a reason why this hotel and other similar hotels in Paris are so excellent.
France's government regulates the classification of hotels. A hotel can't just market itself as 4 stars or 5 stars, let alone as a palace hotel. There are very specific requirements for each star rating/classification.
Another key difference is the nightly hotel tax. In many places with a hotel occupancy tax, it's a fixed percentage regardless of the type of hotel. In France, the tax varies based on the star rating. So, the French government is diligent about enforcing standards.
As for the palace designation, while all palace hotels are 5-star hotels not all 5-star hotels are palace hotels.
"This is the only top property in Paris to offer a free minibar."
This is not true. There are lots of 4-star and 5-star hotels in Paris that offer free drinks in the mini-bar. Most of the 4-star and 5-star Marriott properties, for example, do this.
I enjoy reviews such as this, in the mix. OMAAT is, in a way, a ride, with unscheduled unadvertised stops. The best kind. And Thank You, @Fred, for pointing out it's available with Leaders Club points! Ben didn't explicitly say it wasn't a points-available property, so I assumed it was entirely unaffiliated.
Looks fantastic. I'll never be staying here (well unless I get a boatload of LHW points!) but this is my favorite of the Paris top tier hotel reviews I've seen so far. This and the Cheval Blanc.
Great review! I don't agree with you saying it doesn't have the same name recognition as the other big hotels, though. It's a terrific brand and anyone who know the luxury hotel market is very aware of them. It's just a much more boutique property, as you noted. Love the Ramatuelle property as well.
Great review for entertainment but, unfortunately, not very informative of what others might experience as it was comped for an "influencer". Not for Ben but for Ford, so the exact same effect.
Influencers get stuff comped in exchange for their glowingly positive reviews. That's the condition that makes it "influencing", rather than "reviewing".
Ben says that there was no such arrangement made here, and I don't have any reason to disbelieve him.
Worth mentioning that this hotel received 3 Michelin keys (equivalent of stars, but for hotels). Not all palace hotels in Paris did; for instance, Crillon received 2 keys.
I'm a big fan of The Ritz. After becoming a little tired of the rates there, I checked out this hotel. The staff was very warm and welcoming and showed me several rooms. The rates, however, are no better than The Ritz's, and I prefer The Ritz's location for my purposes in Paris. Ultimately, what made me continue to stay at The Ritz is its GUARANTEED flexible check-in/out times; a guest can arrive as early as 6 AM and depart as late as 10 PM without any extra room charges as long as arrival and departure times are stated at the time of reservation.
This was comped specifically for travel advisors. The intent of the hotel is that those travel advisors would then steer their clients to the property. No expectation of reviews but a hope that they can influence where clients get booked. I am not suggesting that the stay being free influenced this review but that the hotel definitely knew that they were trying to build business with the advisors and may have treated all of the travel advisors a little better than how a typical guest might be treated. There is really no way to tell
Michelin has become very much pay to play. I don't take the 3-key rating seriously since the Rosewood Hôtel de Crillon, The Peninsula, and Hotel George V aren't listed.
Nice hotel, but 1500 euros starting price for a base room (and that suite is likely 2-3x that) is a reflection on how much inequality there is in the world. Seems like Paris is one of the places the rich in the world (from the Middle East, etc.) go to spend their money and top end pricing reflects that. Politics is for another blog, though. 🙂
Exactly.
Likewise, any competent guest relations manager or front office manager at this caliber of hotel would Google search the names of guests, particularly guests booking a suite, to see if the person is a VIP or otherwise influential. I catch hotel employees stalking me online at least a half-dozen times a year, thanks to LinkedIn.
At this pricing it's not really an accommodation service they're selling, but an 'experience'. I've long stopped staying in the city centre when visiting Paris, but even La Defense during the weekend is now commanding nearly €200 a night for somewhere half-decent. Thankfully I have friends who live right on an RER line not too far from CDG and I can either stay for free or get a hotel in their (pwrfeneighbourhood for €80 or so.
To be fair the classification is pretty lax for 4 star hotels. It authorizes a very significant proportion of tiny rooms classified as singles with only 15m2 and 150cm or 140 cm beds but sold a standard rooms. You can then recover points by having a kettle in the room or an ironing board upon request. So yes there are criteria but Parisian hotels have been creative in finding every loophole and explains the Parisian reputation for tiny rooms and poor quality hotels below 5 stars.
I disagree with that assessment, at least here. FS George V does have 3 keys. Peninsula and Crillon have 2 keys, which is still an excellent rating.
Should also add—I have been wanting to return to Paris and have been eyeing a La Réserve stay, this review convinced me to finally book it for this spring.
My husband and I stayed here Thanksgiving week 2023. Did not stay in a suite but the room was a decent size. The minibar fixins’ were very tasty. Service was great. Spa was very personal- no sitting in a waiting area with other folks- they provide 1:1 care of you the entire time. Dined at the in house Michelin restaurant (Le Gabriel) which was very nice. The library bar area plays very loud music at night which overflows to the Michelin somewhat but they eventually shut the restaurant door. Probably the only feedback I had was the glass shower door in the bathroom didn’t have a sweep or some sort of waterproof strip so with every shower- water would leak out all over the bathroom floor. We’d have to mop it up with the ample numbers of towels but then we’d be squeezing out towels over the bathtub. They couldn’t seem to fix that. Hopefully by now they’ve added some sort of sweep to the door. Had a great stay overall. Would love to stay there again. We like a smaller and quieter vibe.
Once again, you are violating your own (clearly published) policy which says "While we often enjoy the benefits of our earned elite status, we avoid press trips, and pay for all our own travel (with either cash or miles)."
Last time I called you out for accepting a free trip, you didn't bother replying to the comment. Since this isn't the first time you've accepted a free trip in the recent past, can you please change your policy as clearly stated at the top of the Reviews page?
This property looks stunning and thanks for the report, though I've had a "we visited" note at local Hyatt Regency too 🙂
Talk to the restaurants about the pay to play nature of Michelin. I made a mistake about the Four Seasons George V. But the idea that The Peninsula isn't 3 Key is absurd. The Peninsula is better than George V.
I'll agree that the 4-star category is inconsistent. But I don't consider good size an important factor. At the 4-star level, it's more about amenities or services, like a restaurant or 24/7 front desk. And a star rating doesn't translate into good or bad service. There are 3-star hotels with better service than 5-star hotels. So, experiences will of course vary. But the French do have a rigid rating or classification system.
Actually, it is true. There was an expose done on this a few years back. It caused such an uproar that the French government launched an inquiry.
If you find that you can't trust Ben or if you can't adjust your assessment of his articles given his practices, you're wasting your time on this website.
