What was until recently a not-terribly-exciting business hotel is now the Sofitel Budapest Chain Bridge, a new link in the very stylish Parisian chain. It’s not a sea change — the building won’t be joining the ranks of Budapest’s architectural monuments anytime soon — but it is a thorough redesign, one that leaves the hotel among the best-looking business hotels in Eastern Europe.

In this case how it looks is less important than what it looks at. The Sofitel still stands by the banks of the Danube, with glorious views over the river, the Chain Bridge, and the Buda Castle. Most of the rooms face the right way, and look out through near-full-length windows, and all come with Sofitel’s proprietary line of beds, piled high with duvets and down pillows.

With a spa and gym, an indoor pool, plentiful conference facilities and a couple of fine French-inflected restaurants and lounges, it’s pretty much everything a contemporary luxury hotel ought to be. There are hotels in town that are grander and more opulent, and places that are smaller and edgier — but for this kind of balanced, cosmopolitan, business-with-pleasure experience, the Sofitel Budapest is the only place to go.