E&M Travel Division of EMCO Travel, LLC.                      Since 1993

 

France Hotels

Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris

5 Star, Deluxe class hotel. Style: Traditional. Hotel built in 1928

our Seasons has renovated Paris' legendary George V and made it shine once again.

The Art Deco gates and medallions over the glass entrance doors of the George V now look as they did in 1928, when the historic Paris hotel opened. The long, narrow gallery once again has a 500-square-foot Savonnerie carpet, three Murano crystal chandeliers and a 17th-century Flemish tapestry. Its tall windows look out onto the interior courtyard, with its restored iron-grille balconies and replicated royal-blue awnings. Even the 16 tubbed magnolia trees were nurtured through a two-year renovation.

The famed property--now known as the Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris--is back and arguably better than ever. The $125 million face-lift is the joint project of the present owner, Prince Al Waleed Bin Talal of Saudi Arabia, and Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, which has a long-term management contract. The property is the luxury hotel operator's first in France, and it brings a North American flavor and contemporary efficiency to the landmark hotel.

The renovation not only restored the original Art Deco design and facade, but it provided state-of-the-art infrastructure and contemporary amenities. Guests will find the spirit of the old George V in the well-dressed guests who meet for afternoon tea and drinks in La Galerie, toting Ferragamo and Fendi shopping bags from the neighborhood fashion houses. They can see the new Four Seasons in energetic young couples in casual dress working out in the health club, business travelers plugging in their laptops and families with well-behaved youngsters.

Clientele

Corporate travelers--individuals as well as groups--make up about 60 percent of the guests. Since the hotel's re-branding, the percentage of U.S. guests (many of them Four Seasons loyalists) has risen dramatically, to about 60 percent. Leisure travelers of all ages will enjoy the full-service spa, swimming pool, and nearby shops. The hotel welcomes children with special amenities that include personalized T-shirts, video games and baby-sitting.

Accommodations

The hotel's original 300 rooms have been reduced to 245 rooms and suites. The 184 rooms are in three classes: Superior, Deluxe and Premier. The 61 suites and apartments--30 with private terraces--are in nine categories: Executive Suite, One- Bedroom Superior and Deluxe Suites, Duplex Apartment, Two-Bedroom Superior and Deluxe Suites, Specialty Suites, and Presidential and Royal Suites.

Rooms are a generous 450 to 600 square feet, and suites range from 750 to 1,660 square feet. Each room or suite is coordinated around one of three color schemes--buttercup yellow, celadon green or lavender blue--which is echoed in the walls, carpets, damask bedspread, fabrics, and even in the classically French-style Louis XVI or Empire painted wooden cabinets and consoles that hold the TV, VCR, CD and video game station. The hotel maintains a video and CD lending library that includes appropriate titles for children. The minibar is usually in the entrance hall, and the room safe is in the oversized closet. Tired travelers will welcome the king-size bed, with its super-comfortable Posturelux mattress, made especially for Four Seasons.

Rooms also feature a desk with three telephone lines, including a data port for modems, a separate fax line and voice mail. Every room has a computer keyboard that, with the television monitor, provides high-speed Internet access. Fax machines are installed in suites and are available on request in all other rooms. Spacious bathrooms are fashioned in Four Seasons' signature beige marble, with sink top and design details that echo each room's dominant color. Large separate showers, deep bathtubs, separate toilet stalls, thick terry robes and oversize towels, hair dryers and Bulgari toiletries all serve to provide the bathroom luxury to which veteran Four Seasons guests are accustomed.

Public Areas: An elaborate health club includes a 30 x 17-foot blue mosaic-tile swimming pool, whirlpool, saunas and steam rooms, with fitness instructors and the latest training equipment. The full-service spa offers various massage therapies, facials, body treatments and double massage rooms for honeymooners. There is almost 13,000 square feet of meeting and function room space, from a 5,000-square-foot Grand Ballroom with murals of Paris gardens to a 1,475-square-foot room modeled after a Versailles library. Another is designed in Art Deco style. The property also has smaller meeting rooms, all with state-of-the-art audiovisual equipment. The property has placed unusual monochromatic floral arrangements in all the public spaces. Thousands of flowers are flown in several times a week from the Netherlands, and thematic arrangements are changed weekly. Color schemes are often drawn from the rooms' tapestries and fabrics.

Dining

The main dining room, Le Cinq, with its crystal chandelier, marble columns and palm trees, is an elegant setting for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The executive chef, Philippe Legendre, who came from the Michelin three-star rated Taillevent, has already brought one star to the traditional French cuisine of Le Cinq, where clients can sample such specialties as poached egg in truffle juice and roasted pigeon. La Galerie, open all day and evening, serves breakfast, light food, afternoon tea and drinks. Guests can get sandwiches and salads at Le Bar, and order from around-the-clock room service. In good weather, light food is served in the courtyard.

Service

From room check-in, where guests simply sign a preprinted card, to express checkout, service is the hallmark of Four Seasons. There are almost twice as many employees as guests to provide one-hour clothes pressing, two-hour sewing repairs, 24-hour housekeeping, concierge and business services, and even someone to push the revolving lobby door for guests. The property's business center offers a variety of amenities, including secretarial and translation services.

Strongest Selling Point

The history and reputation of the George V, coupled with the 21st-century amenities and seamless service of Four Seasons, will appeal to a wide variety of clients. The hotel's location-in the lively 8th arrondissement--is an added attraction, since it is close to popular new restaurants and clubs, and is within walking distance of the Champs Elysees, Arc de Triomphe, Eiffel Tower and the Grand Palais.

Price from $842 USD including hot breakfast (June 2002)