Are there any tried and true clean, quiet, good location 2 stars in Paris"s left bank? In general are 3 stars much better then 2? Loaded questions I know, but would really appreciate some help, am looking at guide books and am confused.Never been and can afford 3 stars if it's worth it.<BR>Any suggestions and comments would be appreciated.<BR>Thanks.<BR>Dari

H&ocirc;tel de France, 102 boulevard de la Tour Maubourg. I've been in 3 *** hotels that were only half as nice as this one. Ask for a room on the 3rd or 4th floor (a bit noisy down below that - there's a nice restaurant at ground level) or on the interior. Was just renovated in the past 4 months from top to bottom. A very good bargain.

thanks I will check it out.

The Muguet is a 2-star and it has gotten good reviews on this forum for years. Others can comment on the St. Dominique and Hotel Lilly.<BR><BR>I used one of the 3-star hotels in the 6th, and was frankly disappointed.<BR>I went to another 3-star establishment last year and there was considerable difference in the two. I am not sure I know what it takes to gain a star or lose one. But if the second hotel was 3 stars, then the first one was about 1 star on a relative basis.<BR>Or to reverse the logic, if the first one deserves a 3 star rating, I would hate to see a 1 star.<BR>I think the truth is that the stars don't mean a heck of a lot.<BR>

Thanks, what was the name of the 3 star that you liked?

In the 6th is a wonderful little 2 star budget--clean, charming, friendly--on rue Serpente, a quiet street yet very near lively ones. 3 min. walk from St. Michel metro.<BR>This past May I paid 93 euro for a single, and family members paid 105 for double with a tiny balcony, including a great continental breakfast.<BR><BR><BR>

Sue,<BR>Thanks,sounds great what's the name of the hotel?

email me and I will discuss with you where I am staying in 14 days.<BR>I will explain my reason when I respond via private channels.<BR>

Friends stayed at the Minerve Hotel, rue des &Eacute;coles. They would recommend it. Small rooms, but clean and with firm beds. Other friends stayed at the Sunny Hotel (Blvd. Port Royal) and were satisfied with it. The former was around 80 euro, the latter 72. Both can be found on the web.

Can't believe I forgot to put in the name! Hotel du Lys. Sorry!

Dari:<BR>I was in much your same situation just two months ago...I must have looked at 100 hotels! I finally decided on Hotel Bonaparte in St Germain (6th) near Place St. Sulpice. They don't have a website, but get excellent, recent reviews here and on the Fodors rant and rave pages:<BR><BR>http://www.fodors.com/rants/rrread.cfm?destination=paris@117&class=Lodging@200 03&entity_id=51306&property=BONAPARTE@57369&sort=l ocation&pg=17<BR><BR>We're going in October. I got a rate of 104 Euro including breakfast. Can't wait!

On my first trip to Paris 3 years ago I stayed in the Latin Quarter (5th) just to the north of Rue Mouffetard. The 2 star was called Pascal for the street it was on. It has been completely renovated as we tried to stay there again the next year but they were closed. It's now reopened and looks great (haven't been since the remodel) with a new name Hotel Cardinal:<BR><BR>http://www.pariserve.tm.fr/hotel/cardinal/english.htm<BR><BR>I thought some of the 2 stars we stayed in throughout France had much more character than the 3 stars.

In May we stayed at the Hotel Europe St. Severin, in the 6th. We had a triple. It was large (by Paris standards) and meant to accomodate 3 (not 2 with an extra bed pulled in). It is supposedly a 2star hotel, however, it had air conditioning, TV (with cable), phone in the room, elevator, breakfast room and bar downstairs. It is about a block from the St. Michel metro stop. We were quite pleased with the accomodations and the location<BR>The website is:<BR>www.hotel-paris-severin.com/index.htm<BR><BR>