To Underhill:
I am so, so, so sorry that my 19 years of education have not adequately prepared me to write a hotel review that pleases you. My "long-winded, poorly written" comments on TripAdvisor were intended to fairly and completely educate others as to what we experienced. Years of writing legal documents and briefs have taught me to support my argument with evidence.

Now maybe you can explain why you are so defensive of this hotel that you would prefer to attack and ridicule my writing style than give it any credence?

P.S. My comments were written on March 30, it look TripAdvisor two days to publish the. The April 1 published date was mere coincidence.

I think Padbrasher's comments have been helpful.
About tripadvisor.com it takes a few days for comments to be posted.

hi,
OMG....I went out for to a wine tasting and came back to read even more bad news. WHAT is going on? I am leaving in 2 weeks and don't where to stay. I am somewhat picky and am probably not going to be happy with just "basic and comfortable". I thought I was ok because I made sure my room overlooked the Boulevard (not the AC units) but maybe that wasn't good enough. Should I just go drink more wine and take my chances? Should I drink more wine and switch hotels? Maybe I should just drink.

Well, the good news is, maybe by the time I get to go they will all be through with the remodeling. The bad news is that every hotel favorably mentioned on Fodors will have jacked up its price. <grin>

I'm sorry you have this dilemma. I'm like you and I think probably alot of us feel as you do. Of course if you're paying over 200+ euros for a room you wish for it to be what you agreed upon when you made the reservation.
Do you think if you email the hotel with your concerns and insist that you want the room you reserved to be guaranteed would help? And what if you let them know of the former guests' unhappy experience how bad that will be for the hotel's reputation? I should hope they would care. Of course the only people who answer emails are the same desk clerks that are part of the problem.
Other than that you can probably check around with other hotels. It is short notice and they may be booked already but keep trying. Also some of the large chain hotels may have last minute specials.

In previous posts, Patrick. Look, I'm not trying to bash Le Regent; it looks like a good possibility. My question about how small is small was a reqest for information. I remember a couple of posts when room sizes were actually discussed in measurement terms, which is by far the most useful.

I am also concerned about the recent(seems that all was well until after the first of the year - management change as someone mentioned?) negative reviews of the Madison. We made reservations there for July and did so because of all the positive things we have read here and elsewhere. I hope someone going soon will let us know what is going on with the Madison.

As for the Le Regent, we stayed there a few years ago in a superior room on an upper floor. It was not large or roomy. Both of us could not walk at the same time in the area at the foot of the bed. If anyone was getting clothing out of the armoire, it was impossible for someone else to get by. There was little space on either side of the bed -just as wide as the small bedside tables. In our room, the desk was beside the armoire which made that whole space at the end of the bed very crowded. There was little space to put a suitcase anywhere - certainly not in or on any furniture so we used the bit of floor space we had in a place under the windows. The best thing about the room was the bathroom which was decent size and the two almost ceiling to floor windows which overlooked the street in the front. My sister had a superior also on the floor above us and it was just about the same - hers may have been a little bit larger so I think superior rooms may differ in size. By the way, our room could have used a good cleaning. The furniture and drapes were very dusty.

If the Madison doesn't work out for us in July due to construction or other problems, I will not stay at the Le Regent. I will begin our search all over again!

Hope this helps you, Underhill.

Sorry, Underhill, I thought you were referring to a reference on TA about LeRegent, but I couldn't find that one.

I guess Marianna felt differently than I about the rooms at Le Regent. The two of us (both full sized men) had no problem passing each other or getting in each other's way. As I recall we emptied both our suitcases and put all our clothes in the large armoire (built-in) and many drawers and stashed the empty luggage them on top or under the bed. I don't like living out of a suitcase when staying somewhere for a few days (actually I think we were there a week, both times), so a place to put an open suitcase was not an issue, except I guess we put them on the bed while we unpacked them. Was it palatial and grandly spacious? NO! Was it as large as our rooms at Relais St. Germaine or the top floor at Parc Severin? NO! But it was about half the price of either of those, so I didn't expect it to be.
And it was about double the size of the room we had at the Libertel by D'Orsay, which cost us as much as LeRegent.

I just heard from the very nice Luxembourg Parc that they are fully booked for September--bad month because of the fashion shows. On to the next! We're travelling with a friend, which means we'll need 2 rooms. Our favorite hotel on the Right Bank was full up months ago, even though they told me to wait until 4 months in advance--go figure.

Meanwhile, I'm waiting to hear from our friends in Paris about the Madison, and I hope it's good news of some kind. I hate the thought that the hotel ain't what it was.

Riverchick, you could check out www.ratestogo.com.

The Hotel de Fleurie is available for your dates at 150E for a double room w/queen bed. The hotel is in the same neighborhood as the Madison, although I think the rooms may be smaller. We haven't stayed there in a couple of years but the reviews on trip advisor look good. Here's the hotel's website:

http://www.hotel-de-fleurie.tm.fr/

Good luck!

Thanks so much to everyone for your prompt and informative messages. We may be masochists, but we've decided to stick with the Madison. There are several hotels with availability while we are there, so worst case scenario we stay there for the necessary 48 hours for cancellation and then move on to a room we will be able to see before reserving. I am hoping for the best as this trip has a lot of sentimental and emotional meaning for my mother, whom I am treating.
I will do my best to remember to post an update as soon as possible after my return (on the 21st).
Bon Voyage.
Any further info, comments from someone who has been to the Madison in the last few months would be greatly appreciated.
I am keeping my sense of humor and perspective. I bet there are many that would kill to have such problems -- what hotel to stay in while in Paris.

Riverchick, you have a terrific attitude! I'm sure you, and your mom, will have a delightful time in Paris. Enjoy, Maureen

Hi Riverchick,

Have a wonderful trip - I leave on the 22nd and am still booked at the Madison - not sure yet what to do. Would love to hear what you think. I'm trying to think positive and hoping we won't have to listen hammers and buzz-saws at 6 am.

Oops...Riverchick,

I did see that Villa St. Germaine (4 stars) on Rue Jacob (right up the street) had superior rooms for 210E. It looks like an ultra-modern hotel so not sure if you would like that style but could be an alternative to Madison - it's right up the street. Don't know anything about it but some reviews looked good.

Riverchick,

Good plan--at this time of the year you shouldn't have too much trouble moving if you don't like what you find.

I'm making alternate plans for September in case our friends' reports indicate that we would do better elsewhere.

Bon voyage!

Underhill, what hotel is your favorite on the Right Bank? By the way, I emailed the Le Madison last night asking about the construction and I received a reply today. I was told that the construction began in February and will be done by the time we are there in July.

Riverchick, I will be looking forward to your information upon your return from Paris. Have a fabulous time!

Our favorite hotel on the RB is the Mansart, just off the Place Vendôme and backing up to one wing of the Ritz. We'd be staying there if the hotel weren't fully booked with regulars who come for the Paris fashion shows. The superior doubles and twins are really good sized, with large tiled bathrooms, and have lovely old furniture. However, I've heard one comment that things are beginning to get a little shabby; we haven't been there for 2 years, but everything looked nice on our last visit.

I love the area. There's a pharmacy just across from the hotel, a post office a few doors down, and a shop that offers very good pastries and sandwiches. The area is fun to explore; one of our favorite restaurants, Le Soufflé, is about 2 blocks away, and the Tuileries are 3 blocks. The hotel does a nice breakfast, with seconds and thirds on croissants and pains au chocolat and fresh fruit, but we often walk the 3 blocks over to the Place du Marché St-Honoré and have breakfast at the wonderful Le Pain Quotidien.

One of our Paris friends is going over the Le Madison tomorrow to suss it out, as she lives in the area. I'm eagerly awaiting her report. Meanwhile, I booked us into Les Rives de Nôtre-Dame and just might switch in any event, just to stay somewhere with a view. The hotel's web site shows all the rooms, and any one would do nicely: very pretty and individual. There are views over the Seine to Nôtre-Dame.

What was the tone of the e-mail from the Madison like?

Hi,

I have e-mailed them too asking if they provide an explanation for all the negative reviews and what the status is of the construction. No answer yet.

Years ago I was working in a building that was undergoing a major seismic retrofit of all 9 floors. The very, very noisy work (jackhammering and such) went on all day while we employees tried to work, and I still remember the stress level.

I wonder how long the noisy construction at the hotel has been going on and whether the staff might be suffering from the resultant stress.

Just a possible explanation for the unhelpfulness.

Marianna,

I just looked at the Gayot reviews of the Mansart, and the hotel was given 3 golden keys--both the Madison (3*) and Les Rives de Nôtre-Dame (4*) received only two.

One caution about the Mansart: I don't know whether all the rooms yet have a/c.