2 Months One Place Paris or Outside of Paris
 

Need some opinions here from seasoned travelers, please. We will be going on our first trip to France. We are planning to stay in one place for two months due to our daughter playing a pro sport nearby (Neuville-aux-Bois). Our budget is quite low - no more than $2000 USD per month for lodging. We need an entire apartment - one bedroom - real bed -so that we may do some of our own cooking and have privacy for that length of time. We found a small cottage in Perthes for just over $1000 USD and there are some rentals in Paris that might work. Looking at the map Perthes is south of Paris and Neuville-aux-Bois is further south. Perthes does not seem to have any amenities - no shops. We will see our daughter only 5-10 times over our stay. We plan to visit Paris and do some mushrooming (where allowed) in the area and see other sites.
In your experience would you stay in Paris in a lesser apartment and be in the middle of everything or in Perthes and commute to Paris several days per week, driving to a station and taking the train in?
We plan to do this October and November of 2013 so there are fewer rentals available due to late planning which was unavoidable.
Help!

Perthes is very near Melun, Barbizon and Fountinbleau so it isn't in some God forsaken region. It would be a good base for touring places to the S/SE/SW of Paris.

Staying IN Paris would be great IF you mainly wanted to visit Paris. But if you are going to be touring around/day tripping it might be fine in Perthes.

I think you have to figure out what you personally want to do, that's all. Because you couldn't pay me to stay in Perthes for a month, there isn't any slightest reason I would want to do that. What would you do there, anyway? There is nothing there and not even a train station. So if you don't want to do anything, fine, it would be a good location and closer to your daughter. If you want to be in a city or see Paris, it isn't very appealing, obviously, given how much time and trouble it will take you to get anywhere (not to mention money, you'd have to get a monthly Navigo pass that goes all the way out to Melun or wherever, if possible, and I would imagine parking isn't free there, but don't know). And that pass will be expensive given the zone. If you really only want to go somewhere a couple times a week, maybe the money would be worth it to you, though, it's your call. You wouldn't need a car in Paris, obviously, and renting a car for that time won't be cheap, either. So I can't imagine you'd really come out much ahead, but it isn't clear how you intend to see your daughter if you stay in the city.

If you're planning on staying in an apartment outside of Paris, then the first question I would ask is do you speak French. It's very important if you select a location in a smaller village.

I would stick with staying in Paris (no need for the added expense of a rental car) and use the train to take day trips. I found more than 500 apartments available in Paris during October-November that would fit within your €1500/month budget at www.parisattitude.com

I would get a better apartment in Paris and not get a rental car which would allow you more apartment options. For the occasional trip outside Paris (mushrooms, etc.) you can rent a car short term. It would be difficult to be stuck in a small town for 50 to 55 of your 60 days that you will not be seeing your daughter. There are tons of day trips outside Paris that are accessible via public transportation.

If you stay in Paris you will have easy rail access to all of Europe..... Perthes...not so much.

Unless you speak at least some French don;t underestimate the difficulties of staying in a very small town. And do realize that you will not have easy access to shops and restaurants - even going to nearby towns you will be limited by village hours (don;t expect a supermarket open 24/7 - shops are open limited hours and there is usually full or half day closing - besides Sunday.

If it were me I would get an apt in Paris - with easy access to all there is to see and do.

Paris

Lucky you. Definitely Paris. Two months will allow you to do extensive exploring and it will not be hard for your daughter to visit you. She might be happier to visit you in Paris than to have you on her doorstep in Perthes anyway.

I would settle into Paris for the two months. Get into a little routine and pretend to be a 'local' for your time there. What a great opportunity for you. Have fun. I'm jealous.

Paris by a long shot. Transport options for one.. from Paris one can get anywhere in France,, from Perthes you can get no where and have the added cost of a car..
My relatives lived in a small village outside Paris, no train station, they had to pick me up in Chantilly.. getting bread each day ( this is not an option in France, people need bread everyday!!) was interesting, my relatives knew which times to go.. as said, places are not open normal hours in small places.. the bakery on most days was open from 7 am to 11 am.. then later in the day for two hours .. but it seemed to vary.. drove me nuts.

And yes, without good French you may find it quite challenging in a small town..

Paris!

Thank you all for your insights. Paris it is! We speak no French - yet. At first glance there are many apartments available but we have a few criteria such as a real bed that eliminate quite a few. The search is on! Thanks again.

yes, another vote for Paris.

not reason why you shouldn't do some short breaks out of the city as well as day trips, but always coming "home" afterwards.

and good luck to your DD! what is her sport?

Take a look at www.vrbo.com, www.homelidays.com, or trip adviser for apartment rentals. We've had good luck dealing directly with the owners, and I've found that it was slightly cheaper than going through an agency. Just be sure to read the reviews and testimonials!

I agree about a real bed rather than a fold out couch - so uncomfortable! I think you'll be happy that you stayed in Paris.

Volley ball!

Have sent many requests out to vrbo, trip advisor, airbnb and have either not received replies or owners are not renting for that long a period and it does not show on their listing. Our budget is $5,000 maximum for the whole two months for lodging. I know this is very low. We are trying to stay centrally - the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th , 6th, 7th? And - we need an elevator if we are above the 2nd french floor. Internet, TV, kitchen, washing machine and real bed as mentioned before. We are getting tired of dead ends.
Also, we have loads of BA Avios and can't seem to get any flights even if we pay cash and use them for upgrade.
Perhaps this trip was not meant to be!

Thank you all!

Here's another website to try: www.homeaway.com. Hang in there!

I guess you passed on using www.parisattitude.com to check on an apartment. I just checked on a 1 bedroom (Oct through Nov) in a building with an elevator and found several units that fit nicely within your budget restricting the search to only the 6th and 7th.

Bartsmom,
Your trip sounds like great fun. We spent four months in Paris last year and here's my two cents about apartments/location etc.

1) Don't hesitate to look beyond the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th , 6th, 7th arrondissements you mentioned. Paris has great public transport and you have two months. I would look more widely, you'll find things are cheaper a little further out, which could mean more space. I wouldn't hesitate to look at the 10th, 11th, 12th, 13, 14th, 15th, 19th, 20th etc. They are some lovely areas in these arrondissements.

2) Agency fees can add up for a several month stay so I'd go with vrbo.com, homeaway.com or sabbaticalhomes.com. I contacted a pile of people on air bnb last year and found that they were making so much on their daily or short term rentals that they couldn't offer me an affordable monthly rate.


3) You may have trouble with the Avios, we used ours but we had to book a long time in advance and work around the dates they had. Try flights just as far as London and you may have more luck.

4) You may find our experience helpful. You can see my Paris posts at my blog
http://somuchmoretosee.blogspot.com/search/label/Paris

Hope this helps!

You might also try the Paris site of Airbnb. https://www.airbnb.com/s/Paris--France
Use that site with the same caution you approach any owners' listing site; read the reviews carefully, only consider those with lots of positive reviews, and ask any and all questions you have of the owner.

One protection Airbnb provides is that, even though you pay up front, the owner does not get the money until 24 hours after you check in, so you have time to call the 24/7 hotline if there are any problems when you arrive.

as a word of advice, if you are having problems, maybe you shouldn't be so picky given your low budget. For example, insisting that you must stay in the most expensive areas. You are there 2 months, that isn't necessary. Maybe drop the internet requirement, also, or washing machine if you have to, there are laundromats in residential areas of Paris and to be honest, a lot of apts only have washers and not dryers, anyway. October is a very very busy month in Paris, also, although November not so bad, and this is only a few months away, that's the problem, although with the requirements.

I would have thought you might find something on VRBO or Homeaway, but there are lots of other websites that have some long-term rentals, just the real tourist vacation ones might not have much (and will cost more, anyway). But you need to look at more local French websites, like ones I use.

here is one
www.lodgis.fr

Now they have some apts that fit your criteria except for the arrondisement (it is in the 14th, an area I like)
http://www.lodgis.com/fr/paris,locat...is-14.mod.html

sure, it's not fancy, but you can't get fancy for that budget.
This one is in the 11th and even has a dryer, not just a washer http://www.lodgis.com/fr/paris,locat...is-11.mod.html
This one actually does fit your requirements and is in the 2nd http://www.lodgis.com/fr/paris,locat...ris-2.mod.html
This one fits your requirements and is in the 9th (it probably looks the nicest of these) in a decent area, I know it http://www.lodgis.com/fr/paris,locat...ris-9.mod.html

That is the cheapest website I know and the one with the most long term rentals. I have rented from them, they do a good job (the agency, each apt has private owner).

BTW on lodgis.fr the monthly rental rates don't include the agency fee, as I recall. But the calculator tells you the final fee with that included. So for 2 months, you need to look for a rental that is 1500 euro a month or less. That ends up being about $4900 for the 2 month period when the agency fees are added in.

Agency fees are irrelevant, it's the bottom line that matters. Plenty of places on VRBO are rented as just as high rates as agencies charge.

Just out of curiosity, I sampled some Airbnb (whole apartment) places in the 12th, and these are the first two that came up. The first is a bit over your budget, but you can see that some do rent by the month. The second is pretty basic, but I don't think you expect the Ritz on your budget.

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1037875

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/570123

It think there's some missing logic here. Originally you were considering staying in the boonies and commuting to Paris and now you won't even consider the 14th or 18th? The Paris Metro system is so good that it won't take you much time to get to the center of Paris.

During the 2 months you'll probably be exploring these areas making them central for part of the trip. If you stay in the 5th, for example, you're not central to the 16th, 18th, or 20th.

You have so much time in Paris; what's the difference where you stay as long as it's within the peripherique and clean and near some sightseeing?

The places you've found look just fine and you are correct we expect basic - just clean.
Thanks for your assistance in searching. The problem with lodgis is that the price is plus the fees and plus utilities and that really adds up.
Airbnb has possibilities but we've contacted many and so far the one's that have responded don't want to rent for that period of time. The others have not yet responded. Frustrating.

Thank you so much!

Don't worry about an apartment having a washing machine. We found the appliances to be so small that we still went to the laundromat where we could get large loads done quickly. And we never had trouble finding laundromats

We have also had difficulty booking with Avios unless we booked far in advance. We found it worked best when we called and spoke to an agent rather than trying to book online. We found the BA agents to be really helpful and since you have a two month timeframe it maybe easier for them to find dates for you.

Robert2533
Thanks for your contribution! Parisatitude looks affordable on the surface, but when renting on a monthly basis utilities, insurance and agency fees are not included and make it outside our budget. Thanks. Rechecked it.

Paris is an expensive city. Unless you exist on sandwiches, crepes, and free church concerts, your budget seems quite tight for a productive two-month stay. An apartment is just the start. Do you need to be there for that long?

but if you stay IN Paris, you don't spend money travelling in and out all the time because you can walk and/or buy cheap travel passes.

and if you're in an apartment, you can cut down on living costs quite a lot by eating in, making your own sandwiches, etc.

a compromise might be to stay in Paris for a month, and outside Paris for the rest of the time, though having a car might be necessary for getting about unless you stay somewhere big, which might well prove expensive as well.

What about considering shortening your trip? One month in Paris would be a wonderful amount of time to be there. It sounds like your daughter will be quite independent. You could book your trip to start prior to her arrival at her sports camp so you could have some family time together in Paris and then visit her a few times.