I have previously written about the history of Place Vendôme , focusing mainly on the statues that have been placed there over the years and their misfortunes. However, Place Vendôme contains another monument that has made it famous. It is the Ritz Hotel , which has become synonymous with uncompromising luxury.
The history of the Ritz Hotel
It all started with a scandal in London. In 1897, the manager of the Savoy Hotel, César Ritz (1850-1918) and his partner, chef Auguste Escoffier (1846-1935), were fired after being suspected of stealing £3,400 worth of liquor (a huge sum in those days). However, the two, who had made the Savoy a favorite haunt of English high society, did not remain unemployed for long. Ritz and Escoffier decided to move from London to Paris to build the most luxurious hotel ever seen. Naturally, the Place Vendôme, already a symbol of Parisian luxury, was a natural place for such a hotel. Ritz, after searching, managed to buy the Hotel de Lauzun, whose entrance is at number 15, and after renovations, he opened the luxury hotel on June 1, 1898, which he named after himself.
As soon as it opened, the hotel became synonymous with elegance and innovation. For example, the Ritz decided to install bathrooms in each of the hotel's 210 rooms, which was a luxurious innovation in a city like Paris (jokes about French hygiene in 3…2…1…). During the 1920s, the hotel became the center of social life for all the rich and famous in Paris and the bathtubs in the rooms were often filled with…champagne. The writer Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1940), made the hotel his headquarters, while Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961), who was poor at the time, could only afford a drink once a week in the hotel bar. Despite this, he did not give up the experience and became a regular customer at the bar, which is now named after him (by the way, women were not allowed to enter this bar until 1936).
Among the hotel's most eccentric customers, we can mention Berry Wall (1860-1940), an American millionaire, who dined in the hotel restaurant accompanied by his Chow Chow, which he dressed in black satin stockings and a Charvet turban, which can still be bought today in the shop located at number 28 on the square. Other celebrities who stayed at the hotel were the famous writer Marcel Proust (1871-1922), who lived in a relatively modest room, and the fashionista Coco Chanel (1883-1971), whose suite she slept in until the day she died is still named after her.
Ritz Hotel Bimeno
In 1979, the hotel was sold to Egyptian businessman Muhammad Alfayed. Following the purchase, he extensively renovated the hotel and opened the Cordon Bleu cooking school, the Escoffier French gastronomy school , and the large swimming pool in Paris, which is reminiscent of the pools that could once have been found in Roman villas. Although the hotel has starred in quite a few films and stories, today it is remembered by the general public for being associated with the tragic death of Princess Diana and her partner, the son of the hotel owner, Dodi Alfayed. Both of them set off from here in 1997 on their last journey, which ended in a car accident near the Pont Alma bridge.
In 2012, the hotel was closed for renovations and upgrades (among other things, a summer restaurant with a glass roof is planned, which can be easily removed on a nice day). The hotel was supposed to open in the summer of 2014, but due to the scope of the renovations, the reopening date was postponed to early 2015 and again to 2016. Ultimately, after exceeding the budget by about 300 million euros, the hotel reopened and you are welcome to take a look.
So what's in the new hotel?
- Underground parking from which celebrities will be able to get directly to their rooms without going through reception.
- Luxurious and luxurious rooms at a price that starts at 1200 euros per night and can reach up to 12,000 euros per night for the suites.
- A luxurious and sophisticated spa named after Coco Chanel that will help you reach 100 years of age easily (if you don't die instantly while trying to pay for it, of course).
- Three gourmet restaurants where some of France's most famous chefs will cook.
- And of course, the best location in Paris.
