Luxury in Paris: a tale of three hotels (Part 3 Lutetia lunch plus)

November 5, 1:03 PMRaleigh International Travel ExaminerJS Fletcher

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           Hotel Lutetia Paris at night. Photo courtesy Hotel Lutetia.

 By Kathy M. Newbern and J.S. Fletcher © 2009

Today's home base of the Concorde Saint-Lazare is well suited to getting out and about, and that is what we do on our first full day in Paris. A little walking, a bus ride, a stroll in a park and then lunch at another renowned, historical spot: Hotel Lutetia Paris on the historic Left Bank. Lutetia, by the way, was a Gallo-Roman city that’s the ancestor of today’s Paris.

This soaring and lovely grand art deco hotel (also in the Concorde family) dates to 1910 and is in the heart of the trendy Saint-Germain district, a favorite neighborhood of artists, musicians and even actors. Actor Gérard Depardieu is frequently seen in the lush lounge, richly decorated with dark burgundy round chairs, matching thick drapes, sparkling chandeliers and deco statues and fixtures everywhere. (Photo courtesy Lutetia Hotel.)

Hotel Lutetia has two excellent restaurants — "Paris" Restaurant and Brasserie Lutetia — presided over by Michelin Star Executive Chef Philippe Renard. He produces an innovative seasonal menu and attends to detail and subtle fine-tuning to make the dining experience at Hotel Lutetia a special treat.

Over lunch at Brasserie Lutetia (don’t miss the Challans free-range chicken roasted with garlic and thyme, served with Lutetia’s mashed potatoes — delicious) we pinpoint hotel spokeswoman Marina de Frishing on the must-see-and-dos for first-time visitors to Paris. (Top-10 sites to see in Paris)

Taking her advice, we start our afternoon with an easy walk from the Lutetia to the marvelous Musee d’Orsay, a standout museum located in a beautifully restored former train station. The building itself is enough to hold an art-lover's attention, although we, like most visitors, are quickly drawn to the Impressionist collection. (Photo on left JS Fletcher.)

There are excellent works here by Vincent Van Gogh, Claude Monet, Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and others, including one of our favorites, Paul Gauguin. By the way, more of his works are displayed here than we saw in the Gauguin Museum in Papeete, Tahiti, the self-proclaimed “Island of Love,” where he drew much of his inspiration.

While we were in Tahiti, we were inspired to write one of our personalized romance novels, Island of Love, in which you can star.

At the Orsay, for a little break to discuss our favorite artworks and which remaining sites we wanted to see, we enjoy a cup of coffee and a homemade waffle as dessert in the cafe under the big clock. Afterward, we step out onto the rooftop to a wonderful view, spotting the Tuileries Gardens with its Ferris wheel, recalling our prior afternoon there where we'd channeled our inner child and took a ride. (Photo of clock J.S. Fletcher.)

Our afternoon took us to the Seine where we rode the Batobus, a river-boat shuttle service that has eight, convenient stops. It’s not a full-blown river cruise, mostly because there is no narration, but it is inexpensive and lets you see some of the sights on the river.

The photo below of us on a Seine River dinner cruise, which provided a meal and a guided tour, is much different than the Batobus:  Much more romantic; much more expensive. (Photo courtesy Fletcher Newbern.)

Our final stop was at the Eiffel Tower as dusk filled the sky. Paris is magical, romantic, and full of surprises.

If you want a little taste of what it’s like to be in Paris, take an armchair trip in one of YourNovel’s eBooks: Two Paris Short Stories, personalized to make you the star.

We will be reporting on our trip in a series of articles accompanied by slideshows designed to give you a look at what we saw and did. This is Part 3 of the series. You can sign up for alerts to follow along, or go to Part 1 to start at the beginning or Part 2, for our first hotel, the Concorde Saint Lazare.

International Travel Examiner J.S. Fletcher and spouse, Kathy M. Newbern, report on luxury destinations, spas and cruising around the globe. They are award-winning members of the Society of American Travel Writers and operate YourNovel.com, their personalized romance novel business.