Weekend Travel

The Five-Point Weekend Escape Plan

Put Pedals to the Pavement in Paris

The city’s year-old free bike-sharing program has sparked a cult of cyclisme, night rides past the Arch de Triomph, and a way to hit all the farmers’ markets, leafy side streets, and historical sites that you can in 72 hours.

By David Sax
Published Sep 11, 2008

1. Where to Stay

Murano Urban Resort.

(Photo: Courtesy of Murano Urban Resort)

Stay a third night free at the four-star Paris Marriott Rive Gauche Hotel and Conference Center (from $258), which renovated its spacious rooms less than a year ago (now with AC!). A new fitness center boasts several treadmills and Nautilus machines. Hop on one of two dozen Vélib rental bikes in front of the hotel and explore the surrounding Left Bank.

There’s a lap pool in your suite at Murano Urban Resort (from $515), and each guest gets an Electra cruiser bike. The hotel bar is a hot spot in the bohemian Marais neighborhood, and the restaurant serves modern Mediterranean on an outdoor terrace.

A cheaper option with boutique amenities, Marceau Bastille (from $258) offers in-room massages for sore cycling muscles. All rooms have sleek furnishings and flat-screens, but splurge on a “Privilege” room for more space and natural light, for an extra $110 per night. The work of iconic sixties fashion photographer Jean Paul Dumas-Grillet is on display in the hotel’s art gallery through the end of October.