Champs Elysees Plaza by Jamie Dunford Wood

This Haussman building just off the Champs Elysees near the Arc de Triomphe is popular amongst guests of the American and British embassies. You can see why - it is discreet (you need to ring a bell to gain entry), and the 32 rooms are unusually spacious. It has more of the feeling of a 'residence' than a hotel - downstairs public areas are comfortable but limited, and services are limited.

But rising in the old fashioned elevator you enter a world of silent corridors, large double doors and high ceilings. The rooms divide into superior and deluxe suites. The former are not really suites at all, but, at 45 sq ft, large, well-proportioned rooms, which will easily accommodate three. The deluxes feature connected sitting rooms or separate sitting areas, and will house a family of four. The furniture is good repro, and the sofas large three-seaters. All have separate showers, some also have traditional free-standing baths. Fresh flowers, fruit and newspapers downstairs are often replicated in the rooms, which have extensive mini-bars and their own cappucino machines. All in all, the Champs Elysees Plaza provides great space for great rates for those who want quiet and calm in a great location, but who can do without the all night service. Ideal, too, for long stay guests.