Hotel Louvois, Paris

Our final stop during our recent sojourn to Paris was the wonderfully located Hotel Louvois which is situated in the heart of the 2nd arrondissement, in Louvois Square to be precise, which was a hub of Parisian life in the early 19th century. The building reflects its grandiose past and has an aesthetically appealing frontage to say the least.

As the old saying goes, you never get a second chance to make a first impression and, lamentably, our first impression of Hotel Louvois was not a particularly positive one as a result of a disinterested and discourteous member of reception staff who made our arrival feel like an imposition more than anything else.

Given the amazing welcome we’d received at every other hotel in Paris during our stay, this was disappointing to say the least.

That being said, however, we liaised with the hotel after our stay and they assured us that this is far from the norm and their staff ordinarily have favourable reactions from guests. Having seen the delightful staff working in the kitchens during breakfast, this is something that we can see that is likely true and decided not to let a very underwhelming reception put us off what was clearly an excellently situated and nicely appointed hotel, right in the midst of everything Paris has to offer.

Decorative Delight

It’s fair to say that a lot of attention to detail and thought has gone into the interior design of Hotel Louvois, with its understated mouldings, eye-catching copper finishes and luxurious textured leather found throughout the lobby and on into the hotel rooms. It is a fine example of French classicism contrasting with the elegant contemporary materials to deliver a striking Art Deco style aesthetic that those that love a touch of class when travelling will surely appreciate.

After our underwhelming welcome, we were hoping to be wowed by the room at Hotel Louvois but, alas, this wasn’t to be the case either. Very nicely decorated and filled with all the mod-cons you’ll need for a stay, the room itself (we were in a classic room, one of their smallest, so they do have larger options) was decidedly cramped and once the suitcases were down, there was little floor space left to move in the room. The size of the room, however, didn’t detract from its superb Parisan street views and luxurious feel afforded to it by the great interior design that has clearly gone into each room at Hotel Louvois.

The room boasted plenty of welcome features such as a Nespresso coffee machine, mini-bar, free fibre optic wifi and Bluetooth radio alarm clock so it’s certainly not lacking on the tech front, just on the square footage front. As we say, the diminutive size of the room is due to the fact that Hotel Louvois only has 50 rooms in total all within a fairly modest size building so clearly some compromises had to made on the size of the rooms. However small, there’s no denying that it was a mighty comfortable bed and a pleasingly quiet street given the hotel’s central location, so perfect for relaxing and unwinding after exploring the sights and sounds of Paris.

Impressive Facilities

If you’re in Paris to rejuvenate rather than to shop, eat and drink, Hotel Louvois could well be the ideal hotel for you with its Wellness Centre that is situated in spectacular natural stone vaults with an 8m x 3.5m swimming pool and a hydromassage bench for total relaxation. You can enjoy beauty treatments and soothing massages in your room and sport sessions in their fitness area depending on how active or chilled out you want to be during your stay.

Hotel Louvois is undoubtedly a beautiful hotel in a first class location for enjoying Paris and whilst our particular stay got off on the wrong foot, there are plenty of redeeming features to this hotel that will appeal to all sorts of travellers out there looking for a base to take in the splendid attractions that Paris is famous for. Situated close to the Louvre and the breathtaking Royal Palace, Hotel Louvois really is in the thick of the action so to speak and the Art Deco vibe throughout is something which appeals to our own interior design sensibilities.

To conclude, Hotel Louvois wasn’t the perfect ending to our Paris trip that we’d been hoping for but it is a lovely hotel in terms of design and location and that’s definitely some feathers in the cap of this Art Deco style hotel. If you’re after a centrally located hotel steeped in historical significance, this hotel will unquestionably be right up your street and what would have been a great stay for us was let down by a surprisingly poor welcome.