The demolition party that went down at the The Hotel Royal Monceau in Paris wasn't just any old party. This is Paris after all and the hotel managed to make their demolition artistic by inviting 25 contemporary artists and celebs to "artistically ruin" the hotel rooms on the third floor.
On hand for the crazy/beautiful destruction were Kanye West, Jude Law, and 18-year-old internet celebrity Cory Kennedy.
"I'm gonna smash everything," yelled Cory Kennedy, rushing into Andre and Olympia Scarry's all-black room, fitted out with battered couches and a giant disco ball. Kanye West, who roamed the corridors with a bemused-looking Yves Carcelle, said that trashing hotel rooms was old hat. "Yeah, you know, the usual throwing the telly out of the window type of thing," he said.
The AFP has a more detailed report of the party, including the fun fact that Madonna's "Justify My Love" video was shot here in the hotel.
The Hotel Royal Monceau in Paris has had some issues, to say the least, over the past few years. From booting out guests to playing hot potato with luxury brands, the historic hotel has seen far too many ups and downs.
But all that is in the past now as the hotel readies for a complete overhaul and a new look from Philippe Starck. As a way to clean house, the hotel held an auction of its furniture and now they are letting guests demolish whatever is left behind.
So you want free WiFi when you stay in a luxury hotel huh? Good luck! Send us a post card via FedEx overnight instead, it's sooo much cheaper than paying to send an email from your room. Unless you're staying at the Hotel de Crillon in Paris that is.
If you've been following our Best & Worst Wi-Fi Hotel Stories from the past few weeks, the overwhelming consensus is any hotel that costs more than $150 a night charges for WiFi, whereas any hotel UNDER $150 usually throws it in for nothing.
Hey, those luxury hotels do give you Premium internet access for the $24.95 you pay - it lets you feel like you're worth a million bucks while you browse the internet... Ok, maybe not - you just feel like you were robbed.
But! If you stay at the Hotel de Crillon in Paris--a six-star hotel which has been rated as the nicest and most exclusive hotel in the world--they'll throw in free WiFi during your stay! Thats free WiFi in the lobby, in your room, in the ballroom, in the bar, and in the bathroom!
Since we can't afford to stay at the Hotel Bristol ourselves, we asked the off-the-record advice of a friendly businessman who stays there regularly for conferences. He had a lot to say about the hotel's style, location and dining which we've recapitulated below for you. Enjoy.
This week our roving correspondent Monica Guy is writing about an oft-overlooked aspect of hotels and travel: disabled access. Monica knows a lot about this subject as she works and travels frequently with Stephen Hawking. However, feel free to chime in with your thoughts and experiences too. Got a question? Let us know and we'll get it answered for you.
When you book a hotel in, say, Paris, it's usually because you're not actually in Paris yet. That makes sense.
What makes no sense is that if you have an access need or disability, it's almost impossible to get reliable information or make a secure, discounted booking at a hotel. Unless you're actually there in person, which of course, you're not.
Want to find out what the problem is with hotel websites and booking services? Ready for a moan?
This week our roving correspondent Monica Guy is writing about an oft-overlooked aspect of hotels and travel: disabled access. Monica knows a lot about this subject as she works and travels frequently with Stephen Hawking. However, feel free to chime in with your thoughts and experiences too. Got a question? Let us know and we'll get it answered for you.
The USA leads the world in terms of accessible hotels. That's the conclusion I've come to after several years spent travelling around with Stephen Hawking, the well-known disabled scientist (that's me on the left in the picture above.)
We've stayed in top and not-so-top hotels in cities all over the world, including in Hong Kong and China, Chile, Easter Island, the Virgin Islands, South Africa, Europe (Paris, Madrid, Barcelona, Geneva, Padua, Amsterdam, London, Oxford) and the US (Pasadena, Santa Barbara, College Station, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington DC).
One thing stands out from all our hotel experiences - in the US it is considered absolutely normal to be disabled, and the right of a disabled person to access the same hotel facilities as everyone else is uncontested. It might be hard for non-US residents to appreciate just how little that principle holds elsewhere in the world.
This week our roving correspondent Monica Guy is writing about an oft-overlooked aspect of hotels and travel: disabled access. Monica knows a lot about this subject as she works and travels frequently with Stephen Hawking. However, feel free to chime in with your thoughts and experiences too. Got a question? Let us know and we'll get it answered for you.
"Do you have wheelchair access?" It's a simple question, but one which causes anything between pained embarrassment and outright disdain when asked to hoteliers of many European hotels.
Accessibility of hotels is a subject we feel passionate about, although it's not the sexist subject in the hotel world. Partly because one of our bosses is both a wheelchair user and a nutcase traveller, staying in top hotels all over the world for much of the year.
Partly also because accessible tourism is becoming the next big thing; older and disabled travellers are quickly waking up to the fact that they can travel independently with friends and family, and no longer need to go in organised groups of oldies and other disabled people.
You know the dilemma. You're just about to book a hotel which you think looks and sounds wonderful. And then you read the scathing bloggers' reviews, telling horror stories of non-flushing toilets and hairs in the breakfast eggs, of strange lumps in the bed and bumps in the night.
We have that dilemma about Les Jardins du Marais in Paris. Please help if you can - here it is:
The website looks promising, despite the tacky music. The location is excellent for young trendies - it's on a quiet street right slap bang between the trendy Marais area (designer boutiques, trendy restaurants, cosy wine bars and gays) and the up-and-coming Oberkampf area (Arabs and Brazilians, cheap happy-hour, loud live music, fun & japes).
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by juliana
