Hotel Balzac Paris

Hôtel Balzac comes by its name honestly: not only is it set on the Rue Balzac, mere yards from the Champs-Élysées, but it’s built on the very site of Honoré de Balzac’s final place of residence. It’s been a hotel for some time, but was reborn in 2024 under the guidance of hotelier Olivier Bertrand, whose Saint James Paris is a local luxury-boutique institution.

The Balzac seems destined for just as lofty a reputation. The new interiors, by Parisian designers Charlotte de Tonnac and Hugo Sauzay, pays tribute to the glamour of the hotel’s early-20th-century foundation even as it presents a sober and understated vision of modern Parisian luxury. Its rooms and suites are memorable, but the furthest thing from flashy — and while the comforts are substantial, they’re anything but ostentatious.

Given the location it’s likely that many guests will find themselves drawn out onto the streets of Paris — some of the finest luxury shopping in the world lies within a few minutes’ walk. But the Hôtel Balzac offers plenty of reasons to stay in. The Spa Ikoi takes the hotel’s organic minimalism in a Japanese direction, and the hotel’s own bar and lounge is an elegant affair. And while Pierre Gagnaire, with its three MICHELIN Stars, is not a hotel restaurant per se, it does share an address with the Balzac, and is accessible to hotel guests via a dedicated private entrance.