Havana

SAnParis: You make a very good point. There is no doubt our rooms will be small, which is why I made sure the hotel has a welcoming, good-sized,(and nicely appointed!) Lobby, so I can actually read while sitting in a chair; oo-la-la, now there's luxury for you!

Having said that, a pleasant Lobby & a petite chambre are not quite the same as say...a 2-bedroom apt w/livingroon & kitchen. Not quite.

Here's the thing, while I am certainly not totally helpless, there is a great degree of comfort that comes from knowing you can wander downstairs & receive great information about anything you desire. Even though I'm going to be as well prepared as I can possibly be, I'm sure that countless things will come up that I cannot anticipate. I don't mean BAD things, just things that I'd like to hear about from a local, that are perhaps not covered in FODORS Paris 2006.

Havana

francophile03 - Hello again!
Hotel Le Tourville in the 7th

BTilke

For a more modern decor, three 4 star hotels come to mind:
Bel Ami (6th)
Sofitel Baltimore (16th)--older, Eiffel designed building, modern, comfortable rooms
Square Hotel (16th). Very trendy modern. Mostly French and Italian clientele.

francophile03

Havana, thanks for sharing. Yes, I've heard good things about the Tourville. In fact, a former coworker stays there when he visits Paris. Just one more thing, do you mind if there are no shower curtains? The baths here don't have shower curtains.

StCirq

And there was a thread on here last year about major leakage in the bathroom that the hotel would not address.

Not a good choice for the money, IMO, and I used to stay there fairly frequently.

Havana

BTilke: I adore the look of the Bel Ami, and it was definitely on my short list because it is perfection to me. Unfortunately I don't recall why I crossed it off. Perhaps it has no chambres-communicantes? The other thing is that whenever I looked at the photos I got these awful pangs of guilt 'cause I didn't think it was right to take my daughter, on her first trip to paris, to a hotel that looks like where we stay in New York. Know what I mean? I realize that the Tourville doesn't exactly ooze a French feel, but it's not the Hudson, either - sort of a compromise?

Of course now that I'm looking back at the Bel Ami photos I am feeling conflicted. This is why I did not intend to name the hotel I'd selected, but since francophile03 asked, I thought it would be rude not to, as she's/he's been very supportive & helpful to me.

Havana

Hey, with no shower curtains I'm not surprised that there's major leakage! I read those threads as well, but as francophile03 mentioned in another thread, "there is no perfect hotel." As I recall, the leakage thing was not recently & I've got to assume that they've addressed it. And as for the hotel's apparent indifference to the poster's complaints ... well, we don't have the whole story there, so I'm not worried about it.

My experience with them could not have been better. After 4 or 5 emails were exchanged, all of my questions were answered to my satisfaction, and then some.

francophile03

Havana, I know you've decided on the Tourville. But I must say that for a traditional French hotel the Relais Saint Jacques in the Latin Quarter is very nice. I decided to try it and was pleased with the Prestige room I got for a discount in July. The bathroom was great: marble, nice bathtub with wall mounted showerhead, nice faucets too, and they have a glass shower screen. However, their largest room is a suite but I don't know if they've got connecting rooms. I liked the central location that was a few blocks away from Blvd. St. Michel and the Luxembourg Gardens.

Havana

Jeez, francophile03, you are bound & determined to get me out of the Tourville! Couldn't find Relais Saint Jacques in Latin Qtr; is that the same as Hotel Saint-Jacques? If it is, it sounds very nice indeed. However, regarding the Latin Qtr, I am an extremely light sleeper, so I didn't look into anything in the 5th. The only places I considered in the 6th were spots that made special mention of the extreme quiet that prevails. It's not a matter of being "picky," if you know what I mean. I simply cannot get to sleep or stay asleep.

Having said that, I certainly appreciate your continued interest. Thank you.

Travelnut

I couldn't find a hotel-owned site:

http://www.parishotels.com/Hotel_Rel...s_star_en.html

francophile03

Havana, no, I'm not trying to dissuade you from staying at the Tourville. I was just giving another suggestion. Relais Saint Jacques is not the same hotel as the Hotel St. Jacques. It's considered a 4* and they got negative reviews at Trip Advisor because some former guests mixed them up with Hotel St. Jacques. Here's their website:
http://www.paris-hotel-saintjacques.com/

I could afford the summer rate but not the normal rate.

francophile03

Btw, Havana, I do understand what you mean by 'quietness'. The 5th is more lively than the 6th in general. However, the hotel is on a small side street of rue Gay Lussac and rue St. Jacques. I guess front rooms could be noisy if they're directly above the hotel related restaurant, Le Mauzac.

But I'm sure you will enjoy the Tourville as the 7th seems more quiet than the 5th.

Havana

Thanks for the website, francophile. It really is a lovely spot & the location is superb. It would have been the perfect place for me twenty years ago, but twenty years ago I couldn't have afforded it, so there you have it.