Hotel Jardins d'Eiffel

What appears from the street to be a quaint and unassuming inn is in fact a surprisingly large (for central Paris) and modern hotel. A blue-and-white-paneled, Suprematism-style front desk set with fresh flowers stands out in the bright welcome area, which is even more striking for its deep blue accent walls, oversized photographs of the Paris rooftops, and large work of mixed-media art. On the opposite side is a lounge area with wood tables and chairs for about a dozen people, a computer and printer, cube shelving full of art and architecture hardbacks, and a wine closet stocked with affordable bottles and stemmed glasses. A sizable indoor breakfast room bustles in the morning with guests refilling their plates with eggs and bacon, and a lovely enclosed patio provides outdoor seating when the weather is pleasant. The courtyard has wooden tables and chairs, Japanese maples, a vine-growing trellis, and a ceramic totem pole made by the hotel owner's wife. The hotel consists of three buildings: the main street-facing building (originally apartments) and two back wings added in 1994. At this writing, the main-building rooms have a more traditional look and the annex rooms, renovated in 2012, a more modern one. In January through July of 2019, the hotel will update the main rooms to be stylistically consistent with the rooms in the two garden wings. For hope of an Eiffel Tower view, guests must book a non-street-side room in the original building. The hotel attracts a clientele of French and other Europeans and Americans (the American University of Paris is a short walk away) for two or three nights on average.

From the hotel, a 15-minute walk will get guest to the Eiffel Tower (and its surrounding park, Champ de Mars), and, by way of the Pont de Invalides over the Seine, the Champs-Elysees. Other important tourist draws within the area are the Musee d'Orsay (a 20-minute walk), Musee du Quai Branly (12-minute walk), and Les Invalides (seven-minute walk), a grand military complex originally founded by Louis XIV to shelter injured soldiers. Many restaurants and cafes are in the immediate area. The M8 metro line at La Tour-Maubourg is four blocks away and travels to Champs-Elysees, the Pigalle area, and the Bastille Opera. A 16-minute walk to the east, the Solferino station and M12 line travels north and south and can be used to access Montmartre. Next to the hotel is a police station. Charles de Gaulle Airport is a little over an hour away by metro or 35 minutes by taxi.

Hotel Jardins d'Eiffel's 81 rooms are split among three buildings: an original main building on Rue Amelie, and two extending wings (built in 1994) flanking a rear courtyard. As of our 2018 visit to the hotel, the rooms in the main building were awaiting an early 2019 renovation. This effort will update traditional main-building rooms and bring them on par with the annex rooms, which were renovated in 2012. With this revamp, style will be uniform throughout utilizing brown-and-blue wavy-lined carpeting, ivory walls, and nature photographs such as trees at the edge of a field or lichen-covered rocks. Beds have pale wood headboards and throw pillows covered in royal purple velvet, and accent wall gives the illusion of flower shadows behind a gauzy curtain.No matter the category, rooms come with satellite LED flat-screen TVs and a la carte minibars containing soft drinks (including Orangina) and mini bottles of whiskey, cognac, gin, and vodka, as well as Toblerone and Haribo sweets. All rooms have work desks, free safes, hairdryers, individual climate control, and keycard-activated lights. Most bathrooms have deep shower/tub combos, though some have walk-in showers. German-made Hydro Basics products (shower gel, shampoo, bar soaps) are provided. Superior rooms add bath salts, as well as bathrobes and slippers. The upgraded rooms also have coffeemakers with free coffee and tea and one bottle of Evian. Some Superior Rooms have garden terraces or micro-balconies or Eiffel Tower views. (Room 309 in the main building, with a window pointing straight toward the landmark, is considered the best.) Single and connecting rooms are available. Wi-Fi is free in the rooms on multiple devices, and does not require a password.

When booking rooms, guests have the option of adding on breakfast. For those who opt in, there is a dining area with a buffet of eggs (scrambled and hard-boiled), cold and cooked meats, prepackaged and homemade yogurt, cereals, and fruits. Individually wrapped French-made cheeses (Camembert), mini jars of honey and jam, and Nutella are available to top fresh baguettes and other breads. Next to the breakfast room, there's a small lounge/library area where guests can order wine by the bottle, priced as they would be in a wine shop (i.e. not marked up 300 percent). There is also a free guest computer stationed here with a printer. Free copies of "The New York Times" and "Le Figaro" are available in the lobby, where the reception desk is staffed 24 hours a day. A 30-space parking lot is located below the hotel and can be used for a fee. Wi-Fi is available for free throughout the Hotel Jardins.