Style & Character
The Helussi hotel is tucked away in a side street and you need to climb a moderately steep slope to reach it….the entrance is pretty simple. This is a boutique establishment; one that focuses on modern functional style and convenience rather than scale. There is almost none of the French ornateness or Parisian visual coquetry.
Rooms are filled with clean crisp lines and apart from the striking carpets they look rather simple. However the dining area is prettily decorated in warm coral and red tones with modern furniture. The staircase is flamboyantly carpeted and occasional bursts of scarlet, red and orange provide visual pleasure all throughout the hotel. This is a privately owned standalone property that has no sister properties in Paris.
Rooms
There are 23 rooms in the 6 floored building each of which faces a quiet street and each has its own design. These rooms are all 14 sq. m. there are a maximum of 4 rooms on each floor so you get reasonable privacy. The superior rooms are 16 sq. m and have a sette and a larger bed. The courtyard rooms (they look down upon the courtyard) are 19 sq m. The balcony rooms are 16 sq m but they have a lovely balcony with double seating.
The rooms are either twin bedded/ double bedded and there are a couple of adjoining rooms too. If you are sensitive to noise do request a room that’s away from the lift.
Each room has individually controlled air conditioning and heating systems so that works pretty well for anyone. There is an electric towel dryer, desk- chair, hair dryer, safe, LCD Satellite TV (lack of English channels) and minibar. Rooms have blackout curtains too that’s very convenient. The bathroom has only soap and the reception sells toiletry kits which seemed a little too stingy.
However if you ask you will get certain amenities like shower caps for free. The bathroom has a nice walk in shower. However shower pressure is low at times and in some bathrooms a slanted slab right under the shower head makes bathing difficult.
There is a direct phone line which you can use to call French destinations for free along with a selected few world destinations.
Amenities & Service
The rooms are kept very neat and clean and the housekeeping replenishes soaps and changes sheets with diligence. However they sometimes forget to restock the fridge and the Nespresso machine. Overall, the staff are pleasant and well-mannered and two guys named David and Sylvain are especially helpful and go out of their way to draw maps and make sightseeing easy for guests. The staff will happily provide printed maps of local areas, restaurants, conveyance etc.
There isn’t a separate luggage locker but the staff will ensure that your luggage is kept safe for hours till you are scheduled to leave. The staff will arrange cars and bicycles for you and point out suitable conveyance modes to wherever you wish to go. Kids till the age of 2 can stay for free and after that a fixed charge is applicable. There is free high speed Wi Fi all over the hotel.
There is a complimentary sauna service for guests (sauna is in the basement) and the sessions have to be booked half an hour in advance. Towels etc. will be provided.
The hotel is served by a lift (small and can accommodate only 2 people at a time) and is 100% smoke free. The entire hotel is Wi Fi enabled and you need to get the password from the reception. There are a couple of computers with printers and fax machine that guests can use….Ethernet cables will be provided by the staff. The hotel staff will store your luggage in a secure area before/ after check in and you can go sightseeing.
The hotel does not have its own parking but there is a parking lot nearby which guests can use (charges are 20 euros per day)…the space has to be reserved in advance. The hotel doesn’t have its own laundry service but there is one about 500 meters away.
Check in check out times are 2 pm and 12 pm respectively
If you are visiting on an occasion like New Year’s or Valentine’s Day etc. then expect special complimentary chocolates (perhaps wine too)!!
Food & Drinks
There is a standard breakfast (European) served every morning from 6 a.m. to 12 noon. Expect a selection of fresh bakes and pastries along with preserves, French cheeses, jams, cereals and freshly sliced fruits. Usually there is orange and grape fruit juice and an assortment of deli meats. The extended breakfast hours make it possible for guests to avail a hearty meal before/ after their sightseeing trip.
Breakfast is served in the breakfast room that’s adjacent to the lounge and it isn’t free though….it’s about 10 euros per day. Guests are usually treated with hot coffee/ tea post arrival. The room also has an espresso machine so you can use that freely.
Hotel doesn’t have its own restaurant. This will not matter much as there are excellent restaurants in the Eglise Saint Vincent de Paul. You might even prefer having your breakfast at any of the small cafes nearby. Le Pain Quotidien (Place du Marche), Camelia (Rue Honore), Café de la Paix (Place de l/ Opera) and Coquelicot (Rue des Abbesses) are nice options. The hotel staff recommends Hugo and L’Orange vert in the local neighborhood. For a nice dinner, exert a little and go to L’ Ardoise Gourmand for savoring fine French cuisine.
The Picola Toscana restaurant is just a couple of minutes away…great ambience, pasta and wine!! Leandres Happy Food and Coffee (rue Maubeuge) is a lovely café serving vegan food. 42 Degrees (rue Fauborg) serves quirky fusion foods and Pedzouille (same location) offers nice French diner. Prik Thai (rue de la Tour) serves nice Thai cuisine and Le Potager de Charlotte serves excellent vegan European food. And for delicious Italian pizza walk in to La Lune Pizzeria Italien on rue de Maubeuge.
Do visit the Le Purgatoire 54 Paradis that’s serves fantastic art and French haute cuisine. If you are looking for something basic then check out the Brasseries near the Poissoniere Metro station.
You will find a bunch of nice pubs nearby like at rue de Rochechouart that has 36 Cornell, Le Colimacon etc. Rue Frochort has some nice places too like Glass, Dirty Dick, Le Lipstick etc.
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Location & How To Reach
Helussi is on the Bellefond Street (one way) in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. You can easily miss the unobtrusive opening; it’s at the junction of Rue de Bellefond and Rue de Chantilly. The area is a hilly one so walking around with luggage might be an issue
Helussi is near the Gare du Nord station (provided you can walk for 15 minutes) the nearest metro station is Poissonniere metro (line no 7) and this goes to the Louvre, Opera and the Gare de l’Est train station. The Gare Saint Lazare train station is about 2 km away.
The Montemarte (1.4 km away) and Canal Saint Martin (2.9 km) are both at a moderate walking distance from the hotel. The Sacre Couer Cathedral is 1.3 km away on a small hill overlooking the city (best approached via Rue Turgot). Also if you take a longish walk, you can reach the Siene left bank that’s a hub of handicraft places, coffee shops and Indie restaurants. The famous Folies Bergere is only 500m away.
The Galleries Lafayette is about 1 km away. There are two shopping malls nearby; Forum des Halles at Rue Berger and Rhone at Rue Pierre. And of course the Montemarte area has cool boutiques and the famous passage des Panoramas.
The CDG Airport is about 25 km away (take the RER B Suburban train till Gare du Nord and then 10 minutes’ walk to the hotel if you aren’t in a rush). If walking isn’t an option then take metro Marie de Montroge till Gare de Est (1 stop) and then change to line no 7 (villejuif) and get down at Poissoniere. From Poissoniere to the hotel it’s only a couple of minutes’ walk combined with a climb up the stairs. If all this seems too complicated and you need convenience then the yellow van company shuttle is a good option.
22 bis rue de Bellefond, 75009, Paris
Phone: +3 3-182-83 2020; Email: [email protected]; Hotel Website
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A travel addict. Still celebrating the day when he quit his high-profile corporate job to pursue his passion for travel writing.