Paris redesigned. Hotels in the French capital range from grand and opulent to those with ultra urban chic.

‘Outside of Paris there is no hope for the cultured’. Moliere had a point - if there is one thing that Parisians can be sure of, it is their penchant for culture. Whether in architecture and design, art and literature, food and wine, the Parisians know their game. The trend which has taken the world’s cities by storm in the past few years - the design hotel – is epitomized in the French capital with its naturally design-savvy culture.

Design hotels are generally smaller in size than the traditional up-market chains and are frequently but not always fronted by well known designers happy to extend their brands. Donatella Versace was one of the first, responsible for the Palazzo Versace on Australia’s Gold Coast. Philippe Starck conceived the interiors in New York’s Hudson Hotel and closer to home John Rocha was behind The Morrison and The Beacon Hotels, with Philip Treacy creating the Galway’s G. But not all are based on a name, some stem from an adventurous owner’s vision. One thing they all focus on is originality and lifestyle, and now more than ever on the perpetual search for the latest in cutting edge.

Whether in Paris, New York or Tokyo, features such as biometric security and interchangeable mood lighting for day and night are increasingly the norm. Many actively seek to play with the senses; long corridors with mirrors and contrasting patterns, lifts and stairways with daring fabrics padding the walls, modern slate tiled bathrooms set against antique tapware and accessories. All look for ways to present the unexpected over the predictable. In the smaller hotels it has become a fashion that each room is designed individually with a particular colour, feature or theme defining the space.

A criticism occasionally aimed at the design hotel is that style is given place over substance. The challenge of the design hotelier is to ensure that style complements rather than compromises comfort and service. Novelty is certainly a strong element in many. According to Claus Sendlinger, CEO of Design Hotels, a company representing over 140 independent hotels internationally, ‘Not all of our hoteliers are looking to last forever and some of them know that they are investing in a very fashionable product. If they are smart they create the hotel in a way that it means it can be redone every three years’

Whether an ever-evolving fashion or a natural result of the need to differentiate in an overcrowded market, the design hotel is fun to experience.

Paris’ Newest and Hippest – Kube Rooms and Bars

Who is it for? Enthusiasts of the cutting edge and David Lynch movie sets.

Described as a retro-future hotel, the beautiful and the interesting gather in the cube-styled interiors of this very hip venue in the 18th arrondisement. There is no name outside, as it is assumed that anyone coming here will know the location, so exclusive are its clientele. A glowing plexiglass cube separate to the main building serves as reception area. With its geometric sense of architecture, there is a 1960s sci-fi theme in its furnishings and décor. Open less than a year, it is a vision of modernity, attracting a media and marketing set both as hotel guests and as visitors to France’s first ‘Ice-Kube’ Bar, housed on a mezzanine above the main salon. Where else will you be offered a parka coat and woolly gloves outside the door to a stylish refrigerator, where even the glasses are made out of ice (hence the gloves). Guests spend 30 minutes sampling the vodka-only drinks menu before they return to the warmth of the hotel through a decompression-like space bathed in red light. The cube theme is continued in the bedrooms, but they are bright and warm with glass walls doubling as bed heads and divides between the sleeping area and the luxurious (and cube-shaped) baths. No keys are required for your room; merely place your finger on a panel outside the door to gain entrance. The overall effect is futuristic, if at times a little hard around the edges. The food at the Kube is worth sampling, each bite sized morsel is delicately designed and packaged to stimulate the eye and taste buds.

Mainstream Modernity – Murano Resort Hotel

Who is it for? Devotees of modern glamour and the uber chic

With the same owners as the Kube, this is a chic urban retreat in the upmarket Marais district. Here the interiors are of a softer variety, modern but glamorous, with white and silver tones in the reception area and the inner glass-roofed lounge. A long rectangular open gas fire is at level with a low-backed white leather sofa, both stretching the length of the room. Striking metal sculptures by Vincent Breed line the white marbled reception corridor. Lighting in the restaurant is dramatic, a tube-like structure hanging at different levels and changing in colour and effect from daytime to night, creating a totally different atmosphere for each. Fashionable Parisians visit the restaurant for Sunday brunch, listening to live music in the adjoining lounge. Bedrooms are bright and streamlined but indulgent; mostly in white each has an individual feature with one or two strong colours used – purples, pinks and greens give definition to the space. Again the lighting can be altered to create a different hue. The top suites boast their own mini swimming pools, cleverly arranged on terraces adjoining a salon.

Quirky Sophistication – Hotel Du Petit Moulin

Who is it for? Lovers of charming design in a quaint location.

In the heart of the Haut Marais, this Christian Lacroix-designed hotel has been successful in creating a place of unique character. Of this project Lacroix says ‘I had the impression of rediscovering an erstwhile childhood dream left by the wayside’ He has certainly created a stylish but quirky atmosphere which manages to complement its historical surrounds. Two buildings have been joined together; guests enter through a listed and well preserved façade of a bakery dating from times of Henry 4th. Local legend has it that Victor Hugo came here to buy his bread. The Venetian-style setting in the reception area is almond green with wine-coloured ruffled taffeta drapes. An egg plant-lacquered salon adjoins a street-café-like bar combining a zinc counter with scrap book walls and 1960s seating. Trompe d’oeil in the corridors complements a 17th century wooden staircase carpeted in black and white polka dots. The 17 dramatically different rooms display colours ranging from blues and reds to pinks and greys, all with interesting pieces of art. Some are oddly shaped but all are appealing with their use of contrast, whether beams or cement, antiquated wall paper or gaudy fabrics. Lacroix has been generous with brocades and velvets, crafting a patchwork of moods with panels of giant collages on the walls or windows. Beautiful modern bathrooms offset traditional Viennese mirrors. Guests here are regulars, drawn back by the medley of baroque, rococo and couture.

This article was published in Business and Finance Magazine in 2006.