Hotel of the week: Hôtel de la Paix
Posted by Sarah on April 30th, 2010
Give us one wish, and we’ll ask for more. Give us one (bank) holiday and we start planning our next getaway. With the call of duty somewhat muffled, we’re busy daydreaming of towering temples, liquid-gold sunsets and ravishing retreats styled with Cambodian cool. Hôtel de la Paix, in the hot-off-the-press, brand spanking new Mr & Mrs Smith destination of Siem Reap, will do very, very nicely….
Why this week? The hotel is currently offering Smith members stylish stays for less: bed down here for four nights, and only pay for three.
Our favourite bits? The inner courtyard and Boddhi tree will bring harmony to your Angkor experience; the Khmer cuisine at in-house restaurant Meric will bring a smile to your lips. Guests receive a signature welcome drink in the sublime Arts Lounge. Then there’s the Indochine Spa, which pays homage to the ancestors with a striking array of serene aquatic features. Room 346 is a Duplex Spa Suite to die for, with an alfresco rooftop bath and enough space to host a cocktail party should the mood take you.
Mr & Mrs Smith say:
‘The Babylonian-meets-metropolitan façade offers just the faintest clue to what awaits inside. Designer apsaras (heavenly maidens) guard the hallway and guests are ushered into the Arts Lounge for a welcome drink, a delectable enough concoction to bookmark the bar for a return visit. White is the shade of choice throughout, set against dark tiles and brooding black and white images of temples and carvings.
The rooms have an understated elegance, continuing the modernist take on Khmer art deco, if ever there was such a thing. Floors are Makha wood, bathtubs subtle shades of terrazzo and beds king-sized platforms. Like the Arts Lounge, the iPods here have a bespoke music collection from Bed Supperclub in Bangkok designed to slip you into the tub or under the sheets…’
Read our summary of Hôtel de la Paix, Siem Reap
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