Grand Hotel Jeanne d'ArcEditor's Pick

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If we took a holiday (took some time to celebrate...), we’d hotfoot it over to the Hôtel Jeanne d’Arc. Planted on the narrow, tranquil rue de Jarente in between the Musée Carnavalet and Henri IV’s exquisite Place des Vosges (Paris’s first city square), this fiery two-star hotel is more than a little bit funky—and French Provençal, too.

All 35 small rooms are whimsically decked out with modern nightstands, headboards and desks and fun, shabby-chic details like hand-painted flowers and lightning bug drawer pulls. The walls crackle in yellow and orange, reminding us of bright textiles from the South of France. A telephone and flat-screen TV are standard throughout (there is no air conditioning, but fans are provided). A 2008 renovation added a handicap-accessible room on the ground floor and replaced the carpets in some rooms with hypoallergenic tiling (request ahead).

The bathrooms vary from room to room, but are all spotless and usually have windows, with panoramic street and rooftop views. Bathtubs are available (again, request ahead).

The hotel management and staff are amiable and helpful. The first floor is made up of a lobby, a reading room and a dining room “gone baroque,” chock-full of art, chandeliers, board games, books and flea market finds. Throughout the entire hotel, the Jeanne d'Arc coolly meshes 19th-century style paintings and maps with playful modern pieces.

The fanciful (and massive) mosaic mirror in the dining room is the spot to get your primp on while enjoying the hotel’s breakfast (€8). Wi-Fi is available but works best on the ground level, and there is an Internet stationin the lobby, both free.

Perhaps the only thing that put a bee in our bonnet is the hotel’s “no picnicking” in the rooms policy, as posted in every room. So if you’re into the joy of bedroom snacking, perhaps this isn’t your kind of hive!

» Theadora Brack

Note: This hotel was visited by a EuroCheapo editor and is recommended based on cleanliness, location, price and overall quality. EuroCheapo did not charge this hotel to be listed.