Hotels: bohemian chic in a boutique hotel

Alongside the great classics of business travel and the palaces that are more often than not outside the scope of travel policies, business travellers are increasingly interested in boutique hotels with character. Partly for budgetary reasons, but not only: less formal, attractively themed, they attract the eye and curiosity. Blooming here and there in the capital, they invite you to wander, to browse, to discover... Among the openings that marked 2015, Les Bains tops the list. The legendary nightclub of the 80s and 90s, a former bathhouse dating from 1885, has been resurrected after long years of decline. The 39 rooms, with a vintage rock'n'roll feel inspired by the Marmont Hotel in Los Angeles, have retained some of the festive spirit of the last century. In the basement, people still dance the night away, but it's in the luminous restaurant, with its two small outdoor areas, that Parisian life has regained its rightful place: people come for dinner or to enjoy a few tapas around the large cocktail bar.

Is Paris becoming a party again? Another former haunt of night owls, Le Montana, in Saint-Germain-des-Prés, has also been converted into a hotel, this time pocket-sized with its six suites featuring surrealist references. But above all, the publishing district continues the tradition of charming hotels. Early spring 2016 saw the opening of Le Saint, a combination of three small establishments on the rue du Pré aux Clercs. In all, 54 rooms, each with its own character, housed in a large building reminiscent of a vast 19th-century family home, with a real country feel: old cobblestones and terracotta floor tiles, tubs of wild flowers, lounges with beautiful fireplaces...

On the right bank, near Bastille and République, a host of new establishments have been opened to heal the wounds inflicted on the district last November, tragic events that have not undermined the desire to live and enjoy Parisian pleasures to the full. The hotel Exquis, part of the Elegancia hotel group, has just opened on rue de Charonne. Decorated by the artist and architect Julie Gauthron in sparkling colours, it is a dreamy, poetic place. Not far from there, the Accor group recently inaugurated the Hôtel Boutet Bastille, the fifth Parisian address in the MGallery collection, housed in the former headquarters of Maison Boutet, a beautiful workshop on the faubourg Saint-Antoine. The façade of this 80-room hotel with terrace is covered in mosaics from the 1930s, a style that is also used around the swimming pool, which is flooded with natural light.

PSYCHEDELIC LOOK

This spring, the Marriott group also moved into the district with the Renaissance Paris République, a hotel that is also playing the conversion card by taking over a former 1970s office building with a psychedelic look. Situated just off the Canal Saint-Martin, this 122-room hotel boasts a racy elegance designed by Didier Gomez, using noble materials, organic shapes and a touch of fantasy.

Another new feature to be opened before the summer between the Musée Picasso and the Centre Pompidou, the Chambre du Marais is a tiny 19-key room featuring deep damask colours - red, yellow and royal blue - and an olfactory design by the perfumer-creator of Parfumerie Générale. An invitation to enter the Paris of 19th-century demi-mondaines...

The South of Pigalle, sometimes referred to by the acronym SoPi, for "South of Pigalle", is also a hot spot for women. The Hôtel Amour gave the area a new lease of life in 2006 - before repeating the adventure closer to the Gare de l'Est, on the Rue de la fidélité, with the very bobo chic Grand Hôtel Amour - and the Maison Souquet was added to the list last year. Behind a discreet facade, highlighted by two red lanterns, the hallmark of brothels, this intimate venue evokes the cocoon of courtesans of the Belle Epoque, the time of La Païva and Liane de Pougy.

Paris is getting into the swing of things and revisiting its underworld nights in trendy fashion. Not far from there, the Grand Pigalle Hôtel also opened its doors in 2015, with 37 rooms and, above all, a trendy bar, the real expertise of the founders of the place, who also run the very popular Experimental Cocktail Club and Compagnie des Vins Surnaturels.

The City of Light? These prejudices could have a short life, because the list of beautiful hotels that will make Parisian nights a pleasure is as long as an arm of the Seine. There is already talk of the Cheval Blanc, owned by the LVMH group, which will move into the Samaritaine in 2018; and of the Poste Centrale du Louvre, which will be partially converted into a hotel of excellence. And on the postal side, the former postal sorting office in the 16th arrondissement, rue de la Pompe, will see the birth of the Kross hotel, under the inspiration of the inevitable Philippe Stark. There will also be a 500 square metre kitchen garden on the roof. Plenty of scope for harvesting more good fruit in the future.

NOTEBOOK

THE BATHS7, rue du Bourg l'Abbé - 75003 - Tel: 01 42 77 07 07 - Email : contact@lesbains-paris.com - Internet : www.lesbains-paris.com THE HOLY3, rue du Pré aux Clercs - 75007 - Tél : 01 42 61 01 51 - Email : contact@lesaint-hotelaparis.com - Internet : lesainthotelparis.com HOTEL EXQUIS, 71, rue de Charonne - 75011 - Tél : 01 56 06 95 13 - Email : contact@hotelexquisparis.com - Internet : hotelexquisparis.com MGALLERY BOUTET BASTILLE22-24, rue Faidherbe - 75011 - Tel : 01 40 24 65 65 - Email : hA064@accor.com - Internet : www.sofitel.com RENAISSANCE PARIS REPUBLIQUE40, rue René Boulanger - 75010 - Tel. 01 71 18 20 95 - Internet : www.marriott.fr LA CHAMBRE DU MARAIS, 87, rue des Archives - 75003 - Tél : 01 44 78 08 00 - Email : guest@lachambredumarais.com - Internet : lachambredumarais.com GRAND HÔTEL AMOUR18, rue de la Fidélité - Tel. 01 44 16 03 30 - Email : grandamour@hotelamourparis.fr - Internet : www.hotelamourparis.fr THE SOUQUET HOUSE10, rue de Bruxelles - 75009 - Tel : 01 48 78 55 55 - Email : contact@maisonsouquet.com - Internet : www.maisonsouquet.com BIG PIGALLE HÔTEL, 29, rue Victor Massé - 75009 - Tel : 01 85 73 12 00 - Email : info@grandpigalle.com - Internet : www.grandpigalle.com