They say fortune favours the brave, or perhaps the foolhardy. We booked this place last minute (plus ca change...) while already out in Rio, for our last few days in Brazil. Fortune certainly favoured us. This is a gem of a place. ||Les Jardins is set in an astonishing modernist house worthy of a Bond film - all undulating curved white walls, mezzanine levels and beautiful hardwood floors. The furnishings are brightly coloured, and a little eccentric, but chic - all primitivist sculpture and de Lempicka-esque artwork. The rooms and the public spaces are all spacious and calm. The place is run by a quirky but lovely French couple who speak excellent English, as do most of their staff of friendly young Cariocas. They were able to provide plenty of advice on what to see and do. It has the feel of an upmarket guest house rather than a hotel. ||Due to our last minute online booking and an internet malfunction at their end, the owners didn't get our booking by the time we arrived. No problem - we were shown around the available rooms and given our pick. All of them were beautiful, and the one we preferred was not in fact the Presidential Suite with its swimming pool sized bathtub, but another suite with private terrace and a glass-fronted stone-clad bathroom you could feel on the edge of the jungle in. ||There is a roof terrace with spectacular views sweeping down the valley to Guanabara bay, and upwards beyond the adjacent rainforest to Cristo Redentor (although the January weather in Rio meant we only got one day of blue skies to see the full view during our stay here!). There is also an outdoor pool, although again owing to the weather we didn't use it. ||Breakfast is served on a covered terrace overlooking either the pool or the view down to the bay. We paid extra for the supplemental fruit, yoghurt etc which was not inexpensive but was worthwhile. The food was fresh and lovely, albeit choice limited as you would expect in a place this small. ||The only drawback of this place - and this is qualified - is the location. The hotel is in Cosme Velho - a district reasonably close to the main tourist areas but on the edge next to the urban rainforest and not served by the metro - and is on a steep hill about 10 minutes walk from the nearest bus stop. The area is mostly characterised by walled-off villas with no nearby restaurants or nightlife. To walk around at night would feel unsafe. This means a taxi ride in the evening is obligatory for a restaurant dinner or anything to do, but as the taxis are so affordable in Rio this really did not in fact pose much of a problem. ||I would certainly return here, and would strongly recommend pairing a few days here after a few days in one of the hotels on Copacabana or Ipanema for a stay in Rio. This allows the calmness of Les Jardins to recuperate after the frenzy of the carnival, and once you feel settled in this amazing city.