hotel de paris museum

The Hotel de Paris in the mountain town of Georgetown, Colorado, is now a museum. The approximately one-hour tour takes you through the rooms, including the dining room, kitchen, wine cellar and provides information on the history of the hotel and its mysterious builder, Louis Dupuy, 1844-1900. The hotel was built over a period of years and was known for its fine cuisine. The tour is very reasonably priced - I think it was $3. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in history and historic architecture.

We toured the hotel during a murder mystery dinner hosted by a local philanthropic group, so while we didn't get the official tour, we enjoyed seeing the building.

It was almost surreal experience. Not anything paranormal, just quite exciting to find a hotel built in Colorado by a Frenchman during the Gold Rush times and featuring guestrooms with individual bathrooms!. To begin with, nobody in this part of the world had even heard of guestrooms with their own bath tub and toilet. On top of that, French nationals were/are not particularly found of bathing, Versailles, for example, does not have indoor plumbing and anybody who has visited the country would know what I'm talking about... Adolphe Francois Gerard, born in Alencon (Normandy) in 1844 was first sent to Seminary, but he did not do well there. The records are not exactly clear on whether he left or was thrown out, but he next went to Paris and managed to spent the family fortune. London, then New York were his next steps. Eventually, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and traveled West to Wyoming, but then promptly deserted, changed his name to Louis Dupuis and moved to Georgetown, Colorado, where he started working for local newspaper, soon to be lured by the promise of quick riches in the mines. A fire in the mine left him seriously hurt and the good town people collected money to help him. This was the seed money he used to open the hotel. And what a hotel it was! Nothing but the best for Mr. Dupuis' baby: the latest European styles in architectural and decorative detail, elegant furniture, Library, hot water and indoor plumbing, not to forget a well stocked cellar. Apparently, he was unlucky in love, because he never married and eventually left it all to his housemaid. All these details came out after his death of pneumonia at age of 56 while during his lifetime everybody knew him just as "The Mysterious Frenchman". The Hotel is now owned and shown as museum with guided tours only, by the Colonial Dames of America. A guided tour is given on the hour, that's the only way you can visit. Our docent kept telling us how "excited" she was about this or that, but her answers to historical questions were somewhat restrained. Photography is strictly forbidden and the tour is about an hour or less. Admission is nominal and if history is your thing, don't miss it.

If you are a fan of historic house museums, you will love the tour of this historic hotel! I loved their collection of Victorian Murphy beds. the tour guide was knowledgable and informative. What an added treat to a cute historic mining town. Enjoy!

While on our way to the Georgetown Colorado Loop Railroad (another great destination) today, we found ourselves with some extra time. We went into Georgetown and found the Hotel de Paris Museum open. We took the 30-40 minute guided tour of the Museum. Our tour guide was excellent and well informed. The Hotel has been restored to almost exact original, and has many artifacts from the original owner, Louis Dupay. You'll love the stories about the history of the hotel, the owner, and delight in the wonderful restoration! Highly recommend if you are already in the area and enjoy Historical renovations. - Theresa and Ken

It is unusual in this day and age to be able to see a Victorian establishment with 90% of its interior intact. The Hotel de Paris in Georgetown allows visitors to see almost exactly what the hotel looked like when it was run in the early 1900's. I thought it was wonderful, and our guide, Sophie, was just wonderful. The hotel is truly an archive in and of itself, and it was so fun to hear about the new "discoveries" that the museum staff is unearthing after 60 years of being in business. Thank you for a fun tour!

We weren't able to tour the kitchen (one of my favorite parts of touring historic places) because a guest speaker was in there with a group. The rest of the hotel, and our guide, were great!

This was an interesting tour that even includes the cellar. So much is original which is fascinating!

The Hotel de Paris is a true slice of time travel. The Colonial Dames have done a really awe-inspiring job of restoring and preserving not only the original furnishings but keeping them in their original locations; in most cases, even the original paint is still on the walls. It is an image of a bygone era that is still virtually intact. Every guest room but one was fully restored, and the main floor rooms are all open for viewing. The guided tour covers all floors of the hotel, including the original kitchen and laundry room, as well as an optional visit to the cellar. The dining room, for example, looks ready to receive guests. Visitors are not restricted to certain areas or cordoned pathways, but are encouraged to walk around the rooms at their leisure (as long as none of the artifacts are touched or handled), which adds to the feeling of immediacy. Our guide, Sophie (ask her about her namesake), was absolutely excellent; she and the other docent showed obvious affection for not only the building but its eccentric owner, which only added to the charm. The stories she told about Louis, the Hotel’s owner, were very engaging, and the entire experience was a unique look at a part of the American West we didn’t know a lot about. It’s not difficult to imagine arriving by train, checking in to the hotel, then going up to your room to freshen up before spending the evening in the dining room and then the parlor, engaging in scintillating conversation with Louis and the other guests. If you’re traveling anywhere near Georgetown, this is a must-see stop on your journey.NOTE: The museum does close in the winter, so check ahead of time for availability if you’re traveling during that time of year. Also, there is of course no elevator to the second floor, so the visitor should be prepared to navigate stairs.Note on Georgetown: the new visitor’s center just off the interstate isn't as welcoming as the original one in town. Don’t buy the $4.00 guide to historic Georgetown; the free map they offer gives you all the landmarks you need for a walking tour. The original visitor’s center in town is housed in the community center and the nice lady there was very helpful and friendly.

We arrived too late for the tour of the hotel, but the host was extremely informative and pleasant. There are items for sale that are beautiful, well priced and help with the funding of the museum.

While wandering the shops, we came upon the Hotel de Paris Museum and paid $3. each (AAA rate) for the 45 minute tour. The guide was so interesting and answered every question. The building, furnishings, photos, rugs etc. were almost all originals. It was the first hotel with "indoor amenities" between Chicago and California. I am a Colorado native but still learned so many new things, and my friends are Canadian and found the mining history and the whole experience to be a highlight of our weekend. I will certainly take other friends and family back to the museum.

We had an informative tour of the Hotel. It was amazing how well preserved it is -- even with original magazines and books from the 1st owner. The kids were somewhat interested, but did not like the cellar. I thought that was a little creepy too. Overall, a good tour, priced nicely for families. They offer a AAA discount too.

Stumbled onto this by accident and took the 45-minute tour. Beautiful old relic of a hotel, including odd items like :"desk beds" and original flooring and carpets, plus the framed prints in the same location where the owner hung them so long ago. Wish we had more time to explore the cute downtown, too.

We stumbled across this one and were very happy we did. It is at the upper end of town and fascinating. The hotel is mostly original decorations from over 100 years ago. If you have the time, I recommend it.

A very cool hotel in the heart of Georgetown built and managed by a Frenchman way back in the mining days. There is a brief but interesting tour of the facility, including the kitchen which still stocks cans of condiments well known to us today. (where else can you find cans with the name of Heinz's with an apostrophe? S.