Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme

5 Rue de la Paix, 75002 Paris, France

Phone: +33 1 58 71 12 34

http://www.paris.vendome.hyatt.com/

My Rating: 76%

Price Rating: $$$$$

Summary of Stay: So this is a difficult review to write. But I'll clarify everything momentarily. The hotel is a 5 star property that I think is best targeted to business clientele. It has almost every amenity you would expect (minus a pool) but also comes along with a cool, impersonal approach. The hotel lacks charm and personality even though rooms start at $1000/night. It is consistently rated one of the top 5 hotels in Paris and one of the top 50 in the world. But lets get down to particulars.

The lobby area is nice and bright and there is a courtyard which is the jewel of the hotel. Flowering trees and canopied tables offer a space that is functional and beautiful. The entrance and check-in area are a long hallway of marble. It is slightly unwelcoming if not for the half dozen 'bonjours' you'll receive from the doormen, security, concierge, hostess, etc as you walk to check-in.

Checking in was quick and easy and the attendants spoke perfect English. Up to my room and my luggage was not far behind me. Also surprising, no luggage tags were given during my entire stay—even when I stored luggage after check-out. I'm going to assume that the staff are just that good that they don't require using them.

The room was a decent size with plenty of natural light. Upon reserving, I had requested a room with a balcony and that is exactly what I got. It had a small terrace area with trees and shrubs that just added some much needed French charm to an otherwise standard room. Looking back at my hotel room, there are really only two things that set it apart from any other business hotel that I've stayed at. 1) The statues around the room that were incorporated into the lamps, etc. They were interesting and perhaps a bit too much for a small space, but definitely unique. 2) The gold fixtures in the bathrooms that added a nice touch of luxury.

But first, I like to point out the good things. The closet was well designed and gave enough room for luggage. The bed was comfortable and the view of the courtyard was decent (if I wasn't going to have a view of the Eiffel Tower!). There was an excess of lighting so really you could have any lighting possibility you required. The complimentary oversized bottles of Evian were nice and not common in Paris hotels. Turn down service came very early, but was nice to see.

So then the hiccups came. I had spent the afternoon in my room unpacking and everything was fine. The room temperature was great and I really did begin to unwind. I went out for a late dinner and when I returned around midnight, the temperature of my room had gone from 18C to 27C. It was like an oven. I checked the AC and it was still reading 17.5C (I'm Canadian—I like a cool room). So I called down to the front desk and a technician was at my door within 15 minutes. He didn't speak English but he figured out that there was a problem when he opened the door. He tirelessly worked on the AC until about 2:15 am. At this point, I was tired and drained from the heat and just wanted to go to bed. I opened the windows and told him I needed to go to sleep. By now there was no more hot air blowing at least. I know hotels are going to have technical failings—and I'm not going to rate them based on that. However, it is how they deal with it that concerns me. At no time did anyone at the hotel offer to switch my room to one that was less tropical. That should have been the fist step.

I slept in as I was tired and didn't fall asleep till almost 3:30am when I finally cooled down. Check out was at noon and I had arranged a late check out until 2 pm. Laying in bed trying to get in a few more winks, I heard my door open and a man came in. Seconds later, after him seeing me sleeping, he apologetically spoke several French words and abruptly left the room. I assume he was another technician that came to look at the air conditioning unit. However, he didn't knock on my door or ring the doorbell. This is unacceptable.

Now...the hotel's Manager of Rooms and Service did meet me at check-out and apologized personally for everything that happened. They suggested a way to make up for the stay which I accepted. I don't believe that this is something that would normally occur at a stay at any Park Hyatt, but perhaps for them, it was unfortunate that it happened to someone with a blog. Again, they did try and correct the situation as best as they could, which is why they weren't rated lower.

Highlight of the Hotel: When I think back about the hotel, not a lot grabs me. However, I did enjoy the balcony I had. I had champagne out there after a long day of shopping and it was nice to have a piece of outdoor space in a busy city like Paris. Also, the location really is ideal as it is in the very heart of everything. Great shops, restaurants and the Seine are just steps away.

Highlight of the Stay: Where the hotel shines is it's concierge team. Sebastian especially should win an MVP award. Every recommendation the team made was impressive—from shopping to food to entertainment. The dinner reservation that Sebastian made for me was perfectly suited to me in terms of atmosphere, quality and charm. This dinner turned out to be one of my best memories of Paris. I really think that they have one of the best concierge teams around.

Drawbacks: I've already discussed the details of my stay and the happenings there. Beyond that, I think the main drawback to this hotel is the lack of charm. This hotel has incredible potential: perfect location, awesome bones, qualified staff, stunning courtyard, palace distinction, etc. However, the hotel is forgettable. The next time they do a redesign or remodel, I think they should lean on stronger French influences and go upscale Parisian chic versus NYC boardroom.