Let me preface this by saying that personally, Paris is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Aside from being the birthplace of haute couture and the most renowned of fashion geniuses, Paris has this undeniable energy that’s incomparable to that of any other European city, and it remains something that I’m enamoured of no matter how many times I’ve been to the City of Lights.
I have a soft spot too for the distinct Haussmann architecture—cream-coloured limestone façades topped off with grey mansard roofs—that has become a prerequisite while hunting for an accommodation in Paris. Because why stay in a place that’s almost devoid of the city’s distinguishable charms?
That’s exactly what Cheval Blanc Paris has to offer. And more.
Founder and CEO of French conglomerate LVMH has taken over a slice of the city with Cheval Blanc Paris and its surrounding buildings. The luxury hotel is part of the same building complex as La Samaritaine, the fully renovated department store that reopened in 2021 and is currently owned by LVMH. It once became the venue of a Louis Vuitton womenswear runway show and now houses the entire luxury brand portfolio of LVMH and more.
Photo: Alexandre Tabaste.
Right across from La Samaritaine is where Louis Vuitton is currently holding an almost year-long exhibition on the maison’s continued exploration of heritage in contemporary ways. The two-floor takeover includes a Louis Vuitton-branded café with views of the Seine and La Samaritaine. The café is overseen by Cheval Blanc Paris’ own pastry chef, Maxime Frédéric.
Let’s just say that the entire complex feels like a collaboration by a conglomerate that’s known for cross-collaborating within its own network of brands.
Cheval Blanc Paris, however, feels quite separate from everything else that surrounds it. Even if La Samaritaine is essentially a wall away, both establishments aren’t jointly connected—a boon for the luxury traveller who prefers that added sense of privacy and security. Officially opened in September 2021 after five years of renovations, Cheval Blanc Paris was designed by architects Peter Marino and Édouard François, and is the first urban project under the Cheval Blanc collection of properties. Like the rest of the collection, Cheval Blanc Paris is relatively intimate with only 72 rooms, of which 46 are suites.
Photo: Alexandre Tabaste.
One immediately gets a sense of Cheval Blanc Paris’ concept upon entering the lobby. Greeting guests are two giant artworks of the Eiffel Tower by Brazilian-American artist Vik Muniz. While luxury hotels generally tend to favour a minimal aesthetic that at times could come across as cold, furnishings at Cheval Blanc Paris are eclectic with a mishmash of colours and patterns to convey a more residential feel. There’s a curatorial sense of bringing together the works of different artists, just as a well-travelled homeowner would.
I was informed that 600 artists and craftsmen worked with Marino on the interior and nothing was left to chance. The lobby’s floor, for example, consisted of seven different marbles used to form a patterned square tile, while the elegant curved stairwell leading to the hotel’s basement—where the indoor swimming pool and a Dior Spa are located—has walls lined with the metal-weaving work of artist Sophie Mallebranche. The luminescent textures echo the Art Deco architecture of the building as well as many other interior touches that the Cheval Blanc Paris has incorporated as part of its branding.
Being on the basement, the indoor pool unfortunately affords no views, which is in stark contrast to the rest of Cheval Blanc Paris. To remedy that, the back wall features a video installation of the Seine by artist Oyoram, as the 30-metre pool sits remarkably on the same level as the river—a brilliant touch that’s as mind-blowing as it is clever.
Turn right out of the indoor pool and you’ll find yourself entering an area meant for pampering. A Rossano Ferretti salon takes up space on the right before one enters the first Dior Spa in a Cheval Blanc property. Set up an appointment or two for the series of exclusive rituals designed by Dior and discover an extensive range of the maison’s beauty and fragrance lines, including exclusives specially designed for Cheval Blanc Paris.
Quite honestly, the bathroom setup in even the most basic room at Cheval Blanc Paris would be sufficiently relaxing. I was put up in the Seine Junior Suite on the second floor, aptly named for the practically unobstructed view from the winter garden, of the Seine flanked by the under-restoration Notre-Dame (partly financed by LVMH) and the Eiffel Tower. There was a generously sized tub that could easily fit two as well as a shower-hammam hybrid, all separated by a glass-enclosed space. The hotel faces north-west so light streams in beautifully in the afternoon, casting a glow throughout the space.
It’s the thoughtful gestures and touches that make the difference in a luxurious accommodation such as the Cheval Blanc Paris. The walk-in wardrobe feels homely and is designed with levelled hanging racks and with enough open shelving for long stays. The bathroom is essentially separated into his-and-hers vanities with amenities reflecting each individual needs. A small fridge is placed in a low cabinet in between the sections meant to store makeup and skincare, just because.
I had dinner at Le Tout-Paris, one of three restaurants at the property. There’s Langosteria that concentrates on Italian and Mediterranean flavours for seafood, and the three-Michelin-starred Plénitude as options should you please. Le Tout-Paris is the more casual of the three and is also where hotel guests go for breakfast.
Le Tout-Paris is buzzy but still has an overall intimate vibe; it was almost packed at 7pm on a Wednesday night and continued to be so throughout the time I was there for dinner. The aesthetic stays true to the eclectic nature of the rest of the hotel—colourful with a touch of zaniness but tied down together with the Art Deco-inspired accents. There’s a bar to the right and no matter where you’re seated, you’re once again afforded a view of the Seine.
Photo: Alexandre Tabaste.
The menu is French with modern inflections. The Tout-Paris Onion Soup is its own interpretation of the classic French onion soup that’s topped with a puffed, flaky crust sprinkled with cheese as opposed to the usual flat crust typical of any good brasserie in the city. The Grilled Beef with Languedoc Sauce came as a platter of three different cuts of beef—paillard, confit, and fillet—each offered a different textural experience but altogether beautifully paired with the sauce.
It was the desserts that I was really looking forward to though. I had a brief taste of Maxime Frédéric’s creations at the Louis Vuitton café pop-up and was thoroughly impressed with his Pear Charlotte. Here, I wanted to try his take on other French classics and opted for the Eclair Façon Profiterole (eclair-shaped profiterole) and Mille-Feuille.
“Excellent choices. You know, Frédéric was awarded an award for his mille-feuille,” shared the lady who served me throughout dinner. I could understand why. Being a huge mille-feuille fan—it’s pretty much the only pastry I actively hunt for whenever I’m in Paris—Frédéric’s version was honestly the lightest I’ve ever had. The puff pastry was impossibly light as air but as a whole, the taste stayed true to that of a classic mille-feuille and elevated even more with the vanilla sauce that came on the side. It was pastry heaven and will henceforth be the bar for which other mille-feuilles will be judged; though I have an inkling it won’t be beat anytime soon.
I retired to my room after dinner. It was almost 10pm and the buzz of the city was starting to quiet down. I decided to switch off all the lights in the room (they gave off a glare against the windows of the winter garden) and decided to sit in the dark while in full view of the Seine. I’ve been to Paris numerous times but I’ve never experienced Paris like this. I don’t know if it was the best view in Paris, especially in respect to accommodations in the city, but it felt pretty much so.
With a glass of Ruinart in hand, there was nothing else to do but soak in the atmosphere. Perhaps it was a bit of a Parisian cliché—the Eiffel Tower lighting up during its hourly schedule, a couple of couples visibly strolling along the Seine, and the cityscape appearing as though I was in a film—but it was at that moment that I fell in love with Paris even more.
