And yet the area has for decades doubled as the hub of all things young and cool in the City of Light: a long-running gay district, and home to whatever next-big-thing Paris might have, be it rising creatives and their designer boutiques, busy neo-bistros, or thumping nightclubs.
Despite that enticing mix of old and new, the Marais has consistently lacked great hotels. Independent hotels that crop up tend to have limited amenities, thanks to those narrow floor plans.
Not anymore. With its 61 rooms and suites decorated with Parisian antiques and custom furniture and lighting, Le Grand Mazarin will offer travellers a much-needed luxury option when it opens in October. The Martin Brudnizki-designed hotel connects three historic structures—one of which was for years a three-star hotel—along Rue de la Verriere.
Brudnizki imagined the project as the fictionalised postwar home of an eclectic Marais local, stitching together a series of intimate residential-style spaces, from the reception area lined with moire silks to the rooftop pool and spa, both adorned with hand-painted murals. On the first floor, a restaurant will take inspiration from the Jewish communities that settled in the neighbourhood during the 16th and 17th centuries, combining Israeli and French flavours. Nearby, in a former convent, the Hotel Sookie opened last summer with 31 stylish, if pint-size, rooms.
It eschews the standard lobby and doubles down on privacy, with only 12 roomy suites that have canopy beds and loads of literature and original art. The round-the-clock room service features seasonal creations from pastry chef Yann Brys—flaky apricot tarts and sweet calisson candies among them.
