Inside Paris’ finest hotels honored by A-listers and athletes as the 2024 Olympics get underway

World-class athletes won’t be the only ones feeling like champions during the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

With the effortless elegance that is at the heart of the French capital, whatever the season, this summer the City of Love has taken its signature taste of luxury to a whole new level.

Revered by A-listers, influencers and athletes around the world, some of the city’s best hotels have proven time and time again why they boast casual stays.

Here now, a look at two of the countries that must stay in Paris during the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Hotel Plaza Athénée

This may be one of Paris’ best hotels, but its luxury status is one of the city’s best-kept secrets – and proud of it.

Hôtel Plaza Athénée has long been a staple of luxury travel – with the exception of Paris – with every seasoned traveler having this place at the top of their bucket list.

And for good reason – this hotel books up in the blink of an eye during Paris Fashion Week, and this year’s Summer Olympics were no exception.

Established in 1913, the hotel has earned its stripes as one of the most popular accommodations in Paris.

The hotel has also secured famous movies in recent years.

In the 2006 hit film The Devil Wears Prada, the property can be spotted in the scene in which Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway) finds a crying Miranda Priestly in her hotel room.

He also played a starring role in the two-part finale of “Sex and the City,” in which Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) stays with Aleksandr Petrovsky (Mikhail Baryshnikov). This series finally celebrates its 20th anniversary this year.

Most recently, the hotel can be seen in the hit Netflix series “Emily in Paris” when season 3 drops next month.

Inside, the hotel’s interiors remind even the most skeptical traveler why this place has remained at the top of the city’s best offerings.

Known for its famous bright red tents, along with some of the most expensive shops in the world, the hotel boasts 154 equally stunning rooms on Avenue Montaigne.

Each room is elegantly furnished in either French Regency or Art Deco style, and the hotel’s long-standing adoration for haute couture is evident in its in-house Dior Institute bathroom – perfect for the ultimate session of caressing.

But it wouldn’t be a luxury hotel without a culinary experience to match.

The hotel’s Michelin-starred Jean Imbert au Plaza Athénée restaurant pays homage to French fine dining and is guaranteed to excite all palates with its modern take on 250-year-old recipes.

After dinner, the hotel offers the perfect bar – aptly named Le Bar – to sit, sip, relax and repeat.

The hotel, which also features a stunning 10,000 crystal chandelier in its dining room, is also within walking distance of some of Paris’ most iconic tourist attractions.

Located on the banks of the River Seine, the hotel boasts unrivaled views of the iconic Eiffel Tower – which is adorned with the Olympic rings this July and August.

The hotel is also minutes away from the Musée d’Art Moderne, the Champs-Élysées and the Arc de Triomphe – that’s great!

Furthermore, the hotel has embraced all the sporting action by teaming up with renowned photographer Mathieu Forget, also known as Forgetmat, who has combined the worlds of art and sport through his lens.

Forget, who hails from Paris, has created a series of action-packed photographs featuring athletes posing in the middle of the action in iconic hotel spaces.

“I had an idea to bring an athlete inside my creation, so I approached the guards, the swimmers, all the national champions, and the ball kept rolling,” Forget, 34, told The Post exclusively, adding that the luxury hotel reached out. a year before the Olympics.

“In this whole project, the idea was not only to highlight the sport or the country where the athletes will compete, but also to bring my artistic side to the world of sport and in a way pay homage to the French heritage and its architecture.

Forget, who lived in the US for 10 years before returning to his homeland, said he has worked with a total of five athletes for his Plaza Athénée series – a project he started more than three years ago.

Over the years, Plaza Athénée has hosted many celebrities, including Sophia Loren in 1956.

Hollywood favorites such as Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire have been spotted staying at the hotel in previous years, and sports royalty LeBron James has also enjoyed a stay or two at the luxury address.

Tennis legend Serena Williams and her husband Alexis Ohanian also enjoyed a night of fine dining at the hotel during the Games, The Post can exclusively reveal.

Additionally, French-Canadian superstar Celine Dion, who performed at the Olympic opening ceremony on Friday, has enjoyed several stints in the hot spot in past years, as have Bella Hadid and Selena Gomez.

A night at the venerable Hôtel Plaza Athénée, during this year’s Olympics, starts at $2,900 — and you’re likely to spot a celebrity or two roaming the lobby during your stay.

Le Meurice

While Olympic athletes rest their heads on cardboard beds, guests at Le Meurice are guaranteed to experience the polar opposite.

Located on the Rue de Rivoli and with glorious views of the Tuileries Garden and the Louvre, the hotel – which opened in 1835 – has long been a famous staple on trips to Paris.

In celebration of the Games, Le Meurice, which was originally called the original Parisian Palace hotel, is offering guests personalized experiences for a limited time only.

Hotel La Maison Valmont’s luxury spa offers a “vitality and tranquility” treatment – a body and face experience combining massages throughout the Olympic Games period.

And in case the spa experience leaves guests feeling bored, the hotel’s Le Dalí Restaurant offers a new wellness menu created exclusively by chef Clémentine Bouchon.

The restaurant is aptly named after the late artist Salvador Dalí, who spent a month at the hotel every year for over 30 years.

Another famous name who adored the hotel was the famous artist Pablo Picasso, who organized his wedding banquet in the favorite house.

The Spanish painter, who died in 1973, often visited the hotel whenever he was in Paris.

Le Meurice also boasts the famous Michelin-starred restaurant Alain Ducasse, which has been a foodie staple for years.

Not to mention, the restaurant is decked out in Versailles-inspired decor.

Since 2013, Chef Ducasse has overseen all dining at the hotel, making him an expert on all things luxury.

His expertise has served as inspiration for pastry chef Cédric Grolet, who was named the best pastry chef in the world at the World’s 50 Best Awards 2018.

Grolet’s flagship store is conveniently located in Le Meurice and offers guests elaborate sugary creations that are admired in a similar fashion to haute couture.

Grolet, 32, has long been revered as one of the best pastry chefs in Paris and was named the best restaurant pastry chef in the world by Les Grandes Tables du Monde in 2017.

He has also catapulted to global stardom through social media, sharing the process of creating his pastries with the world through videos as a culinary art form in its own right.

The hotel also offers a stunning cocktail haven at Bar 228 – which rustles up an evening of live jazz nightly as guests sip and enjoy.

And for visitors traveling to Paris during the Games, there’s plenty of sporting action happening within easy reach of the hotel.

C’est party, les amis!