dgator

Hello,

I am staying with my boyfriend in Paris in one week - neither of us have been to Paris before. Would anyone recommend staying in Montmarte? We are going to shoot for renting a flat instead of a hotel since it's so last minute - already inquired and there is availability in the 5th, 6th and 18th arr. Any other areas that might be worthwhile? We are pretty flexible and only 23 and 25 years old. Coming from CDG and flying out of Orly. We will be here for 4 nights. We were thinking of also taking a day trip to Versailles.

I know it is all last minute, we always manage to do this haha. Thank you!

Mathieu

The following current thread will answer your questions about the convenience of staying in the Montmartre area versus other areas of Paris.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...s-471841-2.cfm

For first time visitors to Paris, and especially young visitors your age, I'd say it's better to stay in the 4th and 5th arron which will put you closer and in quicker proximity to the many sights and sites in Paris. Montmartre is further away and not much necessarily going on at night. However certainly visit the area for a few hours during the day and enjoy the place.

A day trip to Versailles is not only doable but is what almost everyone who goes there does.

StCirq

Stay in the 4th or the 5th. I've been in Paris a good deal more than 100 times and have never stayed in Montmartre, nor never wanted to...though I've visited there dozens of times and enjoyed it. Stay closer to the river and the sights you probably want to visit. The Amélie reverie is overdone.

baladeuse

For a first visit, (or any visit really IMO), the 5th and 6th arrondissements would be much more convenient for access to most points of interest. If you post links to the apartments you're considering, people will be able to give you more feedback.

dgator

Thank you all for your advice. I was leaning towards Montmartre, but now I am more convinced of 5th and 6th. Here is the apartment I was looking at/ http://www.myparisvisit.com/rental-o...ml?p=VRBO-0000

The price would be 620 euro total for all four nights. Do you think this is too much? It is a bit on the high end of our budget.

dgator

http://www.vrbo.com/167098?%0d%0autm...%0d%0a#reviews

Also this one for 680 euro, but I'm not sure if it's too far.

travelingnomad13

I stayed in the 18th arrondissement on my first visit to Paris and while it was doable, I spent too much time on the Metro. I really got to know the Paris metro system and never even got to the Montmartre village because I was spending all this time getting to other sites. On my second visit, i stayed in the 13th arrondissement. On my next visit, I am definitely staying closer, in the single digits: 4, 5, 7th or 8th. The apartment by Notre Dame looks amazing.

kerouac

People certainly need everything to be 100% "convenient" now. When I was little, we would always stay with my great aunt and uncle in the suburbs and every morning we would walk to the train station, get a train to Saint Lazare and then take the metro to wherever we were going. We never considered this to be inconvenient, and taking the train was part of the fun.

Now it seems that if you are not staying in a hotel within 200 meters of several monuments or museums, it is absolutely intolerable and will spoil your trip.

I kind of feel sorry for a lot of you.

travelingnomad13

Kerouac, when time is of the essence, it makes a difference. It is nice to have the luxury of time and to go to Paris several times, but if time is limited, it is a significantly distinct experience to be right in the heart of the city, IMHO.

dgator

http://www.housetrip.com/en/rentals/...ate=2013-05-22

My boyfriend found this beautiful place in Montmartre, so now I am just confused! Plus the price of this one is only $675 in US dollars.

I agree with Kerouac, sometimes travelling is part of the fun.

Cathinjoetown

Well, you are young so the 4th floor walk-up of the Montmartre flat may not be a concern. BTW, your travel will be 99% underground.

My first stay in Paris, I was 19, walked out of my fleabag hotel, turned a corner and there was Notre Dame. I'd choose the flat across from N.D. for a first, relatively short, stay.

kerouac

I'm only 60 years old and I think that my 4th floor walk up (in the 18th but not in Montmartre) is just fine. I have never owned a car, so clearly I don't do as much sitting down as so many of you do in your cars every day when you are not in Paris. In fact, at this time of year, I usually just hop on a Vélib bike to go into the center of the city every morning, so my own traveling is not done 99% underground nor does anybody else need to stay underground.

From what I see in trip reports, Paris must really exhaust so many of you with your uncomfortable shoes and poor circulation. I'm not surprised that every report is full of "we went back to the apartment to rest." Poor dears, you are all getting on in years. But I really don't see why you want to convince a young couple (23 and 25) that they should already act as though they are 75.

Nikki

I like the looks of the apartment across from Notre Dame. Not sure why you'd say it's too far, it's about as central as you can get in Paris.

The housetrip apartment in Montmartre looks good too, and it is very close to the metro so getting around the city would be easy.

mamcalice

I agree with those who say to stay in the 5th, or 6th. We have been to Paris 8 times and to Montmartre only twice. In our experience, Montmartre is worth a visit, especially for its view of Paris, but not an especially convenient. I

baladeuse

Come on, Kerouac, living in a place and visiting for a week for the first time are vastly different experiences. You said you have been visiting Paris since you were a small child and you've been living there for a long time, I know. You know Paris like the back of your hand and can get where you want to go with no trouble at all. I envy you that, and if I could live in Paris I'd be happy to live anywhere at all in the city. But can we agree that for a first-time visitor, trying to find their way around and see as much of the city as possible in one week, Montmartre would not be the best option?

billandcindy

The apartments near Notre Dame and the apartment near Lamark-Caulaincourt are in different worlds. If you really like a place near most of the must-see sights bordering the Seine (but loaded with tourists), choose the former; if you don't mind being away from the Seine (but you kinda would like to see how Parisiennes live), choose the latter. The Lamark-Caulaincourt apartment doesn't appear to have a microwave, something in common with our apartment in Montmarte, which presents a bit of a problem for us (though, unlike us, you will probably be eating all your meals out).

Seamus

Stop right now and book that place near Notre Dame before someone else grabs your dates!

danon

I find taking Paris metro system more exhausting as years go by.
In such a huge city, with limited time to visit, why not stay as
close to most attractions as one can?

kerouac

As I have always written (and it was even published in the Fodor's guidebook) - people who stay in the outer arrondissements have a much better experience because they see many more things than the people who stay in the center and never stray from there, not to mention saving bundles of money. They are able to explore many different walking routes instead of always being on the same boulevards each and every day like those people who are just "steps away" from the "attractions."

Now I readily understand that most of you have absolutely no interest in saving money and that you clearly have low energy levels, but ordering a young couple to stay near Notre Dame just because your own feet hurt and you have lost all sense of adventure is not doing them a service. I was under the impression that quite a few people like to walk around at random and not do a daily death march to a list of museums, churches and monuments, followed by the obligatory restaurant reservation made 3 months ago.

Waldo

Hooray for Kirouac! I agree with him to be a little adventurous and stay someplace other than where the hoards stay. I've been to Paris quite a few times, and I've always stayed in the 17arr. The Metro can take you any place in Paris in a short time, so in my opinion, there are considerations other than "being near the action". In my case, the 17th has extremely economical and great hotels. I stay on Rue Viale, which is about 300 feet from the Metro, so I can get anywhere fast. The restaurants there are superb, and because they are in a native neighborhood, they are very inexpensive.