The best hotel bars in Paris

Slouch on the comfortable velvet sofas at Grand Pigalle hotel's classy wine bar and admire the copper chandeliers, slate-coloured walls and subdued lighting. Music is straight from a Tarantino soundtrack and three quarters of the wine list is Italian, from Piedmont, Tuscany and Sicily. Munch on a superb selection of antipasti such as 24-month old Parmesan, buffalo mozzarella and homemade oregano foccaccia. Consider it a prolonged Italian holiday. 

Hotel Amastan is hiding a new bar destination in the 8th arrondissement. Far from the overpriced chains and same-same brasseries, the cosy and chic Anouk bar with its impeccable stylings and leafy hidden terrace is a find you’ll want to keep to yourself. Coctkails are original creations or modern spins on classics - New York sour, Negropina etc. Gin & tonic fans will find a trio of variations (purple, red, black) to the drink and there are a selection of finely-tuned sharing plates to stave off any hunger. A sure-fire address to impress a date... 

This chic, secluded snug is a perfect fit for its secluded Marais address. A wood-burning fire in the courtyard adds serious glamping vibes and friendly staff are happy for you to flit back and forth between there and the bar. Delve into the sixteen-strong list of original cocktails, like the Piskos Sgroppino; Pisco, fresh basil, lemon sorbet and prosecco. With drinks between €14 and €16, Jules et Jim is the ideal spot to hole up in after a day at the nearby Pompidou centre. 

Sneak your way into this speakeasy-style Mexican bar hidden behind the kitchen of Hotel 1K’s Peruvian restaurant and you’ll find a bright, buzzing space with a glass ceiling and décor featuring colourful papier mache skeletons and a large statue of Santa Muerte adorned in outlandish festival attire. There’s an assortment of heady mezcal shots, plus fresh and zingy mezcal cocktails – perfect soaked up with the moreish home made guac and chips. 

The bar in Paris’s super chic ‘love hotel’ has all the trappings of a hot spot – neon lights, tattooed waiters dressed in black, arty photos, and a small garden filled with French couples (and some on-trend Americans) sitting down to dinner. The wine list is short but carefully selected and they serve breakfast, lunch and a weekend brunch; expect a perfect veal escalope, gnocchi, and little chocolate madeleines.

Drinking at the luxurious Particulier Montmartre hotel bar is not exactly straightforward: proceed down a private-access street and through a series of intercoms before you finally reach the hotel garden. Designed by Louis Benech (who also renovated the Tuileries), this lush enclave feels more like a forest than a garden, with towering trees, wild ferns and creeping ivy. The clientele is an unusual mix of well-heeled older guests and trendy youth, while the cocktails are fresh, handmade and daring, without being faddy. 

Books, vinyls and audio headsets on Le Pigalle’s wall give it a distinct living room vibe. With six different rooms – including a smoking room with a jukebox and a shiny red lips-shaped sofa – it leaves no detail to chance. Much of the menu is sourced locally, with bread by Thierry Breton and tarts from star pâtissier Sébastien Gaudard, while Le Mary Celeste’s mixologist Michael Mas is in charge of cocktails. From €11 to €14, they’re well priced considering their strength.

The Mama Shelter group have turned the hotel bar stereotype on its head, with this unfailingly hip drinking hole for Parisians and tourists alike. Expect a low chalkboard ceiling, a foozball table and a square central bar with drinkers crammed around it. Go early to nab a stool and bathe in bar’s flourescent light; it stays open daily until 1.30am but not even Sunday evenings are quiet here. Don’t miss the California-fied cocktails, especially the ‘Passion Ginger Fizz’.

The Experimental Group’s Montorgueil love letter to old school French liqueurs is based off the hallway of the four star Hôtel Bachaumont and the atmosphere is always buzzy. The long list of intriguing ingredients in cocktails make sense on the tongue, fusing into precisely balanced, beautifully blended drinks you’ll want to linger over. Don’t miss the smoky mimosa eggs either.

For a night at the top, the bar of Montmartre’s Terrass hotel is exceptional even by Paris’s standards. It serves an above-average menu to its well-heeled clientele in velvet-lined chic surroundings. But what we really come for is the view; taking in the distinguished gravestones of the Cimetière de Montmartre, the Eiffel Tower, the grassy hills of the Bois du Boulogne, and the sugary dome of the Sacré-Coeur. Even a properly blasé Parisian could be tempted to raise a glass to the ville lumière.