The new Parisian Saturday morning? Laps instead of brunch. At La Fondation, the members-only athletic club hides a 25-meter pool in a Roman & Williams-designed setting, flanked by fitness studios, a sauna, and a hammam. The local public pool—but make it Roman & Williams.
There was a time when my Saturday mornings were mostly spent recovering from my Friday nights. I would search for my keys, check my bank accounts notification by notification, and regret those few texts sent after 4 a.m. I looked to brunch at Dose as my redemption. "An avocado toast, and a large black coffee, please."
Mornings at my old address had their rituals: the market, coffee on the terrace, Pilates, and, for the braver souls, a jog through the Batignolles. Now, there are laps to be swum.
At 40 rue Legendre, La Fondation did not just settle for putting a gym in its five-star hotel. Its Sport & Spa Club, accessible via membership, adopts the codes of a private members’ club: five studios, over 110 group classes a week, Technogym equipment, a climbing wall, recovery zones, and, above all, a 25-meter pool.
The design, dreamed up by New York studio Roman & Williams, beautifully blurs the line between training and art de vivre.
The Saturday ritual practically writes itself. Borneo Paris swimsuit in the bag, phone left in the locker, a few laps before slipping into the sauna or hammam. The club opens at 8 a.m. on weekends, leaving plenty of time to slip away before Paris has truly started its day.
