Le Bristol Paris turned 100 last year, and it looks better than ever. Its interiors are filled with Louis XV and XVI furniture, original oil paintings, parquet floors, and floral fabrics from Braquenié and Manuel Canovas. Its nearly 13,000-square-foot courtyard garden changes color with the seasons, from tulips and narcissi in spring to deep-burgundy roses in summer and copper-toned beech leaves come fall. Upstairs, the sixth-floor pool looks like the deck of a 1920s yacht and has a terrace overlooking the patinated zinc rooftops. Socrate, the resident Birman cat, patrols the halls in a Goyard collar. Yet for all its gilt and pedigree—Le Bristol was the first hotel awarded France’s Palace distinction—the property is surprisingly easy to settle into.
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Courtesy Le Bristol
Where
Le Bristol sits on rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré in the 8th arrondissement, steps from the Élysée Palace and within walking distance of Avenue Montaigne, the Champs-Élysées, and the Tuileries. Despite the busy location, its enclosed courtyard garden is remarkably quiet. Allow around 40 minutes by car to reach either main airport, traffic permitting.
When
Between April and June, gardens are in bloom and café terraces fill up, while from September to October, fashion and cultural calendars kick back into gear. January and February are quieter and often less expensive, making winter a good bet if museums, restaurants, and shopping matter more than sitting outside. July and August are becoming increasingly unpleasant as Europe heats up and the city struggles to outfit old buildings with proper air conditioning.
The Proprietors
Hippolyte Jammet opened Le Bristol in 1925, at the height of the Années Folles, naming it for the Earl of Bristol, an 18th-century English traveler known for his taste in hotels. The Oetker family acquired the property in 1978, and it’s still part of the Oetker Hotels Collection today. In 2011, Le Bristol became one of the first French hotels to receive the country’s official Palace distinction.
