June 7, 2007

Europe | France | Paris

Nouveau Pied-à-Terre

By Nicole Cotroneo

Leaving Paris just got even harder.

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There’s no place like home — unless you’re staying at La Reserve Paris. This new luxury apartment-hotel in the chic 16th arrondissement opens June 22 with extended stays in mind. Ten thoughtfully-appointed duplex and triplex apartments have been styled by Rémi Tessier with a nod to 1930’s elegance. Each one- to four-bedroom apartment comes with a flatscreen TV in every sleeping quarter, a state-of-the-art office, and a sleek Varenna kitchen. Not that you’re expected to actually turn on a burner. Such is the task of La Reserve’s designated private chef.

Which means you’ll start each day with the first of many choices: do you have breakfast cooked to order while sipping coffee and gazing at the Eiffel Tower from your balcony — which hangs right over the Trocadero? Later, will you book an in-house manicure, pedicure or massage? But then you are in Paris and you’ll want — no, need — to do some shopping. For our money (and for missing the masses in the 8th), you’d do well to browse your designer brands at Frank et Fils, a selective department store on Rue de Passy. And for culture kicks, check out the nearby Musee Guimet, which houses the largest collection of Asian art outside of Asia.