A romantic hotel in Paris for every season on the Left Bank

Spring is when Paris seems to have been designed for two. Chestnut trees flower along the boulevards, café terraces fill again and the light lingers late over the rooftops. Choosing a romantic hotel in Paris for that season means choosing a room you will want to open to the air, and a quarter where every walk feels like an invitation.

At the Hôtel Pas de Calais, that room is often the Junior Suite. Set on the top floor beneath exposed beams, it opens onto three small balconies, which in April and May become the best seats in the house for watching dusk settle over the zinc roofs. Those who want more space to unpack for a long stay look at the Suite and its 40 square metres. Between the two, the Luxury categories, from 20 to 22 square metres, suit a romantic getaway in Paris of three or four nights. The detailed room descriptions show the decor and equipment of each.

Spring weekends are popular, from Easter to the long holidays of May, so the rooms with the most character are worth reserving early. Travelling midweek leaves more choice and quieter streets.

Rooms worth considering for two:

• The Junior Suite, perched at the top of the building
• The Suite, the most spacious option in the house
• The Luxury rooms, bright and comfortable for a long weekend
• The Superior rooms, a lighter choice for a short escape

Spring is also the season of the Luxembourg Garden, under fifteen minutes from rue des Saints-Pères. The flowerbeds are replanted, the orchard blossoms and the Medici fountain regains its charm after the winter. The Senate publishes the garden’s programme of walks, concerts and activities, which gives a couple plenty of reasons to linger on its green chairs.

Evening brings you back through narrow streets lined with bookshops, with the windows of the room still open to the mild air. Once they close, the double glazing restores silence for the night. Let us know about a birthday or an anniversary in your reservation, so the people at the desk can greet the occasion as it deserves when you arrive.

When the days shorten, a romantic stay in Paris moves indoors, and the hotel matters even more. Downstairs, daylight falls through glass panes onto the lounge. Against one side rises a living wall of orchids and exotic foliage that keeps a little summer alive in November, and this is where the bar welcomes couples in deep armchairs at the end of an afternoon outside.

The list suits the season: champagne for a celebration, a whisky or a rum when the evening turns cold, an armagnac to finish. Nothing has to be booked and no dress code applies; you come down from the room as you are. With someone at the desk around the clock, coming home after midnight never needs planning, which makes the Hôtel Pas de Calais an easy hotel for couples in Paris who like long dinners.

Outside, autumn turns Saint-Germain-des-Prés golden. Our journal’s portrait of October in the quarter describes the season of new exhibitions, crisp mornings and gardens turning russet. On a grey afternoon, the antique dealers of the Carré Rive Gauche, grouped between the river and rue de l’Université, invite a slow stroll from one shop window to the next.

December adds its own glow. The shop windows of the quarter are dressed for the holidays, the churches host concerts, and the short days make the return to a warm lounge all the sweeter. Many couples choose this time of year for a first trip to Paris together, precisely because the city feels gentler and more private.

Ingredients of a winter evening for two:

• A glass of champagne, beside the living wall
• A browse among antiques, a few streets away
• A dinner in the quarter, chosen with the concierge
• A late return, with reception always on hand

Winter has its own charm on the Left Bank. Fewer visitors fill the streets, museums feel calmer, and the photo gallery shows how warm the rooms and lounges look when the lamps come on early. For two people who want the city to themselves, this may be the most romantic season of all, and a winter romantic getaway in Paris often proves the most intimate.

Summer stretches the days so far that night only falls after dinner. A romantic hotel in Paris in July or August is one that lets you sleep in after those late walks along the Seine. At the Hôtel Pas de Calais, breakfast can be carried up on a tray: warm bread and viennoiseries, pressed juice, seasonal fruit, eggs, crêpes or waffles, enjoyed in bed while the street below comes to life.

August is a particular month in Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Much of the city heads off on holiday and the quarter takes on an almost village pace, as our journal recounts in its piece on the tranquil luxury of Paris in August. Couples who come then find gardens, quays and museums at their most peaceful. The Musée Rodin, a short walk towards the Invalides, is one of the loveliest places to spend a summer afternoon, and our article on its sculpture garden explains why the grounds are as much of a highlight as the galleries.

Summer moments to plan as a couple:

• Breakfast in the room, after a late night
• A massage at the Spa Clemens, arranged by reception
• A picnic on the quays, at sunset
• A drink under the veranda, before going out to dinner

Evenings in summer belong to the river. The Pont des Arts and the Pont Neuf lie within strolling distance, and the light stays golden long enough to cross the water and come back again. Back at the hotel, the air conditioning keeps the room cool for the night, and the double glazing shuts out the sounds of the street.

The weeks around the start of September are also a fine moment for two. The city returns from holiday, exhibitions reopen and the terraces stay warm in the evening, while the crowds of high summer have gone.

For a longer celebration, our page dedicated to a honeymoon in Paris gathers ideas for couples staying several nights. Whatever the length of the trip, dogs are welcome too, so no one has to stay home. Reserving on our own site secures our best rates and lets us hear in advance about a surprise you are preparing, so that a romantic stay in Paris starts exactly as you pictured it.