How to do Paris like Dietrich Hôtel Plaza Athénée

Hôtel Plaza Athénée is a lesson in OTT luxury and has a storied history of attracting heads of state, A-listers, fashion royalty and le beau monde ever since it opened in 1913. It is also well known for serving as the backdrop to some of TV’s most fashionable shows.

- Hayley Spencer

The grand dame of Paris hotels, it is situated on the tree-lined Avenue Montaigne, home to some of fashion’s most iconic brands. It is designated a “Palace” hotel, the French government’s classification for hotels that are beyond five star.

Built in the distinctive Haussmann style, its highly attractive red awnings are believed to have their origins in a passionate romance between Marlene Dietrich and French screen legend Jean Gabin, played out at the hotel. The story goes that on one of their regular visits, Gabin asked the hotel to decorate the balcony of their suite with 100 red roses, but instead, staff used red geraniums, much to her delight. To memorialise the gesture the hotel decked out every balcony the same way.