Shangri-La Hotel Paris

I started working in high-end custom travel in 2012. That year, I left a traditional travel agency and started taking individual clients on my own, mainly focusing on Europe. In my first year, I had only 17 clients, with revenue under 400,000 RMB.

I've stayed at many hotels in Paris. People in this industry know you can't tell clients about a place unless you've stayed there yourself. From 2012 to 2015, I stayed at about thirty-plus hotels in Paris, from three-star places at 200 euros per night to palace-level hotels at 2,000 euros.

I first stayed at the Shangri-La in the summer of 2014. I was accompanying a client to Paris—he was in the wine import business and had business meetings in Paris. He asked me to arrange his itinerary and accommodation. He specifically wanted a hotel with a view of the Eiffel Tower.

There are quite a few hotels in Paris with Eiffel Tower views. There are several in the 16th arrondissement, at different price points and levels. I gave him three options at the time, and the Shangri-La was one of them. He chose the Shangri-La because he had stayed at the Shangri-La in Hong Kong before and had a good impression.

I arrived in Paris two days early to scout the hotel first. This is my habit—before a client stays somewhere, I need to see the rooms, meet the concierge staff, and confirm details like airport pickup arrangements.

The hotel is located on Avenue d'Iéna, about 600 meters in a straight line from the Eiffel Tower. The building was constructed in 1896 and was originally the private residence of Roland Bonaparte, Napoleon's grandnephew. The Shangri-La Group acquired it in 2010 and spent four years on renovations to convert it into a hotel.

The lobby isn't large—it doesn't have that expansive feel of a business hotel—but the ceiling height is very high, about six meters. The floor is the original mosaic tiles, which were preserved.

I looked at three room types that time. The entry-level is called the Deluxe Room, 45 square meters, no Eiffel Tower view. The client booked the Eiffel Tower View Suite, 70 square meters, with a balcony directly facing the tower. There's also one called La Suite Shangri-La, said to be Bonaparte's own bedroom, 280 square meters, 15,000 euros per night.

I stayed in the Deluxe Room that time, 800 euros per night, company reimbursed. Some details in the room left a deep impression on me. The sink is marble, but it doesn't have that cold feeling—all the edges are rounded. The wardrobe is custom-made; opening it makes no sound. I specifically asked about the mattress—it's their own brand, 30 centimeters thick.

The client stayed three nights without any complaints. This is unusual among my clients. High-end clients usually have some opinions—the room faces the wrong direction, the pillows are too soft, the breakfast selection is too limited. When he left, he said one thing to me: "Next time I come to Paris, I'll stay here again."

In 2015, I sent two more clients to stay at the Shangri-La. In 2016, four. Starting in 2017, I basically made it my first choice for high-end accommodation in Paris.

There was one problem in between. In May 2018, a client booked a tower-view room, but when they arrived, there was construction outside the balcony with scaffolding blocking part of the view. The client was very unhappy and called me to complain. I contacted the hotel's sales manager—her name was Sophie, and I had dealt with her a few times before. Sophie switched the client's room that same day, upgrading to a suite on a higher floor at no extra charge. She also sent them a complimentary dinner for two at their Chinese restaurant, Shang Palace.

After this incident, my impression of this hotel improved even more. Problems aren't scary—what's scary is when problems arise and no one handles them. I've worked with some hotels where when clients have complaints, the front desk passes it to sales, sales passes it to the manager, the manager has to consult headquarters, and by the time it goes full circle, three days have passed and the client is already furious. The Shangri-La handled it quickly, and the compensation was substantial.

In 2019, I went to Paris and specifically arranged to have dinner with Sophie to discuss a long-term partnership. My idea was to sign an agreement where I would guarantee sending them a certain number of room nights per year, and they would give me a fixed discount or commission.

Sophie said this needed to be discussed with the General Manager. Later I met with the GM, a Frenchman named Nicolas. We talked for two hours, but in the end, it didn't work out. The reason was my volume wasn't enough. They required at least 500 room nights per year; at most, I could bring them 100 room nights annually.

This setback was frustrating. But it also made me realize something: my company's scale was too small; I had no bargaining power with these big hotels.

From 2020 to 2022, due to the pandemic, European business basically stopped. I pivoted to high-end domestic travel—Sanya, Yunnan, places like that. I got work, but the margins were thin and the competition was fierce.

In early 2023, Europe reopened, and I started taking Paris bookings again. My first client specifically requested the Shangri-La. I contacted Sophie—she was still there but had been promoted and now manages sales for the entire Asia-Pacific region. She introduced me to a new contact, a Chinese woman named Linda.

Last year I sent 62 clients to the Shangri-La, totaling 187 room nights. Still didn't reach the 500-night threshold, but Linda said she could give me an informal agreement with commission based on actual volume, at a rate of 3%. For a room at 1,000 euros per night, I get 30 euros. Not much, but better than nothing.

So far this year, I've already sent 41 clients there. At this pace, I should break 200 room nights by year-end.

Why I Recommend It

Now when I recommend Paris hotels to clients, if the budget is 800 euros per night or above, the Shangri-La is my first choice. Here are the reasons:

Also, prices have risen sharply in recent years. In 2014, the entry-level room was 800 euros; now it's 1,100 euros. The Eiffel Tower View Suite went from 2,000 euros to 2,800 euros. That's an increase of over 35%. Some of my clients are starting to complain it's too expensive.

This summer, a client asked me if they could stay somewhere else for the same price. I recommended the Hôtel Plaza Athénée—also palace-level, located on Avenue Montaigne, closer to the Champs-Élysées. After he stayed there, he told me the Shangri-La was still better. I asked what was better about it, and he said: "The Shangri-La made him feel like he was staying in a home; the Plaza Athénée made him feel like he was staying in a showroom."

I don't know if this assessment is right or not. Everyone's experience is different. But after this client said that, I understood something: the Shangri-La's character isn't the kind of character that tries to overwhelm you—it's the kind that lets you relax. This is different from many of the old European palace hotels.

Next month I'm going to Paris myself. There are some newly opened hotels I want to check out. But I've already booked my accommodation—still the Shangri-La. Linda gave me an employee rate, 40% off.

This is the hotel I've stayed at most in Paris over twelve years of doing custom travel. Not because of the commission—the commission doesn't add up to much. It's because when I send clients there, I sleep easy.