Janine “Jani” Lafayette is the 17-year-old protagonist and first-person narrator of Hotel Magnifique. She describes herself and her younger sister, Zosa, as having “dark brown hair and olive skin like many southern Verdanniere folk” (50). At the beginning of the story, Jani is working at a tannery in the city of Durc, where she and Zosa moved four years earlier after their mother died. Before that, they lived in Aligney, a small town that Jani remembers fondly. She idealizes her hometown and plans to take Zosa back there, which is why she decides to respond to the Hotel Magnifique’s job advertisement.

Jani is characterized by her protectiveness of Zosa. When Zosa is offered a job at the hotel, Jani bargains with Bel for a position as a maid so that they won’t be separated. Jani is stubborn, impulsive, and very inquisitive. She longs for travel and adventure, which is reflected in her eventual choice of artéfact.

Over the course of the story, Jani develops a friendship with Béatrice and a romantic relationship with Bel. In the end, she learns that returning to Aligney would not satisfy her desire for Home and Belonging as she had initially believed.