Everything we know about the luxury hotel opening in the Palace of Versailles
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Stop what you’re doing, because a luxury hotel is opening in the Palace of Versailles.
For the first time, guests touring Versailles will be able to bed down at a hotel within the margins of the vast royal estate. When it debuts in the spring of 2020, Airelles Château de Versailles, Le Grand Contrôle will be a stay fit for a queen (or a king).
With 14 luxuriously-appointed rooms and an Alain Ducasse-helmed restaurant on the palace grounds, the boutique hotel will be “a stone’s throw from Versailles’ famous Hall of Mirrors,” according to the website, as well as the French gardens and the Royal Stables. The hotel will also feature a wellness center and indoor swimming pool, and guests will also enjoy exclusive access and experiences within the palace, but it’s not clear yet exactly what that entails.
Airelles Collection, the French hotel company behind the new venture, is designing the property with traditional 18th-century decor and design elements — true to the 17th- and 18th-century buildings used to house the hotel and restaurant. Reports of a hotel date back to as far as 2011, and Lov Group (owner of Airelles) ultimately won the 2015 bid from the Château de Versailles to convert various buildings into a luxury hotel. AFAR reported that Christophe Tollemer is leading the design of Le Grand Contrôle. Rooms will have views of the Orangery and the Pièce d’Eau des Suisses.
Reservations will open in December, but at this time, rates have not yet been published. Though Airelles Collection properties (there are two open at this time and two forthcoming, including the Château de Versailles) aren’t part of any major loyalty program, they can be found through the American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts (FHR) program. So, if you’re a card member with The Platinum Card® from American Express or The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, for example, you may be able to earn 5x on a prepaid stay if the Château de Versailles property is welcomed into the portfolio.
At La Bastide de Gordes Palace, an Airelles Collection hotel in a 12th-century fortress, travelers who book through Amex FHR get a room upgrade upon arrival, when available; daily breakfast for two; early check-in and late check-out; and a $100 spa services credit.
If you want to take the plunge and live like royalty for a night (or two), you could also maximize your palatial stay with a card that earns you bonus points on hotel stays, such as the Chase Sapphire Reserve and Chase Sapphire Preferred Card for 3x and 2x, respectively.
Talk about having your cake and eating it, too.
Featured image courtesy of Francois Guillot/Getty Images.
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