A few blocks off the bustling pedestrian thoroughfare of Karl Johans Gate, in the heart of central Oslo, lies the city's newest luxury hotel -- albeit one with a decidedly different flavor than the traditional (and traditionalist) high-end standard bearers, The Grand and The Continental.

The most recently added member of the international Design Hotels consortium, the Grims Grenka - which opened in March -- is unabashedly modern, with a stark, art-gallery sensibility that hits guests from the minute they step inside the lobby. With 66 sleekly-designed rooms on six floors, the Grims Grenka bills itself as Norway's "most fashionable hotel," and everything certainly has a patina of cool, with the characteristic Scandinavian twists (think Jensen beds, frosted glass bathroom walls and waterfall shower heads) and slick touches like mirrored walls.

Several categories of rooms and suites offer varying degrees of size and amenities. "Summer" and "Winter" rooms are decorated in subtle shades of green and wintry white, respectively, while larger Garden Suites feature a throne of a bathtub situated on an elevated platform in the main room itself amidst a small, lush indoor garden setting. Among the amenities are the (now obligatory) flat-screen TVs, wireless Internet, and iPod docking stations. Egyptian cotton linens and an incredibly comfortable mattress make it easy to stay in your room and sleep in, though when you're ready to venture outside, the Grims Grenka's smiling, exceedingly friendly staff members are (like most Oslovians) happy to offer suggestions on the best places to eat, drink or hang out.

Be sure to take advantage of the buffet breakfast offered each morning. Smoked Norwegian salmon, herring and an assortment of cereals, breads and pastries provided enough fuel to get me through tours of Akershus Castle, the Royal Palace and the major museums -- all of which are within walking distance from the hotel.

Rounding out the property are the Asian-fusion restaurant MADU and adjacent nightspot, Ghost Lounge, as well as the rooftop Q Lounge (pictured), for those rare balmy Oslo summer nights, all of which are sure to draw after-work patrons from the neighborhood's design firms and galleries. Fitness facilities and an urban spa will be available later this year.
 
Grims Grenka
Kongens gate 5
NO-0153 Oslo
Tel: +47 23 10 72 00
reservations@grimsgrenka.no
 

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Scent and memory merge at the Paris home of Serge Lutens Parfums, the enchanting fragrance collection with cult followings in France and abroad. Here, at Les Salons du Palais Royal, Lutens spotlights his evocative creations in a dreamy landscape awash in indigo, violet and black (pictured below), where the scent-savvy traveler can sample perfumes sold nowhere else in the world.

Tucked beneath the arcades of the picturesque Palais Royal Garden, Les Salons provides a perfect distraction for visiting fragrance fanatics. Though only steps away from the Louvre, it nonetheless remains well off the tourist track.

As Serge devotees know, Lutens releases three scents each year -- two "Export" scents available at select retailers globally, and one "Exclusive" scent that can't be purchased in person outside of Paris. Look for the latter's signature 75 ml bell-shaped flacons (105 euros), shapely sisters to the lanky bottles sold in the U.S., when you visit Les Salons.

El Attarine, the latest of the Paris-only scents, is a golden, spiced-honey fragrance. Just released on August 1, it's consistent with the olfactory auteur's fixation on the Orient. The sensual aromas of Marrakech, Lutens' adopted home, haunt much of his collection. If the thrill of acquiring this Paris-only fragrance isn't enough, Les Salons also offers thirty limited-edition El Attarine flacons, intertwined with black arabesques and stamped with Serge Lutens's initials (850 euros; pictured after the jump).  

Either way, the memories of your Paris trip are sure to smell sweet.

Les Salons du Palais Royal Shiseido
142 galerie de Valois
75001 Paris, France
+33 (0)1 49 27 09 09

Our other favorite scent shops in Paris, after the jump...

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