Hôtel de Crillon, A Rosewood Hotel, has long been the kind of place that makes adults feel as if they've stepped into a more elegant version of their own lives. Now, with the launch of Le Petit Crillon, the hotel is extending that same energy to the under-12 set, and the result is genuinely charming.
The program centers around Benny, the hotel's elephant mascot, who serves as a welcome companion for young guests from the moment they arrive. Think illustrated booklets, reusable coloring masks, period costumes, and an activity journal packed with things to do both inside the hotel and around Paris. It's the kind of arrival moment that makes kids feel like the hotel actually expected them, rather than merely tolerated them.
The amenities follow suit. Le Petit Crillon comes stocked with bibs, soft sleep sacks, plush bath ponchos, crib bumpers, tipis, and belt bags, all designed to help children (and, by extension, their parents) settle in without the usual logistical chaos that often accompanies family travel. The idea is that kids should be able to roam the palace at their own pace, unbothered and comfortable. Given that the palace in question overlooks the Place de la Concorde and was born from the vision of Louis XV, that's a fairly remarkable sentence to be able to write.
Where Le Petit Crillon really earns its keep, though, is at the table. Across the hotel's dining outlets, children are welcomed with their own Le Petit Crillon tableware and a dedicated menu that doesn't condescend. The options range from ham-and-cheese coquillettes (a very correct choice for a French palace to be serving) to delicately grilled salmon, each accompanied by carefully selected sides and house-made treats.
Then there's tea time, conceived by Pastry Chef Matthieu Carlin, who brings the same sensibility to children's pastries that he applies to everything else at Crillon: refined, considered, and worth making time for. Kids get a selection of pastries, along with traditional hot chocolate or fresh fruit juice. Games and coloring activities are woven into the experience because Carlin and the team clearly understand that the best tea service for a six-year-old is one that doesn't require them to sit perfectly still for an hour.
What makes Le Petit Crillon work is that it seems to have been designed by people who actually thought about what children like, rather than what looks good in a press release: the mascot has a name and a personality, and the costumes and booklets vary by age. Plus, the amenities address real problems that real parents face: the food is delicious rather than merely acceptable.
Hôtel de Crillon has always been exceptional at making guests feel like the hotel was built specifically for them. With 124 rooms and suites, including the Karl Lagerfeld-designed Les Grands Appartements, and four restaurants that take seasonal French cooking seriously, it's a hotel that operates at a very particular level of intention. Le Petit Crillon applies the same intention to a younger audience, and the result is a family travel experience that doesn't ask parents to compromise on where they stay to keep their kids happy.
All Le Petit Crillon experiences are bookable through the hotel's website under the Experiences section. Paris, it turns out, is a great idea at any age.
