Five Best Authors' Suites

Where to bed down like the greatest writers in history. Mary FitzSimons checks in with the literary legends

L'Hotel Paris

L'Hotel Paris

Many of the rooms in this luxury hotel, situated in the fashionable St Germain-des-Prés district of Paris, have been decorated to reflect some of its more exuberant former residents. Room 36 was a favourite of the infamous French entertainer Mistinguett, and its decor evokes the elegant Art Deco period of the Twenties and Thirties when she was at the height of her music hall career. Room 16 is where Oscar Wilde spent his last days, and it has been refurbished in a flamboyant Victorian style to match his personality.

Doubles at L'Hotel, 13 rue des Beaux-Arts, Paris 75006 (00 33 1 44 41 99 00; www.l-hotel.com) start at €248 (£177) without breakfast. A night in Oscar Wilde's room costs €529 (£377). Breakfast costs €16.80 (£12)

Raffles Hotel Singapore

Since it opened in 1887, Raffles Hotel in Singapore has played host to a long succession of visiting dignitaries, writers and celebrities, all eager to experience its legendary hospitality. One of the most famous was Rudyard Kipling, the winner of the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature, who advised travellers that when in Singapore, they must "Feed at Raffles". The hotel, named after the founder of modern Singapore, Sir Stamford Raffles, has always epitomised colonial elegance - from its handsome building surrounded by lush gardens to its famous Singapore Sling cocktails served in the Long Bar. A stay at Raffles promises plenty of old-world opulence, and one of its 103 suites is named after Rudyard Kipling, one of the hotel's greatest admirers.

A double suite at Raffles Hotel, 1 Beach Road, Singapore (00 65 6337 1886; www.raffleshotel.com) costs S$815 (£261) without breakfast. A night in the Rudyard Kipling Suite costs S$1044 (£334), also without breakfast

Campi ya Kanzi Kenya

"Campi ya Kanzi" means "Camp of Hidden Treasures", and for guests this involves being swathed in absolute luxury. Ernest Hemingway immortalised Kenya's landscape and the nearby Chyulu Hills in his 1935 book Green Hills of Africa, and today the camp contains a Hemingway Suite among its seven thatched guesthouses. The suite features a king-size bed, made at the camp with local logs and festooned with a huge mosquito net, a table, two chairs and daily fresh flowers. Guests can spend their days on walking safaris guided by local Masai tribesmen, and their evenings sipping champagne on the private veranda while enjoying majestic views of Mount Kilimanjaro.

Deluxe double suites at Campi ya Kanzi, Mtito Andei, Kenya (00 254 456 22516; www.maasai.com) cost $740 (£462). The Hemingway Suite costs $860 (£537) and includes a bottle of champagne every evening on the veranda, drinks, meals and excursions. Guests pay $30 (£19) per day towards preserving Kenya's wildlife

Reid's Palace Madeira

In December 1924, the Nobel Prize winner and playwright George Bernard Shaw was persuaded by his wife Charlotte to go to Madeira, where there were "flowers, sunshine, bathing and no theatres". On December 30, they arrived at Reid's Palace. Captivated by the hotel's location amid 10 acres of tropical gardens on top of a cliff overlooking the Atlantic, the Shaws stayed for nearly two months. The couple whiled away the time playing tennis and, most famously, taking tango lessons on the lawn. Today, Reid's Palace, now owned by Orient Express Hotels, offers 130 luxurious rooms and 34 suites, each with balconies or terraces. These include a suite named after one of its most distinguished visitors, the aforementioned George Bernard Shaw. Guests can stay in the room where Shaw and his wife spent their winter holiday, with its Chinese hand-painted wallpaper, silk curtains, and stunning views of the Atlantic.

Classic doubles at Reid's Palace, Estrada Monumental 139, Funchal, Madeira (00 351 291 71 71 71; www.reidspalace.com) for the rest of the summer cost €315 (£225) with breakfast. A night in the George Bernard Shaw suite starts from €1,854 (£1,294) with breakfast. For reservations call Orient Express Hotels on 020-8604 2242

The Oriental Bangkok

Situated on the banks of the Chao Phraya River (the "River of Kings"), The Oriental in Bangkok has recently undergone an $80m renovation. Its Authors' Wing boasts four famous suites commemorating some of the best-known names in literature - Somerset Maugham, Noel Coward, James Michener and Joseph Conrad - who all sought inspiration on the hectic streets of the Thai capital. Of these, one of the most spectacular is the Somerset Maugham suite, with its majestic red, hot pink and gold colour scheme, matching four-poster beds and elegantly crafted furniture. In the neighbouring Authors' Bar, you half expect to catch a glimpse of one of these literary heavyweights.

Doubles at The Oriental, 48 Oriental Avenue, Bangkok 10500, Thailand (00 66 2 659 9000; www.mandarinoriental.com/bangkok) start at $353 (£196) without breakfast. Authors' Suites start from $1,059 (£588)