Hôtel Artus

On arrival
Set between two boutiques in an area that’s famous for its shops, the hotel entrance stands out with its large windows featuring works of art, and the small rounded canopy bearing its name over the door. It leads to an open foyer that goes right back through the hotel to the reception desk at the back.

Two small lounges with geometrical proportions, one each side of the entrance, make the most of the large windows onto the street. There’s a small bar in the window, where you can have a coffee or a glass of wine while you watch Saint Germain go by.

The white travertine stone floor and white walls of the foyer are complemented by warmer elements to make a stimulating contrast – wall panels in wood, treated to bring out their natural look, and gorgeous fabric wall-coverings in warm colours.

A few artistic touches, such as a twisted piece of bark with subtle lighting, or an exhibition of sculptures from Zimbabwe, add a zest of improvisation. But what attracts most attention in this huge foyer is a vast enlargement of a very sensual scene from a painting by Delacroix, Women of Algiers in their Apartment, which takes up an entire wall.

Running alongside the Delacroix, opposite the reception, a wide staircase leads to the breakfast room below. Downstairs you’ll also find a sauna and a mini gym. The bedrooms are spread over two buildings, each of which has its own lift.

The bedrooms
Although they all use the same range of fabric wall-coverings, plaster and furniture, the rooms are all different. A dozen colours, pale or intense, from apple green to lilac to burgundy, give each one its own special atmosphere, sometimes neutral, sometimes warm or romantic.

The furniture has clean, geometric lines and is made from a black tropical wood. This colour is set off by dark brown leather on the desk and panels of glass in the same colour on the wardrobes. The rooms in the building on the street side are carpeted, while those in the other building have parquet floors.

Wherever possible the beams have been left exposed, and are painted white for lightness, lending the room a considerable charm.

Round Murano glass lamps shed a direct light and give a 70s touch to these very simply decorated bedrooms. The beds are covered with duvets and Egyptian cotton sheets. A diamond-shaped bedspread placed over the duvet picks out the brown tones of the furniture.

A work of art or an antique showcased above the bed gives individuality to every room.

Separated from the room only by a partition (without a door), the bathrooms are in white marble. Seven have a bath and the others have showers. Attractive designer taps by Hansa feature a glass disk controlled by a joystick, down which the water flows like a waterfall.

Types of room
Besides a suite and a duplex suite, the hotel offers two room types, standard and superior. The only difference between them is their size, as the superiors are significantly larger and are equipped with a desk.

The junior suite and the duplex suite are quite different from the rest of the hotel. Both are on the top floor; the junior suite is one long room, with lovely exposed beams under the mansard roof and a balcony where you can have breakfast or enjoy a glass of wine while you gaze across the famous Paris roofline. The bathroom has a Jacuzzi bath.

The duplex suite, also on the top floor but in the second building, has an unusual layout, with a mezzanine bathroom featuring a Jaccuzi bath. Plenty of windows and skylights give it a feel of tranquillity. The suite is the only bedroom on this floor, so it is guaranteed to be very quiet.

Although the Rue de Buci is very busy, the rooms on the street side are well soundproofed.

Breakfast
Breakfast is a hot and cold continental buffet, served in a room at the bottom of the building, which is rather plain but cheered by chairs and benches in a vivid red. There is a wide choice including scrambled or boiled eggs, mini pastries, fruit in syrup and fruit salad, a choice of cold meats and cheese, cereals, dairy products and fruit juice.