Where can I purchase Bedding (blankets, sheets and towels) in Paris 15th?

There is a large Monoprix store in the 15th. Another place we've puchased from is called Habitat. I cannot recall that store's location. The least expensive department store is on Rue di Rivoli and is called BHV. There is a shopping mall at Mont Parnasse which probably has what you are looking for.

If they can squeeze a few of those items into their luggage it would be better. They can pick up that stuff in the States for less $$$ (or even zero $ if they take stuff from home).

Good luck to your daughter!

Thanks for the suggestions Suzanne. She is familiar with Monoprix and we will check out Habitat and BHV as well.
sassy_cat, good advice. They had each planned on bringing from home, a set of sheets, carry on a pillow and a small blanket, like a snuggie for the first night. The girls that went last year gave them the heads up since they arrived with nothing and had to sleep on a bare mattress the first night.

I think what they all will need is some kind of comforter to keep them warm at night. That would take up valuable clothing space in the suitcase if you know what I mean.

Thanks again!

Beth

I always see stalls at the various street markets in Pais selling sheets, towels and other essentials. Richard Lenoir on Thus and Sun near Bastille is my favorite. Saxe Berteuil in the 7th on We and Sat is also excellent. In the 15th she could try the St Charles, Convention.Cervantes,Lefebre,,LeCourbe, or Grennelle markets

I wouldn't want to have to shop for that stuff my first day. I also think they could easily pack a set of sheets and a thin, lightweight blanket (fleece, thermal, whatever, you can get one at Kmart for about $15) to take on the plane as a carryon or just in a shopping bag.

The Monoprix in the 15th is a big one and pretty good, it's near Charles Michels metro stop on rue Linois, a block or two to the west. There is also one right across from Motte Picquet metro stop to the north. I don't think that one is a good, but it's okay.

There is a Habitat in the shopping center at Montparnasse tower but that place is pretty pricey, I'd say. If you want to pay 50 euro for a pillow, it would be okay. There is a Galeries Lafayette in that shopping center, also, but it's not as big as the main one. I doubt that's the best place to shop for that kind of thing if you want something cheap, though. I haven't shopped for that kind of thing so am not sure if there are any discount shops in that center for that kind of thing, but there might be, there are for shoes and clothes and things. There are shops for household goods and linens on av General Leclerc in the 14th and on rue St Placide in the 6th, I believe.

There are a lot of discount shops for seconds, etc., on rue Alesia, that might be a place to look. They have clothes, lingerie and I'm pretty sure I've seen homeware type stuff along there.

At the Pigale metro stop there are some stores selling stuff like that in bins out on the sidewalk. Might be called Darty. At any rate I don't think it is worth it to travel that far for something like that. I did see some lovely bed covers at the Saxe Beautiful open air market. They were pretty pricey though. It might be worth it to consider shipping those things from here. Although I did that when my daughter was doing study abroad in Spain and I recall that the postage was outrageous. That was 10 years ago. I think you can ship with Fed EX for $35.00.

Betty, I would buy these items in the US and pay for one extra suitcase for the two of them. I think it would be cheaper than buying in Paris.

For those kinds of items it might be worth a trip to the Carrefour store in Ivry-sur-Seine. The prices are much lower than any department store in Paris and the place is huge. In addition to the supermarket, they have all kinds of household items, clothing, furniture, etc. Metro stop is Ivry-sur-Seine, then a short bus ride on the 125 or 325 bus.

RER C station is Ivry-sur-Seine, Métro stop would be Mairie d'Ivry.

bethyk, they might find it difficult to find 'comforters' in Paris. Duvets and duvet covers are sold separately.

Glad to hear they're taking some stuff with them. As there are 4 of them I think the extra suitcase between them filled with bedding might be a good idea. Down quilts are fairly light (if they're not allergic)and can be packed in those space saver bags.

I know about the clothing space thing! Suggest they pack as much bedding as possible and then aim to buy clothing in Paris as needed (more fun!) and they might just need fewer clothes than they thought!??

Zola Color at Place Charles Michels is like a mini BHV. It seems to have everything.

Otherwise, your best bet is a hypermarket. By public transportation you have Auchan at La Défense and at Galliéni, or Carrefour at Porte de Montreuil, Saint Denis Basilique and Porte d'Auteuil. The 24 bus will also drop you in front of Carrefour Bercy in Charenton.

Thanks so much for all of your input.

sassy_cat, you are right about the duvet. What they will each need is a duvet, something warm I'm guessing because it will be cold the time of year that they are there.

Taking an extra bag for all of them to put bedding in is a good idea, but only 3 of the 4 of them are traveling together and they each are already bringing two large bags for their clothing.

Lutetia, I think there is an Ikea in Ivry-sur-Seine as well and I suppose they could go there as well. It's a bit of a trip though for the first day in Paris.
I was also hoping that they could find something close to their apartment in the 15th since it will be a big package to carry on the metro.

If the Monoprix carries duvets, maybe that will be the way to go. That Monoprix on the Rue Linoix that Christina suggested is close to their apartment. There is also a Darty close by. Does the Darty carry bedding? It looks like mostly appliances on their website.
I don't remember Monoprix carrying bedding when we were in Paris last year. We just bought food and some clothing there?

I hope this will be a lot easier once they get there than it seems now.

Beth

Keroac,

My daughter looked at the Carrefour website. This looks like the kind of place we are looking for. We'll check their locations to find the closest to their apartment. Looks like the one on the Rue de Vaugirard is very close within a short walking distance.
Do you know if all of their stores carry bedding?

Beth

Sorry, I meant TATI not Darty. Darty sells electronics.

As others suggest, it could be cheaper to take their own. The will also want to get a folding shopping cart anyway.

I just looked at the Monoprix web-site and they do appear to have everything they need. Not cheap but not as outrageous as I was expecting. Seriously, call Fed EX. I hear they ship filled suitcases anywhere for $35.00. You'd need a contact though to recieve the package. Does the aparetment have a concierge?

bethyk, the "Carrefour Market" or "Carrefour City" stores are not at all the same as the Carrefour hypermarkets. You will not find those items at the smaller stores, which are just supermarkets or superettes.

The hypermarkets are the ones that I listed.

I would have thought Monoprix would have towels, of course, and probably sheets and blankets, but don't know about duvets. I thought Zolacolor only had gardening and houseware stuff, hardware, fix-it stuff (bricolage etc), not bed linens, but don't know for sure. www.zolacolor.com

There is a shop for bed linens "seconds" or last year's models at Degriff Blanc near la Motte Picquet metro (just north on the street by that name). But that is more like discounts on high-end brand stuff, so it would be cheaper to buy cheap stuff at Target and places like that. I got a fleece blanket at Target last year that isn't heavy and doesn't weigh that much, stuff like that would be easy to pack and take yourself, I'd think, depending on your airline's baggage limits and rates.

I've only been in the Darty at Les Halles and it was just electronics and machines to me, I thought that was all they carried, not bed linens and soft goods. There used to be a Tati in MOntparnasse but it's gone now.

I don't think there is a large Carrefour in central Paris, they need too much cheap real estate. You aren't going to get anything great there, anyway, although it can be cheap. But you might as well just bring it yourself, I think, if that's all you want. There is one at the bottom of the 16th, Porte d'Auteuil. There are small Carrefours like the one near Ecole Militaire but they only carry food and minor items. I guess they are like the Monop version of Monoprix.

I fly Air France and they now allow you only one checked bag for free, you the fee for the second is $50 from the US. That would be cheaper than buying this stuff in Paris. Granted you'd have to pay it two ways, but I bet you'll spend that much on all that in Paris (more, most likely). And you could pack some other stuff, like a clip-on lamp, etc. up to 23 kg. You get a deal if you buy that when checking in, then it's only $40.

Thanks for all of the great input.

Kerouac, it looks like the closest Carrefour hypermarket is the Porte d'Auteuil location. It's not too far.
I think the girls will either try that or we will consider shipping a duvet ahead this week.
We do have an address to ship to in Paris. We ship directly to the school and they do accept FedEx and UPS so I may look in to that as well.

I really appreciate all of your help.
Being prepared ahead of time for the first few days will be a great relief to my daughter and her roommates!

Beth

All of this stuff will be way cheaper in the US than in Paris - and much better quality.

The issue is the size of the bed. towels and a blanket should be fine - but the mattress size may be different than in the US and the bottom sheet (at least) might not fit.

Degriff Blanc, 51 av La Motte Picquet, sells quality bedlinens at a discount. Not Ikea cheap, but you get good quality and French design at a "bon rapport qualité prix".
http://www.bellos-degriff-blanc-75.com/

There's also Blancorama, 88 rue Lecourbe.

There is a Descamps store on 319 rue de Vaugirard, but they're fairly pricy - you're better off at Degriff Blanc which sometimes has Descamps bedlinens.

All of this stuff will be way cheaper in the US than in Paris - and much better quality.

I can understand an addict of the wastefully plush American bath towels saying that, but I totally disagree concerning the quality of the bedding.

Kerouac's suggestion for Zola Color is a good one. So is Avalon's suggestion of the street markets.

If she has the address for the housing they'll use, perhaps they could order from an IKEA or other catalog and have it delivered directly to them in Paris.

Since we stay in apartments and they never seem to have enough towels and no washcloths at all. I usually put a few of my oldest ones in my suitcase and then leave them in the aparmtent. I suppose you could do that with bed linens too.Send your oldest and leave them behind.

As for quality I 've never compared, however, I have a friend who lives there and she stocks up on that stuff when she is over here and has it shipped back. I think it has more to do with price over quality.

At any rate, it will be interesting to hear what you decide to do.