Chic? Corset it is

Yes - we should all be thinking about saving money and saving the planet. But sometimes you need to do something a bit more exciting than a trip to Skegness with a walk on the windy British beachfront looking at the grey waves and wondering when you can respectably return to the hotel and start on the mini-bar.

So think green, hop on a Eurostar and take yourself to the fabulous city of Paris for a weekend before you even have time to tot up how much smaller your carbon footprint is going to be following a relaxing, pampering break.

Let's get something straight from the outset - without Paris we wouldn't even have the term 'chic' (sorry, I've started peppering my conversation with such bon mots - have you noticed how much French there is in English?).

For hundreds of years people have been flocking to the city because, let's face it, long before London, New York or Milan, it was the world's fashion capital.

I love walking around the city and spotting the elegant men and women that knock the average Brit's dress sense into a cocked hat, or badly fitting suit.

Nothing made this more pertinent than being in the heart of the city on the day that one of the most influential fashion designers, Yves St Laurent, was to be buried.

The traffic was stopped, the crowds were predominantly dressed in black and there was a definite air of quiet respect on every street.

There's no way a British clothes designer would get that kind of send-off. We don't care enough for couture!

The previous day I had started my short stay with a visit to the Champs Élysées, a street thousands of tourists tramp up and down daily.

I was on a mission to discover a more sedate but elegant view of Paris and, on that famous boulevard, is one of the best tearooms in Europe - no lie.

Ladurée Élysées specialises in macaroons - small medallion-sized, jewel-coloured, cream-filled fancies that make your mouth water just looking at them.

Talking of dining and drinking, I managed to hit quite a variety of Paris's dining hotspots.

L'Absinthe (Paris 1 - the city is separated into numbered districts starting at 1 in the middle and spiralling outwards from the centre) is a traditional bistro on the Place du Marché Saint-Honoré whose excellent service I highly recommend.

Also worth visiting is Restaurant Alcazar (Paris 6) in Rue Mazarine, the first restaurant Terence Conran opened outside the UK.

While the Murano Urban Resort Hotel on Boulevard du Temple (Paris 3) is one of the latest swish hotel/restaurants to open - and very cool and sexy it is too - the staff can be a bit too cool.

The atmosphere definitely made me feel like I was hanging around with the rich and beautiful and, apparently, the rooms are equally exclusive.

Although I didn't manage to see one I did take a trip in the lift, which is dressed' differently every week. I experienced the sequined version and I'm told there has also been diamante and fur. That's a lift worth waiting for.

Most of my visit was spent in Montmartre, the beautiful village that is Paris 18.

Hotel du Chat Noir on Boulevard de Clichy was my residence for the duration, named in recognition of the famous Black Cat nightclub that used to be located near there at the turn of the 19th century.

The hotel squeezes itself discreetly between the many artistically tasteful sex shops along the street (no seedy Soho this) and close to the famous Moulin Rouge - in fact its livery of red and black can be misleading but, once inside, the décor shows it is clearly no by-the-hour' joint.

Once you head up the hill behind Boulevard de Clichy, Montmartre becomes a haven of haberdashers, food and flower shops, but there are other hidden treasures to explore. Pass the café bar where the modern cult hit Amélie was filmed and you come across art gallery Espace W on Rue Lepic (an area that has been a home to artists for aeons). The building has been reclaimed from another era. Tiny rooms with two or three pieces on display lead through to a larger, lighter exhibition space that has enough depth for the viewer to really appreciate what's on show. On this occasion huge black and white photographs by, and of, Andy Warhol alongside more modern graphic pieces that would look fabulous in a contemporary apartment.

Further up the hill is Rue des Gardes - an intriguing street that houses the small workshops of up-and-coming designers of fashion and textiles. These studios are let by the mayor's office at a subsidised rent to give these breakthrough artists their first step on the hugely competitive fashion ladder.

Paris is, of course, a city of romance and if you want to take your loved one on a special trip with no expense spared, here are a couple of ideas for you.

The first, still in Montmartre, is a hidden hotel that, at the moment, is mostly only known by Parisians. Opened in June of last year, Hotel Particulier on Avenue Junot (Paris 18) was formerly a residence owned by the Hermès family (famous for their fashionable textile prints). Somewhere I would be happy to stay indefinitely.

The second is a little quirkier but a gloriously memorable experience. Atop the Palais de Tokyo, a major visual arts centre in Paris (Paris 16) is the Everland Hotel. It looks like a glorified 1950s caravan that has taken on some of the more contemporary aspects of the film 2001: A Space Odyssey.

That said, the interior is really groovy, all open plan and brightly coloured. But, of course, the real draw for this hotel room (for it is just a single room) is the view. You can see the whole of Paris from the panoramic window and the scene is spectacular - a real wow factor.

Finally, even more off-beat and perhaps a bit raunchy, is Hotel Amour on Rue Navarin (Paris 9). Yes, it is what you think. Unfortunately I didn't see any of the rooms, but have it on good authority that some suites include toys (for adults only) and are decorated by a number of artists including co-owner, graffiti artist and entrepreneur André de Betak.

The ground floor of the hotel houses an extremely nice bistro that serves excellent simple fare and is frequented by a huge range of locals and visitors. The only giveaway was the rather well-endowed Mickey Mouse character that shamelessly stood on the reception desk. Personally I think I would find it difficult to face the receptionist without a blush, stutter or general clumsiness, but if you're up for a sexy weekend Paris-style, I'm sure you'd overcome such gauche behaviour.

So the way to go green is to glide over the channel and check into a swanky hotel.

If you must leave your room (why would you with such a choice?) pick a nearby hip restaurant to graze and gaze then finish off with a bout of midnight window shopping at some of the best boutiques in Europe.

Mmmm. Sounds so good I might have to go again. There go my eco credentials.

FACTFILE:The trip was arranged by Maison de la France, the French Government Tourist Office www.franceguide.com, which is a great place to start your French holiday research.

For all you need to know about visiting Paris go to www.parisinfo.com where you can download maps, guides and more.

Travel by Eurostar - trains depart at least hourly, are easy to book online and you can get through fares from Oxford. www.eurostar.com You can find out more about the hotels I visited at these websites: Hotel du Chat Noir: www.hotel-chatnoir-paris.com; The Murano Urban Resort Hotel: www.muranoresort.com Hotel Particulier; www.hotel-particulier-montmartre.com; Everland Hotel: www.palaisdetokyo.com/everland; Hotel Amour: (no website telephone 01 48 78 31 80).

Restaurants: Ladurée Élysées: www.laduree.com; L'Absinthe: (no website, telephone 01 49 26 90 04); Restaurant Alcazar: www.alcazar.fr; And for unusual shopping look here: store le 66: www.le66.fr; Art gallery Espace W: www.galeriew.com rue des Gardes - Márcia De Carvalho: www.marciadecarvalho.com; Dognin: www.dogninparis.com; Sylviane Nuffer: www.sn-style.com;