I was lucky enough to be given a romantic trip to Paris by Jes for my 40th birthday.
A trip filled with wonderful food experiences, long walks through the city, the most beautiful view from the hotel room and a city dressed up for Christmas.
We were there from 23 to 26 November. Truly magical to experience Paris at this time of year.
The hotel
Hotel San Régis – a hotel with so much charm.
Really beautiful interiors, and just a stone’s throw from the Champs-Elysées.
The décor is warm, full of antiques and atmosphere.
I love hotels like this, where the look suggests a family might once have lived there “in the old days”.
Jes had booked a suite with a balcony and a direct view of the Eiffel Tower.
The room was wonderfully cosy – very French, romantic and warm in style.
And the view – it was simply spectacular.
The lights on the Eiffel Tower came on around 5 pm, and every time the clock struck the hour, the most beautiful sparkling lights began to twinkle across the tower. I have never seen anything so beautiful. Pure magic.
Breakfast can be ordered to the room at no extra cost. Or at least it could with the package Jes had booked.
So we had breakfast served on the balcony all three days. The sun was shining, so even though the temperatures were low, we kept perfectly warm in our sitting suits – we had brought them along for exactly that purpose.
For breakfast you could order a selection of bread, eggs, juice and accompaniments.
They also offer a “healthier breakfast” – plus add-ons such as champagne, berries and the like.
The View – the Ferris wheel in Paris
On one of our many walks we passed through a Christmas market in the city. There were plenty of food stalls, plus souvenirs, scarves and much more to buy.
There are also various rides – carousels and… The View.
Let me say first that I am absolutely not one for heights, as in not at all. Still, something told me that a ride on The View probably wouldn’t be so bad, since you sit in those enclosed cabins.
Well… apparently that made no great difference to my fear of heights:
GOODNESS it was a long way down, and just when I thought the ride was over, we went round once more.
I’m sure that if heights aren’t a problem for you, the ride is fantastic. The view over the city is spectacular, and with a ride lasting 10–15 minutes there is plenty of opportunity for beautiful photos from high above the city.
Tickets cost between 10 and 15 EUR per person.
Moulin Rouge Cabaret
Of course we had to go to the Moulin Rouge – and what a fantastic experience it was.
Jes had booked VIP tickets with champagne, so when we arrived we were immediately shown to a member of staff who welcomed us. We skipped the queue, and she led us to the cloakroom. Here we handed over our coats and were told they would be brought to our seats as the show drew to a close. Truly outstanding service.
We were then greeted by our waiter, who showed us to our seats – and from there all we had to do was enjoy the evening.
We could see that others seated on our balcony had dined there, and the food looked reeeally delicious. We’ll try that another time.
The show begins, and we’re told that filming and photography are not allowed during the performance – it can mean being asked to leave. So the phones stayed on the table – I would otherwise have loved to share much of the evening with you.
The show was SO beautiful – a brilliant atmosphere, great music, gorgeous costumes and, naturally, plenty of bare skin 😉
One number I had heard a lot about, and was especially looking forward to, is the woman who is thrown into a pool full of snakes.
She was indeed thrown into the pool, but without the snakes – they are no longer allowed to use them for animal welfare reasons. Which is fair and perfectly understandable.
The service was truly fantastic – attentive and always with a smile. You could tell people genuinely loved their work.
A perfect evening, and definitely not my last visit to the Moulin Rouge.
On top of that, we were so lucky with the weather – beautiful, crisp frosty mornings, calm winds and simply wonderful fresh air.
Restaurants in Paris
We visited some fantastic restaurants during our stay in Paris.
Among others, we ate at the hotel’s restaurant one evening and on Don Juan, a boat that sails along the Seine during dinner. A huge experience.
On the last evening we ate at Le Dome – wonderful food experiences.
I write about all the restaurants below – click through to each one and see plenty of photos too.
