In the heart of Chartres next to the cathedral, the Hotel & Spa Le Grand Monarque, BW Premier Collection, Chartres, France, is a first-class hotel that keeps the charm of a beautiful old house alongside modern comfort, with an elegant service, a fine restaurant, a spa, and a private garage. The setting in the old town puts the museums, the timbered streets, and the riverside walks of Chartres within steps, and the restaurant and spa make a gracious retreat after a day of sightseeing, an easy and characterful base in the heart of the city. Chartres Cathedral rises just beside the hotel, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the high point of French Gothic art, famed for its sculpted portals and its 176 stained-glass windows, the best-preserved medieval glass in the world, glowing in the deep blue for which the city is known. Beside it, the old town's lanes wind quietly down to the Eure.