T+L’s Hotel Review of Sax Paris, LXR Hotels & Resorts

Over the past few years leading up to the Paris Summer Olympics, the French capital experienced a building boom as some of the biggest names in the luxury world (Bulgari, Cheval Blanc) moved into the Rive Droite’s Golden Triangle and near the Louvre.

Sliced in half by the Seine, Parisians identify themselves based on which side of the river they live on. The Right Bank, or Rive Droite, is dominated by the majority of the city’s historic palace hotels, such as Le Meurice and the Ritz Paris, as well as quintessential Paris Fashion Week haunts like Hôtel Costes. Meanwhile, the Left Bank, or Rive Gauche, lies on the more discreet side with its hôtels particuliers, mansions, and grand townhouses built by French nobility when Louis XIV’s court traded Paris for Versailles.

For its first hotel in France, LXR Hotels & Resorts, Hilton's curated collection of destination-focused luxury stays, looked in a different direction, transforming a landmark 1899 neo-Gothic building formerly home to the Ségur telephone exchange into Sax Paris, LXR Hotels & Resorts. “This is an important opening for us since it’s our first in Europe,” says Feisal Jaffer, global head of LXR Hotels & Resorts. “When you’re building a brand from scratch—there was only one hotel when I started, and now there are 16—to have a luxury hotel in Paris is a great achievement. It makes a statement.”

While I’ve lived in the rapidly developing Rive Droite neighborhood of Belleville for the past six years, the Rive Gauche was my—and many travelers’ and students’—introduction to Paris, as well as my first home in the city. When I moved here in 2018, I quickly settled into a chambre de bonne in Saint-Germain-des-Prés that was not nearly as spacious as Emily’s in Emily in Paris, but it definitely had the classic Parisian charm that infatuates so many Americans.

Arriving on the leafy Avenue de Saxe—less tourist-trodden than nearby Rue de Sèvres with its cavernous Hermès flagship boutique and Le Bon Marché department store—I looked down at Google Maps, thinking I had made a wrong turn. The only hint of the hotel was a porter who greeted me before my bag was swiftly exchanged for a glass of champagne at check-in. Like most of the Left Bank, luxury here is of the quiet variety, and it would be easy to stroll right past Sax Paris without realizing it’s even there—and that’s part of the appeal. Once you step inside, however, it’s immediately clear you’re in Paris.

The meticulously restored building captures a distinct time in French history while giving it a modern spin with sculptural chandeliers, such as Venetian artist Christian Pellizzari’s piece from Murano, which hangs in the ground-floor restaurant. In L'Iconic Galerie, a lounge and event space for fashion shows and private dinners, designed by the hotel’s design studio led by Karine Journo, digital artwork from Belgium-based Drop The Spoon is projected onto the 200 mirrors and walls.

“There are very few luxury hotels on the Left Bank—we saw that as an opportunity,” adds Jaffer. “Sax Paris sits on an unassuming avenue and feels like a hidden gem of a hotel, but you have these moments of complete surprise, like The Galerie [L'Iconic Galerie] and courtyard swimming pool.”

Here’s what it’s like to stay at Sax Paris, LXR Hotels & Resorts.

The Rooms

Sax Paris’s 118 guest rooms and suites are swathed in earth-toned abstract rugs and wood paneling, but the showstopper is the bathrooms, covered in striking, floor-to-ceiling striped marble. From my spacious King Prestige Junior Suite (which can accommodate a rollaway bed), expansive windows overlook the Avenue de Saxe from the bedroom and the standing tub. My favorite part, however, was the cognac-colored leather banquette and marble table in the living area, a design-savvy way to incorporate a dining space into the suite.

Other rooms overlook the courtyard and gardens, and some even sport a terrace—a true luxury in Paris, where even hotel balconies are a rarity. Signature suites, such as the Winter Garden Suite, also feature a separate, lounge-like living space complete with a leather sofa and a dining table, overlooking the garden, as well as a full, standalone minibar where you can pour a glass of wine or a cocktail for an in-room apéritif.

Food and Drink

In a city with defined dining times, it can be a struggle to find a bite to eat somewhere that’s not a tourist trap between the hours of 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Executive chef David Maroleau, who cut his teeth at haute kitchens from Paris’s Hôtel Plaza Athénée to The Ritz London, helms the all-day restaurant Le SAX. Here, you can dine on decadent canapés in the evening like lobster gyozas and foie gras with toasted brioche, as well as classics like linguine (which you can top with lobster, of course), cordon bleu, and the house burger.

At French garden-style Le Jardin de SAX, designed by Studio Ravn founder and Maison Ladurée artistic director Claudia Ravnbo, I noticed the checkered-tile patio filled with stylish guests throughout the afternoon. On my first evening, a Parisian friend met me for apéro—the French ritual of pre-dinner drinks. And as the sun was setting, she was just as impressed about this tucked-away terrace near the Eiffel Tower as I was.

The landmark-heavy 7th arrondissement delivers when it comes to views, particularly from the two-story restaurant Kinugawa Rive Gauche, where the rooftop terrace overlooks the Eiffel Tower and major monuments, including the Arc de Triomphe and Notre-Dame Cathedral. Rooftop restaurants are quickly popping up at hotels around Paris, but few have a view directly facing the Eiffel Tower like Kinugawa.

On a Friday evening in late May, just over a month after the restaurant opened, the dining room was packed with couples and groups sharing bottles of wine and sipping cocktails at intimate, crescent-shaped booths. Dishes infuse French touches into refined Japanese fare for plates like caviar-topped toro tartare and wagyu sliders stuffed with marinated pickles and drizzled with yuzu koshō aïoli sauce, buns beautifully branded with the geometric Kinugawa logo. Girafe has long been the go-to for its see-and-be-seen atmosphere and perfectly framed views of the twinkling Eiffel Tower, but I have a feeling Kinugawa Rive Gauche will quickly become a contender.

Activities and Experiences

Sax Paris is embracing its well-heeled locale on the Rive Gauche by offering tailormade experiences through its Pursuit of Adventure program—the “golden thread that runs throughout the properties,” as Jaffer puts it—that guests can only have at or through the hotel.

“When we look at Paris as a destination, it’s like a world in itself, an encyclopedia of art history and design, of major brands like Hermès and their workshops,” he adds. “When you have that much richness in a destination, it’s not whether the city should be part of [the hotel], but how?”

Options could include an exclusive, behind-the-scenes tour of the Eiffel Tower in areas normally closed to the public or a private pontoon cruise on the Seine. You can even arrange a day trip on the hotel’s private aircraft to ski in Gstaad or bask at a beach club in Saint-Tropez.

The property already partners with nearby Le Bon Marché’s La Grande Épicerie de Paris for its minibar snacks, but it can also arrange a personal shopping experience for guests at the lauded department store, considered the Bergdorf Goodman or Harrods of Paris. You can also set off and explore at your own pace, cycling along the river on one of the hotel’s designer bikes, or spend the afternoon sipping craft cocktails and soaking in Le Jardin’s heated outdoor pool and Jacuzzi—one of the few in the city, especially on this side of the Seine.

The Spa

The subterranean SAX Le Club Fitness & Spa extends from the duo of treatment rooms (a single and a couple’s, both available by appointment only) to the sauna, hammam, and fitness center outfitted with Technogym equipment and a Kinesis machine. Open 24 hours to guests and members—a dream if you’re jetlagged—the brick-clad gym is a modern space with gorgeous leather swing dumbbells and a Pilates reformer machine. I started my mornings here doing a quick stretch routine before breakfast. During my stay, the spa program was still being fleshed out, but it currently offers massages and facials, both at the spa and in-room.

Family-friendly Offerings

Families and groups traveling together can take advantage of connecting up to three rooms and suites for a penthouse-like stay. Sax Paris pulls out all the stops for kids, from welcome treats like a lion plush toy (the hotel’s mascot) to teepees on request for young children ages two to eight or an extra bed for older children. While the hotel doesn’t feature a kids’ club, Sax Paris can arrange a babysitting service for parents who want a night out on the town.

Paris is an extremely dog-friendly city, and Sax Paris knows how to extend the royal treatment to pups. For my stay, the hotel set up a plush dog bed, a crystal bowl of dog treats, a branded striped bandana, and a welcome note for my pomeranian, Indiana Jones.

Accessibility and Sustainability

All of Sax Paris’s public areas like the lobby and restaurants are designed for wheelchair access, and both the King Accessible SAX Room and King Accessible Prestige Room feature mobility-accessible layouts, roll-in-showers, and spacious designs making it easy to move around in a wheelchair. Travelers with limited mobility can also take advantage of in-room dining options and concierge assistance.

Keeping in line with Hilton’s Travel with Purpose sustainability strategy, Sax Paris utilizes Hilton’s LightStay system to track and manage energy, water, and waste performance. The adaptive reuse of the historic building also reduced the environmental impact of new construction while preserving the architectural heritage of the neo-Gothic structure.

Location

Despite having lived nearby in Saint-Germain-des-Prés, I hadn’t strolled through this quieter part of the 7th arrondissement before staying at Sax Paris. When I woke up on Saturday morning, I got lost amongst the vegetable-piled stands in the sprawling Saxe-Breteuil marché a block away, behind the École Militaire.

Metro stations Duroc (lines 10 and 13) and Sèvres-Lecourbe (line 6) are five minutes away, but you’ll be within walking distance of Paris landmarks like the Eiffel Tower and Musée d’Orsay, and a scenic 35-minute stroll from the Champs-Élysées. From Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG), it takes about an hour to the hotel via taxi or rideshare services like Uber or Bolt. Paris Orly Airport (ORY) is a 25-minute drive.

Book Now

LXR Hotels & Resorts is part of the Hilton Honors loyalty program, allowing travelers who have accrued status and points to take advantage of benefits such as discounted room rates, daily food and beverage credits, room upgrades, and even complimentary nights. Through Hilton Honors co-branded credit cards, American Express, and partners like Lyft, you can earn and transfer points to Hilton Honors.

Sax Paris is also part of American Express’s Fine Hotels + Resorts program, meaning card members can enjoy perks such as a complimentary fourth night, noon check-in (when available), daily breakfast for two, and more.

Nightly rates at Sax Paris, LXR Hotels & Resorts start from $580. 

Every T+L hotel review is written by an editor or reporter who has stayed at the property, and each hotel selected aligns with our core values.