First Look: Cheval Blanc Paris

Talk about one address to rule them all: Shop, eat, sleep, and repeat with the City of Light’s most fashionable at LVMH’s new Cheval Blanc Paris and the revamped Samaritaine department store, with its soaring atrium and wrought-iron railings. “You hear it a lot, but this is a game changer,” says Virtuoso travel advisor Stephanie Fisher of the first arrondissement outpost – one of the year’s most anticipated hotel openings. “It’s small and intimate, and each room feels like your own private Parisian maison.”

Opening September 7 after a seven-year restoration, the 72-room property is part of a landmark 1870 art deco and art nouveau building fronting the Seine between Notre-Dame and the Louvre. Rooms – and the reservations-only rooftop terrace – have expansive views of the city and its mansard roofs (the seven-bedroom apartment, in particular, has a clear sight line to Sacré-Coeur from its private pool).

That sense of exclusivity is reinforced by Peter Marino’s elegant interiors and plaster bedside lamps by sculptor Philippe Anthonioz; the hotel’s flagship restaurant, Plénitude, by chef Arnaud Donckele (who earned three Michelin stars at Cheval Blanc St-Tropez); and the Dior Spa’s mosaic-lined infinity pool, marble hammam, and snow shower. Even the staff uniforms, designed by Patou, reflect Parisian style, with an iconic parquet de glace pattern. The bow on top: 12 restaurants and some 600 luxe brands (50 exclusive to La Samaritaine) steps from guest-room doors. Virtuoso travelers receive fast-track immigration services, round-trip airport transfers, and breakfast daily.