Winter Winners
By Alice Feiring
London, Paris, and Rome are the Holy Trinity of travel. They offer some of the world's finest hotels, food and culture. But during the sunny high season, lines are long, tickets are maddeningly elusive and dinner reservations--forget it. Here's my advice: Follow the smart travelers and take advantage of these destinations during the cooler weather that lies just ahead. Each of these cities has its charms during the off-season--plus bargains and breathing room. So pack your weather insurance (long johns and an umbrella) and set off on a kinder, gentler--and less expensive--European experience.
LONDON
I'm fond of London's Knightsbridge-Kensington area for convenience. It provides easy access to the West End and other points, and it teems with museums, shops and restaurants. Its trendiest new hotel is the Baglioni, just opposite Kensington Gardens. As I was having tea in the lobby recently, I looked up from checking my e-mail to catch sight of Michelle Pfeiffer and Julianne Moore checking out. A more classic London experience can be had down the road at the Milestone or in nearby Notting Hill at the Portobello Hotel, where my romantic room, complete with deep Victorian tub and round bed, amused me.
Eating in London nowadays is seriously good. Amaya (Halkin Arcade, 19 Motcomb Street), one of the best Indian restaurants in town, grills up inventive fish and vegetables bursting with new spices. The full-throttle flavors of master chef Gordon Ramsay are available at two venues: you can dine in luxury at Claridge's Hotel (55 Brook Street) or try to snag a reservation at his new Maze (10-13 Grosvenor Square), which draws a younger, louder crowd.
A bright new feature of London cuisine is the gastro-pub genre (pubs with a serious chef installed). I particularly like the Cow (89 Westbourne Park Road) and the Eagle (159 Farringdon Road). And in case you weren't sure, the British love of tea is back. Tea Palace (175 Westbourne Grove) gets a trendy crowd, while traditionalists still love the scones and clotted cream at the Savoy Hotel, on the Strand.
For offbeat shopping, try the Bermondsey Market, near the London Bridge tube station, on Friday mornings (get there before 9). You can snare some finds among the eccentric bits and bobs and vintage silver treasures. The English major in me is excited about the February show at the Tate Britain, "Gothic Nightmares: Fuseli, Blake and the Romantic Imagination." While most museums are free, you'll need to buy a ticket for this exhibition. The National Portrait Gallery has unveiled a much discussed new painting of a forlorn-looking J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series. While in this hood, you can pick up half-price theater tickets at the TKTS booth in Leicester Square. The show with the buzz will be at the Old Vic in February, when film director Robert Altman stages one of Arthur Miller's final plays, Resurrection Blues.
London Online
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o toptable.co.uk
PARIS
Paris has a breathless winter beauty when the sun goes down early and the lights on the Seine start their long nightly twinkle.
Facing the river on the Left Bank is a new hotel that makes my list, the Hotel Esprit Saint Germain--discreet and quiet, and a quick sprint from some of the city's favorite haunts. A tiny, cute, retrofitted dairy, Cremerie Caves Miard (9, Rue des Quatre-Vents), provides a lunch or dinner antidote for jet lag. The young chef-owner serves seasonal, simple country food and fascinating wines.
For an indulgent lingerie fix, go to Boutique Princesse Tam Tam (53, Rue Bonaparte), and look for late-January sales. Sunday-morning ritual? Walk and shop the thriving Marche Biologique (Boulevard Raspail, between Rue de Rennes and Rue du Cherche-Midi). Here amid the cheese and mushrooms are cashmere shawls, Panama hats and herb-infused bath salts. I never leave without buying the best latke--here it's called a galette--I ever ate: grated potato, onion and cheese all sizzled and crusty.
Culture lies across the river. Even if you can't tell a diva from a rapper, you'll want to see a production amid the neo-Baroque grandeur of the Paris Opera (Palais Garnier, Place de l'Opera), where prices start as low as 7 euros. The Baccarat Gallery-Museum (11, Place des Etats-Unis) displays all sorts of glittering goodies, such as Czar Nicholas II's custom-ordered giant candelabra, crystal thrones created for India's maharajas and dessert plates made for Coco Chanel, complete with etchings of delicate scissors. Skaters can cut the ice with the locals at the Hotel de Ville (blades rent for 5 euros).
Encountering a lousy meal in Paris, of all places, is a tragedy--but fortunately, one that is easily avoided. Chef Yannick Alleno is a rising star at the Versailles-like Le Meurice in the Hotel Meurice (228, Rue de Rivoli). There, relishing dishes like poularde de Bresse stuffed with foie gras (and an amazing cheese cart), I felt as pampered as a Parisian lapdog. At a fraction of the price but still a good value, Chez Paul (13, Rue de Charonne) delivers lace-curtained, cassoulet-slinging bistro fare. Georges, the whimsical Philippe Starck-- designed restaurant atop the Pompidou Centre, offers simple Mediterranean selections and one of the truly spectacular views of the city.
Paris Online
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o en.parisinfo.com
ROME
At this time of year, the city's cultural season is in full force. Renzo Piano's new complex, Parco della Musica, houses the Orchestra di Santa Cecilia as well as the city's most important musical events in three separate halls. In December the Rome Opera House will have Lo Schiaccianoci, otherwise known as The Nutcracker. After years of being closed for a contentious restoration, the Ara Pacis, the Emperor Augustus' monument to peace, dedicated in 9 B.C., is finally open (Piazza Augusto Imperatore). It is to be the centerpiece of a new museum that is being designed by U.S. architect Richard Meier. You'll have to come back in April for that one.
In the meantime, an appealing new boutique hotel has opened close to the Spanish Steps. Aleph (Via di San Basilio) is conveniently located near the city's chic shops. Among them: Merola, Europe's oldest glove store (Via del Corso 143), where gloves are made as they were a century ago, entirely by hand. Elsewhere, some of Rome's best shopping is found in its sleek design stores. Ilaria Miani caters to an elite clientele (Via Monserrato 35), with everything from sugar bowls to bookcases. Spazio Sette (Via dei Barbieri 7) is three floors of cutting-edge design from all the big-name Italian brands.
Not far from the Pantheon, you can fuel up on the world's greatest espresso (and people watching) at Sant' Eustachio (Piazza Sant' Eustachio 82). Or walk around the market at Campo dei Fiori and the surrounding twisty streets, as well as the extremely lively Trastevere neighborhood.
When in Rome, reserve for lunch or risk going hungry. Everyone I've sent to the enoteca (wine bar) lunch spot Bleve (Via Santa Maria del Pianto) or the more elaborate Costanza (Piazza del Paradiso) has been forever grateful. On a grander scale, for dinner, there is the multistarred La Pergola (Cavalieri Hilton, Via Cadlolo 101), where Heinz Beck provides a gastronomic feast while diners overlook the city in all its splendor.
The religious and the profane mix in Rome, and never more than during the Christmas holiday season. The Fair of the Befana explodes in the baroque Piazza Navona on Dec. 8 and continues until Jan. 6. Befana, a witchlike character, is said to arrive in homes on Epiphany to bring toys and sweets to good children and a lump of coal to naughty ones. Also during the holidays, all of Rome traipses from one church to another to view the ancient Nativity creches. The oldest is believed to be the 13th century creche of Arnolfo di Cambio, in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. For the truly devout, the marathon midnight Mass at St. Peter's Basilica is free, but reservations are required (they can be made by fax: 39-06-6988-5863).
A fun option for New Year's Eve is the open-air festivity of fireworks and live concerts in the Piazza del Popolo. Or you can book tickets for the New Year's Eve concerts at the Church of San Paolo Entro Le Mura. Just as in the other two greatest cities of Europe, the holidays in Rome offer a piquant blend of familiar pleasures in a not-so-usual time or place.
Rome Online
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o romaturismo.com