Additionally, the coach house enjoys a priceless location in the eastern 7th arrondissement midway between the Seine and the whirlwind activity of the boulevard Saint-Germain. To capitalize on the property's natural advantages, the owners undertook a total makeover of the coach house, renovating it top to bottom over a three-year period and furnishing it with the finest antiques, china, fabrics and amenities. The result, a unique combination of location, luxury and 170 m2 (1,830 sq. ft.) of living space, is enough to rivet the attention of any devoté of the City of Light.

The coach house is situated in a courtyard entered through a massive wooden door on rue de l'Université. The double-door entry to the coach house opens to a wide flight of slightly curved stairs that ascends to the main living area, where a large arching window overlooks the courtyard toward the porte cochère and the balustrade of the main building. This window, framed in heavy, high-quality drapes, may be left exposed to bring in natural light, or covered with sheer curtains for privacy. Off to one side, an antique writing desk offers the perfect space to set up a laptop computer.

The living room is one of two main sitting areas in the house. With its sofa and armchairs it has ample space to seat all occupants plus a few guests. For more intimate gatherings there is a library alcove with a limestone fireplace. The stunning parquet de Versailles wood floors have been restored to a brilliant luster, and the building's original vaulted ceiling beams left in place. The classic charm of this warmly furnished and beautifully restored space is striking.

An especially appealing feature of the coach house is the spacious country-style kitchen, reached by a short corridor from the living room. Families will enjoy gathering here under the exposed beams, chatting with the cook or enjoying meals at the long table with ladder-back chairs for eight. The kitchen has abundant counter and cabinet space, and the top-quality appliances include a remarkable La Cornue stove with four burners, a French plaque grill, and two ovens, a dishwasher, and a double-door American-style refrigerator.

In fine weather guests may also take meals on a small terrace just off the kitchen. While the terrace has no view except the open sky above, its wrought-iron table and chairs for six make it ideal for al fresco lunches.

While they are decorated in different color schemes, each of the three bedrooms - two on the main level, and the third on the lower, courtyard level - could be considered master bedroom suites by virtue of their furnishings and amenities. Each bedroom has an ensuite bath, is relatively equal in size, and is furnished with bedside tables, good reading lamps and amenities such as crystal water carafes and glasses.

The blue bedroom, off the foyer at the bottom of the stairs, is decorated entirely in blue toile de jouy, from its generous-sized closets to the bedcovers on the bed that allows the guest the option of a king-size bed or two twins. The bath, which has a tub, overhead shower and WC, is finished in dove-gray marble. The bedroom has a small refrigerator, and its independence from the main living quarters upstairs makes it especially suitable for a couple that desires extra privacy.

Parallel hallways lead from the living room to the other two bedrooms. One bedroom, decorated in shades of rose, has the choice of a king-sized bed or two twins, and an armoire lined with a gingham fabric. Natural light flows in from a skylight nestled in the beams overhead. The bath has a tub with handheld shower and a WC. Laundry facilities – a large washing machine and separate tumble dryer - are concealed under a wooden countertop.

The third bedroom might be called the teal room. Just as appropriately it might also be called the Louis XV room, or perhaps the Honeymoon Suite, for what could be more romantic than a 17th-century limestone fireplace at the foot of your queen-sized bed? The bath has a large tub, separate walk-in shower and double vanity, all finished in smooth natural stone.

Both upper-level bedrooms have their own doors to the terrace off the kitchen. Like the blue room on the lower level, all three bedrooms are well away from any kind of street noise and promise a good night's rest.

And for the bountiful activities available within a short walk of the coach house, guests will need to be well rested. The epicenter of Left Bank life - the intersection of boulevard Saint-Germain and rue de Rennes - is less than three minutes by the rue des Saint-Pères, the dividing line between the 6th and 7th arrondissements. Here one finds the ancient Eglise Saint-Germain, the oldest church in Paris, as well as three of Paris' most famous literary cafés - Les Deux Magots, Café de Flore and Brasserie Lipp. Walking the opposite direction on the rue des Saints-Pères one arrives within two minutes at the Seine, where Pont du Carrousel and Pont Royal cross directly to the Louvre and Tuileries Gardens. And one can walk from the coach house to Musée d'Orsay, which houses France's principal collection of Impressionist painters, in mere minutes.

For whatever reason one visits Paris - to experience its museums, explore its history or partake of its vibrant cultural life - the coach house is the perfect solution to enjoying the world's greatest city in a setting of opulence and comfort.