A travel publication Holiday in the 1970s claimed that "practically every royal head of state has snoozed under down quilts on the finest linen sheets, beneath fifteen-foot high ceilings in rooms looking out, through huge double windows, on the elegant Place Vendôme." Frommer's, who describes the hotel as "Europe's greatest hotel", describes the furnishings as follows, "the public salons are furnished with museum-calibre antiques.
Each guest room is uniquely decorated, most with Louis XIV or Louis XV reproductions; all have fine rugs, marble fireplaces, tapestries, brass beds, and more. Ever since Edward VII got stuck in a too-narrow bathtub with his lover, the tubs at the Ritz have been deep and big." The bathroom contains unique golden swan taps and peachy colored towels and robes as they were believed to be more flattering to a woman's complexion.
The most expensive hotel in Paris, employing a staff of over 600, the rooms as of May 2011 start at €850 a night. Suites start at €3,600 and can go up to €13,900 a night for the most lavish ones (Suite Impériale being the most expensive). These finest suites are known as the "Prestige suites"; these include "Vendrome", "Cesar Ritz", "Elton John", "Windsor", "Coco Chanel" and "Imperial". There are ten prestige suites in total which according to the Ritz are " a world for aesthetes where 18th century panelling echoes allegorical ceilings, old masters and priceless antique furniture.
Each suite is unique and each seems to still breathe the spirit of the illustrious guests who once stayed there, Coco Chanel, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Ernest Hemingway." The Vendôme Suite is one of the most spacious of the hotel, containing Louis XI furnishings, with a red and ivory theme and grand windows overlooking the square. The César Ritz Suite overlooks the square and contains Louis XV furniture and a portrait of Ritz himself.
The room is decorated in shades of green and light yellow with a canopied bed in one room and silk floral pattern in the second. The doors of the sitting room of the suite are edged in gold leaf. The Elton John Suite, decorated in strawberry pink and cream contains two bedrooms, a thick pink carpet and attic windows. John reportedly hired the entire floor for his 42nd birthday. The Windsor Suite contains tapestries and gilded mouldings and portraits of the Duke (Edward VIII) and Duchess of Windsor.
They are decorated with Louis VI furniture and colours such as almond green, salmon and pearl grey. The master bedroom is decorated in pearl grey in a shade which the Ritz calls "Wallis blue", a favorite of Wallis, Duchess of Windsor. The suite as with the others, now contain a large bath tub after their mishap. The 1,670-square-foot Coco Chanel Suite where Coco Chanel lived for some 35 years consists of two bedrooms and a living room and features Coromandel lacquers, Chinese furniture, baroque mirrors and over-sized sofas with quilting created by Grande Mademoiselle. The suite is said to be "equipped with the most sophisticated technology including fax, Jacuzzi, steam-bath shower, and ultra-modern walk-in closets."
The Imperial Suite (Suite Impériale) is the finest suite of the hotel, and due to its sheer grandeur exuding that of a Baroque royal palace it is listed as a National Monument of France in its own right. The Imperial Suite is located on the first floor and consists of two exquisite bedrooms, a grand salon, and a dining room. The suite features 6 metre high ceilings, great chandeliers and windows overlooking the Place Vendôme, a massive long gold framed Baroque mirror between the windows, red and gold upholstery and a contains a four-poster bed which is said to be identical to Marie Antionette's room in the Palace of Versailles.
The other bedroom is in the style of Louis XVI, with a baldaquin bed and columns. The suite is lavishly decorated in French art and bas-reliefs and 18th century paneling which is protected under this historic monument. The bathroom is a former boudoir and overlooked the Vendôme garden, with 18th century paneling and a Jacuzzi bath and steam-bath shower and has its own plasma television and cosmetics fridge, juxtaposing old French tradition with the modernity of the 21st century.
Aside from the obvious facilities such as a DVD player, high-speed internet, and fax, the suite features a kitchenette near the salon and has its own small personal wine cellar filled with a variety of the finest French wines. Over the years the suite has hosted some of the world's most prestigious guests from the Shah of Iran to George Bush, Sr. The suite was Hermann Göring's choice of residence during World War II and was also where Princess Diana and Dodi ate their last meal.The World Travel Awards of 2007 selected the Imperial Suite as Europe's Leading Suite
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