PARIS RITZ
We began our tour at the Paris Ritz. This 4-star L (L=luxe) hotel, located in the Place Vend�me, has 162 luxurious rooms, and is where the rich and famous stay. Room number 512 was used in the opening scene, in which Professor Robert Langdon is awakened by telephone. Though the Ritz is arguably the nicest hotel in Paris, it is not 5 stars because Paris has no 5-star hotels. That's a long story; the short reason is, it's for tax reasons. As Dan Brown described in the book, the rooms are decorated with Louis XVI furniture, hand-frescoed walls and mahogany four-poster beds. As expected, service is exquisite. You can pretend you are Robert Langdon for 670� ($800) a night. That's because the Ritz Paris has rolled out their very own Da Vinci Code package deal. Guests spend the night in 512, and take home a heavy Ritz-embroidered bathrobe. If the price is too steep (or the package deal is sold out), go to the Hemingway bar and have Colin Field (one of the most famous bartenders in the world) make you an "Opus Dei" drink (champagne, drop of vodka, grapefruit juice and sugar) for 23� ($27). H�tel Ritz, 15 Place Vend�me, 75001 Paris; tel.: 33-1-43-16-30-30. For more click HERE.