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Calling something Parisian chic is obviously a cliché. However, it’s hard to find a different word to sum up the sublime Hôtel Massé, a Pigalle bolthole in which a stay will make you feel like the coolest, most fashionable person in the French capital.
Even from the outside, its exterior painted in a glossy chocolate brown, with cream linen curtains concealing the building's contents, it looks mysterious and inviting. Entering the lobby is like stepping into a warm Mid-Century-decorated womb, one that ushers you away from the busy streets of Pigalle packed with dive bars and sex shops and says, ‘Relax, have an espresso and browse one of our highly curated coffee table books while you sink into an implausibly comfortable sofa’. Put simply, staying here feels like being in on a great secret.
Simplicity, with a few expert flourishes, is key at Massé. This is a boutique hotel where everything feels calm and considered, but never staged. The interiors are steeped in delicious shades of warm creams and browns, with dashes of red and silver. Large artworks by Brazilian painter Christian Rosa bring character to the space. Slivers of artisan chocolate made by cool Parisian chocolatier Plaq are delivered on slick silver trays. Guests are invited to help themselves to slices of homemade lemon poppyseed cake in the lobby.
What are the rooms like at Hôtel Massé?
Compact, cosy and minimal, Massé’s 40 rooms do away with fuss while still feeling luxurious. The careful consideration of the interiors as seen in the lobby continues in the rooms, which have thick white bedsheets, dark wood furniture and mellow, cream tiled bathrooms (save for one tile depicting an erotic scene, made by ceramicist Héloïse Rival). Rooms are stocked with Typology bath products, and Plaq chocolates. Even the chrome coffee machine is stylish! God forbid a black plastic nespresso maker pass through Massé’s doors. The best part of my room was the balcony, with gorgeous views over the slate rooftops of Pigalle.
What are the facilities?
Massé has a small fitness room in its basement, however it’s currently closed while the hotel undergoes a refurbishment.
What are the best places to eat/drink nearby?
The hotel is still in the process of preparing its restaurant (tipped to open in March 2026), however in Pigalle you will be absolutely spoilt for choice.
For wine 228 Litres is an intimate but relaxed, impeccably curated cave serving an extensive menu of natural tipples, French wines and sake. In the kitchen is a rotating roster of guest chefs.
Django is a low lit small plates resto and bar in an old guitar shop. Perfect for date night, it serves natural wines, house cocktails (including a very smooth dirty martini) and a changing menu of mediterranean bites that include prawn pasta, homemade taramasalata and lamb kefta.
Dive bar Pigalle Country Club will fulfill any rocker’s indie-sleaze dreams. Small, grimey and filled with smoke, the graffiti-covered bar slings house cocktails in half-pint glasses while DJs blast out punk, new wave and electronica. Open until 5am on weekends, happy hour, when cocktails are €6, is from 6pm-9pm.
Although no hidden gem, Bouillon Pigalle is worth a visit for cheap and cheerful French classics done simply and well. On any day its closely-knit tables will be packed with tourists, french families and young friends. Top tip: avoid queuing by booking your table online.
Other spots to try include the TikTok-famous Mamiche bakery, drag bar Sister Midnight and Michelin-starred soul food-inspired eatery Frenchie.
What’s the area like?
At the foot of touristy but still lovely Montmartre, Pigalle is Paris’ former red-light district and now hipster haunt. It’s still got plenty of sex shops, X-rated shows and dive bars, but it’s also home to a trendy food and drink scene, as well as vintage shops and michelin-starred restaurants.
On a Saturday night, the streets were packed full of young people spilling out from the bars. It’s not the quietest area, but the rooms are sound-proofed. I say eschew and early night here and succumb to the amazing nightlife on your doorstep.
DETAILS
Address: 32 Bis Rue Victor Massé, 75009 Paris
Price: From £213 per night
Closest transport: Pigalle Station on Line 2 and 12 on the Metro