The just-opened Molitor hotel is making a splash (quite literally) in Paris this season. Even in its new incarnation as a nautically themed 124-room luxury hotel, the site of the mythic Piscine Molitor — a vintage Art Deco public swimming pool — hasn't entirely lost the aura of erotic possibility that made it beloved, in a tongue-in-cheek sort of way, by generations of Parisians. The three-story cement complex with sleek ocean-liner-like architecture and two pools — one indoor and heated, one outdoor — was originally designed by the architect Lucien Pollet and inaugurated in 1929 in the heart of the silk-stocking 16th Arrondissement, Paris's Upper East Side, by the American Olympic gold medalists Aileen Wiggin and Johnny Weissmuller — who spent a summer here working as a lifeguard and giving swimming lessons before he went on to win the role of Tarzan in the film of the same name a few years later.
Intended as a place for Parisians to stay fit and cool off, the Piscine Molitor was also a backdrop against which the Parisian bourgeoisie became increasingly less corseted, both socially and sartorially. In 1946, the first modern bikini, by the designer Louis Réard, was unveiled at the pool; to the delight of local voyeurs, however, many habitués preferred to go topless. More recently, the pool, which closed in 1989 and is a listed French historical monument, had been an impromptu center for graffiti art and an occasional venue for rave parties and fashion shoots.
The city of Paris invited bids for a renovation of the pool in 2007, and the French hotel company Accor, working with several partners, was awarded the contract to renovate and redevelop the badly dilapidated structure. Scrupulous attention was paid to restoring the pools' original Art Deco mosaic walls and charming stained-glass windows, and the project cost more than 80 million euros.
Most rooms at the Molitor are located in a two-story annex built on top of the original swimming-pool complex, and the best ones come with terraces looking out over Paris or the pool. Designed by Jean-Philippe Nuel, they're done up in schemes of white, black and gray with sleek Art Deco-inspired contemporary furniture, and come with Bose sound systems and espresso makers. In addition to the pools, other amenities include a rooftop terrace with spectacular views of Paris, a Clarins spa and a restaurant supervised by the chef Yannick Alleno, formerly at the Hotel Le Meurice. The Molitor offers an ideal location for anyone attending the French Open tennis matches at Roland Garros, just a 10-minute walk away; the atelier and apartment of the architect Le Corbusier just down the street shouldn't be missed either.
In deference to the somewhat delicate question of public access to what had once been a municipal recreational facility, schoolchildren from neighboring institutions will be invited to use the pools, but otherwise entry for the general public comes at a stiff 150-180 euros per day. An annual membership — only one thousand of which will be released — costs 1,200 euros upon joining and 3,300 euros in annual dues.
Not surprisingly, these fees have caused some ripples, with the former French cultural minister Jacques Lang — who had the Piscine Molitor listed as an historic monument while in office — denouncing the commercialization of the pool, and other Parisian politicians calling for greater public access. What no one would argue, however, is that the Molitor is as sexy a place to get wet as ever before — and one of the most original new places in which to spend a night that the city has seen in a long time.
2 Avenue de la Porte Molitor, 16th Arrondissement, Paris, +33-1-56-07-08-50, mltr.fr. Doubles from 270 euros.
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