Relais Christine

Relais Christine opened as a hotel in 1979, but the buildings around its courtyard are much older. Relais & Châteaux dates the house to 1607 and describes its earlier use as a royal physician’s residence. It later became separate apartments before being brought together again as a hotel.^[1][2]

The oldest visible remains are downstairs. The Guerlain spa occupies thirteenth-century stone vaults, a physical reminder of the religious buildings that once occupied this part of the Left Bank. Today the old vaulted rooms contain treatment spaces and a wellness area, rather than bedrooms.^[3][1]

Designer Laura Gonzalez completed a full renovation in 2017. Her studio’s account records work on all 48 rooms, new reception and lounge spaces, the corridors and the spa. She kept the feel of an old Parisian house through antiques and patterned textiles, then introduced brass and marble alongside them. Fabrics from Pierre Frey, Hermès, Le Manach and Braquenié form part of that scheme.^[4]

Those choices explain the variety visitors see today: a canopy bed in one room, Toile de Jouy in another, and lounges arranged around fireplaces. The courtyard and private garden remain central to the experience. This is a hotel whose story is visible in its old stonework and changing interiors, with the 1979 opening and 2017 redesign marking two distinct chapters.^[2][5][4]