Themed hotel apartment in California moves its guests back to Paris in the Belle Epoque
Oh la la, what a view! From this romantic painter's studio you can enjoy the (painted) view of Paris and the Eiffel Tower undisturbed. The themed suite with illusionistic mural painting, easel and attic bed enchants with its French flair and makes an inhabited impression. In the background Edith Piaf sings her timeless songs. The artist seems to have just interrupted the work in order to leave you his home for a short time.
A bottle of wine is ready to welcome you. He stacked his suitcases cleanly in one corner of the room. That's what it looks like at first glance, at least, because the artfully constructed suitcase mountain is an imaginatively disguised whirlpool: where else can you find such an original tub in a wardrobe trunk? The perfect retreat for a wonderful romance in the city of love.
Friends of the fine arts will probably also enjoy the painted sunset, which still bathe the suite in friendly light when the Californian sun has long since given way to the night outside. Almost like in Gustave Eiffel's world-famous tower, a cast iron spiral staircase leads to the cosy bed in the alcove under the roof.
Cast iron is also the stately fireplace for the open fire in the evening, where you can either place dominoes or dive into 19th century Paris with a film (the TV screen is discreetly hidden behind a wall covering). You can choose between'Gigi' or'Moulin Rouge'.
Speaking of Moulin Rouge - the opulently decorated boudoir should also be mentioned, which can be considered a successful reminiscence of the legendary Parisian revue girls. A drawing by the French painter Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, who set an artistic monument to the dancers, can also be found on the bathroom tiles. In this accommodation you may feel the flair of Sacre Coeur and Montmartre more intense than in many hotels in the Seine city.
The'Paris Suite' is only one of a total of six unusual themed suites and is located in a historic mansion dating from 1864, which was moved to its current location in the Santa Ynez wine-growing region in 1980 by Nipomo in California. More than 200 experienced craftsmen, craftsmen and artists spent almost 10 years designing the unusual hotel rooms. The fresco painter alone took more than two years (with over forty hours of work per week) to complete the wall decorations.
Hidden bathrooms, cast-iron spiral staircases, a 340 kilogram cannon coffee table, a gypsy cart, an Egyptian sarcophagus, a solid stone door weighing more than half a ton, a chariot and an original 1956 Cadillac convertible are just some of the many curiosities that make the Victorian villa an imaginative gesamtkunstwerk.
The original owner was a creative visionary. He renovated the neighboring hotel, a former Wells Fargo stagecoach stop, and thought up the theme suites that soon attracted guests from all over the world before the Santa Ynez Valley became a famous wine-growing region.
After his death, the present owner took over the hotel in 2007, which he himself had visited many years earlier. He not only saved the gem from decay, but also brought back the old splendour through an elaborate restoration. He shares his dream of a'Disneyland for adults' with the actual builder. Two more suites are planned for the future, a tree house suite and a'Castaway' suite, for which a sailing dinghy built in 1914 for the King of Denmark will be used.
The Victorian mansion is ideally located in the wine-growing region of Santa Ynez - a Californian wine region that gained international fame through the film "Sideways". Located directly on the 101 freeway, the small town is a perfect stopover on the way to visit Hearst Castle or San Francisco.
Also from Santa Barbara or Los Angeles the property with its imaginative six suites is only a short romantic drive away.
From $ 175,- per night for 2 persons including private
breakfast & 1 bottle of Californian wine