Monge

It would be an exaggeration to say there’s no such thing as a new building in central Paris. There are a few. But much more common are new uses for old buildings. Take the Hotel Monge, tucked into an old mansion between the Pantheon and the Jardin des Plantes in the heart of the Latin Quarter. The building dates from 1876, and for years, it was the residence of a wealthy family that played frequent host to the Left Bank’s rotating cast of artists and writers. Now, after extensive renovations, it’s a 30-room boutique hotel.

Needless to say, many of the mansion’s lovely original features remain: parquet floors, high moulded ceilings, working marble fireplaces. Even with the updates, Hotel Monge’s interiors stay very much grounded in place. That’s not just any velvet covering that pillow or loveseat, it’s velvet by Pierre Frey, the long-established Parisian purveyor of fine materials for the home — and that’s not just any old wallpaper, that’s a tropical print by Deyrolle, the whimsical shop first opened by the French naturalist Jean-Baptiste Deyrolle in 1831. Guest rooms are generally petite, but elegant, with earth-toned decor, walk-in showers stocked with L’Occitane products, flat-screen TVs, and triple-glazed windows — it’s a busy neighborhood, and with good reason.

Befitting the mansion’s original function, Hotel Monge is a place that’s prepared to entertain, but that doesn’t try too hard. There’s a tea salon, and an honesty bar where you can mix your own aperitif or pour yourself a glass of wine. The hotel also features a small hammam where you can unwind after walking all over the city. When you’re staying here, you’re right in the middle of everything. But then again, this is Paris, so there’s about a thousand things to see and do. And the breakfast, complete with freshly baked pain au chocolat, is generously served between 7 and 11am. The French, after all, aren’t exactly jumping out of bed at the crack of dawn — and in a gesture that feels particularly civilized, they don’t expect their guests to, either.