annamarie111

Hello everyone!

Was looking for apt for 6 in Paris and for our budget I've narrowed it down to 5 choices. Can you guys please comment on these neighborhoods. Please let me know if there's one we should stay away from.

I'm leaning towards the first one for its lower price and the way it looks. I don't mind taking a few minutes with the metro to visit places but I would like to also see some shops, markets and cafes within a couple of blocks fr. the apt. Would this neighborhood (16th arr.) be too expensive for shopping, eating, and groceries?

My second choice is the last one because of it's architecture and bigger space. It will be the most expensive out of the 5 tho.

And oh, an available park for the kids close by would be a plus.

Thanks!


http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p928034

http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p807130

http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p856949

http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p878519

http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p440163

qwovadis

#1 for me Nicest though pretty far out toward La Defense you will have to take long metro rides a lot to the center.
Be careful pay with CC illegal for individuals to rent apts in Paris so police will not help you if you get scammed.One lady over in Asia lost $10k wiring money to VRBO/Homeaway a few monthe ago.

Headed over there in April on hotwire.com
Booked Novotel Les Halles 110 euro it is there
secret Louvre Vendome Hotel. More central hotels are almost always cheaper better for me. ihg.com Crowne Plaza Holiday Inn Notre Dame.

boooking.com franceby.com good reputable sites that take CC.

NorCal_Jo

How old are your kids and is this your first trip to Paris? If your kids are young and it is your first trip my vote would be for the last apartment on the list (in the 14th) as it is close to Luxumbourg gardens which has my children's favorite playground in Paris! We almost always stay in the 6th or thereabouts becaues of the central location and proximity to Luxembourg, shopping, and other sights.

grandmere

I, too, like the looks and location of the last apt., but do you realize it's a 4th floor walk up? That could actually be the fifth floor in France.

annamarie111

Thanks qwovadis for the warning. I will definitely not wire money and plan on using credit card. If it was just me and hubby I'd probably will just rent a hotel too, but since there are six of us, renting an apartment will be the way to go.

Yeah, actually now I think I'll have to give up the niceness of the one on the 16th arr. It is the furthest and when i got to look at the street view, not much happening down there. Very nice and clean looking neighborhood tho.

Norcal thank you for that precious info! It is our first and kids are 7 and 9. I also like the way the 2nd one looks and the street view but it's in Montmarte and I read that most people prefer Montparnasse to Montmarte so now I'm left with two choices. One appears to be in the corner of Rue de Chateu and Rue Raymond Losserand. And the other one on blvd Edgar Quinet between rue Delabre and square delambre. That one is prettier and bigger but street view on mapquest looks like it's in a much busier street.

Any info on these two locations would be much appreciated! Both are in Montparnasee.

http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p856949

http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p440163

annamarie111

Grandmere, you know, I saw that but didn't think nothing of it till you mentioned it. There are some 5th floors and then there are some 5th floors that feel like 10 floors! Thank you Grandmere for pointing this out!

bardo1

http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p440163 is the much better location and right next to a Metro stop.

Mimar

Well, p440163 is still on the 4th floor, which in France may be the 5th floor American. That's a long way up after a day of sight-seeing on your feet.

annamarie111

Thank you Bardo! Appreciate the info!

Thanks for the concern Mimar. 5 flights of stairs - noted. From our personal experience, I think we'll be fine. What can we do, we can't have it all. Sometimes we have to sacrifice some luxuries for another =)

bardo1

annamarie,

Also, if you look at Google maps and click on "transit" (near/below the satellite button), you'll see that p44063 is very close to four DIFFERENT Metro lines so you can get almost anywhere without transferring if you're willing to walk a few blocks to the initial station.

NorCal_Jo

I'd still go for the last one (p44063) with no question - for the following reasons:

1) as noted, it is close to 4 metro lines (including the key lines 4, 12, and 6 which will get you within blocks of almost every key sight without transfering. If you intend to use the metro (which I highly recommend as very easy and convenient), this is a key consideration.

2) the location is just better and closer to Luxembourg gardens - at 7 and 9 years old, the kids will still like the playground as it has an older kids section with climbing frames and a little zip line - my husband would ride it if I let him...

3) This apartment has positive reviews - the other place looks really nice but it appears to have no reviews yet and I tend to go with places with prior reviews as a secondary comfort.

4) Since your kids are 7 and 9, they can make it up the steps!

Leely2

I like the last one best too, for its appearance and its location. Like you, stairs don't really bother me--good exercise.

Christina

I stay in that area all the time and you are mistaken in thinking the last one is on a busier street, it is exactly the opposite, not sure why you thought that. You can see bd Edgar Quinet is next to the cemetery which makes it pretty quiet, and that street is not a spoke artery, of course, like the other one (meaning no cars would drive on it to get out of town). One side of the street is only the cemetery, and the other side is more residential (with some restaurants and cafes and stores at the western end near the Montparnasse tower and past the Edgar Quinet metro stop. Of course there is some traffic on it, but nothing compared to the main boulevards of Paris. It also doesn't go much of anywhere, as you can see, it is only a street between rue du Depart and bd Raspail, it doesn't extend any further so no traffic would use to to get across town or anything.

There is a morning street market on Edgar Quinet twice a week (produce, etc), Wed and Sat mornings.

annamarie111

Bardo 4 diff metro lines ... Awesome! I will have to learn that" transit" feature though. I'm on my ipad and can't find that. But I do see the 4 "M" surrounding the location.

Norcal, yeah that last one do have positive reviews. It is more expensive, but I believe I'll go with this one. And you're right, my kids will definitely outrun me on those stairs! LOL

Leely2 - Yes! Good exercise, especially I'm leaving my elliptical at home.

Christina - I thought that when I saw the wider street and a towering building on one end ( from what I could see on the street view of google map). But I'm soo glad you corrected that notion of mine! =) it makes sense when u explain it.

Alrighty then! MERCI BEAUCOUP everyone! All your inputs are truly appreciated. Gonna put a deposit now before someone else grabs it!

bardo1

annamarie - The transit overlay is in the "pull-down" tab on Google Maps called "Traffic". Just click it - it's the 2nd item in the pull-down menu.

jobo

We've stayed in that area, actually on rue Delambre (Jean-Baptiste Delambre was a mathematician and astronomer of some importance in France). Fantastic area, my favorite. Near enough to all the tourist sites but also to the Luxembourg Gardens, but it's also not touristy, with lots of cafes and neighborhood shops (great wine, cheese and patisserie shops right next to each other on rue delambre and a Monoprix a few blocks away if you need a larger dept. store). Also, right around the corner is the famous Cafes where Hemingway and Fitzgerald and Gertrude Stein hung out in the 20's. Also on the next street are many creperies (kids will love that). Sorry, got carried away, can't wait to get back. Feel free to ask any other questions about the area.

annamarie111

Bardo, got it! Merci mon ami!

Jobo, no apologies needed! I love hearing all about the place and Paris. Y'all are getting me so excited! Funny you mentioned Hemingway, I just watched Midnight in Paris the other night showing how the great artists and writers lived their life in Paris during the 20's. I got all my Paris movies lined up before embarking on our first trip. LOL 2 more months!

elnap29

Another vote for p440163. We have twice stayed in the area of Rue Raspail and Rue Montparnasse and have walked a great deal in the neighborhood of this apartment. We like the area very much. It is wonderful to be near Luxembourg Gardens and there are many nice cafes and a great bakery in the vicinity. The Edgar Quinet Metro stop was "our" stop. This is not a touristic area but very residential.

annamarie111

Yay, just got me an apartment in Paris!!! ( Well at least for 6 days ). Thanks for sharing Elnap29! Feel so lucky to get a place within my budget in a great neighborhood 2 mos. before our trip. Couldn't have done it confidently without you all wonderful Fodorites!