mah1980

I posted several days ago, requesting the sage advice of posters here, which I received, regarding whether my dh and I's first trip to Europe should be strictly to Paris, or combining the latter with the Loire Valley or Belgium. We have decided that we would like to stay based in Paris all seven nights, with the possibility of one or more day trips to Chartres or Giverny.

I have the miles in dh's AA account, ready to be used towards two bc tickets; but, I'm waiting for the departure date of May 11th to become available. However, I have moved on from the when and where question, and now I'm trying to determine which arrondisement we should stay at during our inaugural trip. Our budget--probably no more than $250 USD/night. The hotels that I'm looking at are the following:

# Henri IV Rive Gauche Hotel
# Hotel Residence Henri IV
# Hotel Jardin de L'Odeon
# Hotel Sainte Beuve
# Hotel de Varenne

As you can see, they are in different areas. I have some trepidation concerning staying in the Latin Quarter as it appears that it may be very hectic. We are in our late 20's but we are pretty settled (read: not partiers) and don't want to be jam packed in the middle of everything. We want to be close to good restaurants and cafes, as wells as the sights, but not too close that we can't relax.

Please give me some recommendations re arrondisement and specific lodging choices. The above referenced hotels were selected as a result of overwhelmingly positive reviews on this forum, as well as tripadvisor.com. Of course, I am open to those not listed above.

Thanks in advance!

sarabeth

We leave for Europe next week and will finish our trip in Paris. We decided on Hotel D'angleterre. My brother travels a lot in France and recommended this hotel..a bit different, great location, rue jacob...see what you think...I'll post when I get back.

robjame

You may want to reconsider the Latin Quarter - I am not sure you have an accurate opinion of this arrondissement.
Unless you have a specific reason to do so, you don't have to spend that much for a hotel in Paris.
We are considerably older than you and love staying in the 5e and spend no more than $100 a night.

marcy_

Since you're going to be there for a week, have you thought about an apartment? You could get a really nice apartment for the price of those hotels, and have a kitchen and a living room.

If you really don't want an apartment, all of those hotels are nice. My first choice of those would probably be the Henri 4 Rive Gauche, partly because it's in a great location, and partly because people here have raved about it.

I don't think it would be too hectic, but you'd have easy access to all the things you want to do.

lmlweb

I stayed in the 5th, and did not find it hectic at all. It is no more hectic than other arrondisements. Blvd St. Germaine is a busy street, but once you're away from it, you'll find it quite quiet, especially if a hotel is on a smaller, quiet streets. Everything is in walking distance.

mah1980

I have considered the idea of renting an apartment as we will be there for a solid week. But, I think that we should do our first trip in a hotel, especially as I don't even cook at home, so I definitely won't in France, lol!

Hotel Residence Henri IV is looking really good due to the little fridge and microwave in each room, and larger room generally. Although we won't cook, it will be nice to come back and have a fridge to put croissants, etc., in.

hdm

Boy, what good timing this post is, mah. We just got back from France last week and we stayed at the Henri IV so I can tell you lots about it.

We loved the location. It's just across the Petit Pont from Notre Dame -- a block from the Seine, and easy walking to other nice neighbourhoods. The hotel is directly across from St Severin church. There's a busy network of streets running between Rue St. Jacques and St Michel but it's pretty well contained and actually quite fun to walk through but I wouldn't bother eating there. At least, we didn't.

The hotel lobby is very pleasant and we were treated well by all the front desk people and bellboys. It's also very clean. There were complimentary newspapers (several languages including English) available in the lobby and a little library. We didn't have breakfast there so I can't comment on that.

Strangely, we actually had four rooms! We were in Paris for a week at the beginning of our three week stay, then we traveled for two weeks, and then came back to the Henri IV for one night before we left for home. We first arrived at the hotel very early. Our flight landed at 6 a.m., the hotel arranged for a car to pick us up (26E for one person, 19E each for more than one person) and we were at the hotel by 7 -- way too early for our room which, as we knew, wasn't going to be ready till noon. We went for a walk, for coffee, browsed around and wasted as much time as we could (found a lovely little market being set up at Rue Monge) but we were so pooped by that time, we just went back to the hotel and sat in the lobby. Around 10:30, Nathalie said that she had been waiting for the room we'd requested but it wasn't going to be available till noon, but she had another room ready -- would we like that one? Of course we said yes. We were on the top floor at the front of the hotel. The room was small and made even smaller by the fact that we were on the top floor and had a bit of a slanted ceiling. It was quite plain but very clean. The bathroom was a good size. We had a lovely view of the top of St Severin church and even the Eiffel Tower. The windows are double glazed and noise was not a problem even though we were on the street side. The only problem was that the air con wasn't working. Nathalie explained that they'd been having a problem with it and that it was being fixed room by room. She was quite happy to move us to our second room (#303) where the ac had been fixed. We lost our view but gained the ac and that was fine with us.

When we returned three weeks later, we were given a lovely room on the front of the hotel on the 4th floor -- little wrought iron balcony and geranium flower boxes; very Parisienne! Only one problem: the ac didn't work in that room! Once again, they were happy to move us and put us in room 404 at the back of the hotel. This is a big room and actually a triple, with the second bed in a sort of little room of its own. We were still charged for a double and happy with the extra space and the ac.

So the moral of this story is the hotel is nice, the location is good, but when you get your room be sure that the ac is working.

If you do stay there, there's an excellent little restaurant a few blocks up Rue St Jacques called Le Perraudin or something similar to that. It's just near Rue Soufflet where the Pantheon is. We went there twice, we liked it so much. It fills up by about 8 so try to get there before that. The duck confit was wonderful, as was the lamb.

Have a wonderful time!

PS. We had minibar fridges in our rooms but no microwaves.

hdm

Sorry, re-reading it occurs to me that I should clarify that it's the Hotel Henri IV Rive Gauche I'm talking about.

bilboburgler

The Latin Quarter is a great name but in the end it is a pretty middle class kinda place so don't worry. It does not mean swarthy night clubs and dark cellars with guttering candles.

travelbunny

another hotel which I think really should be on your list..quiet yet in the 5th- Hotel des Grandes Ecoles.

nancy1652

For your first trip, I would recommend that you do not go to Hotel de Varenne. It's a nice hotel, but the location is not nearly as central as anything in the 5th or 6th. I've also stayed at Hotel Grand des Ecoles, which is wonderful. It's set in a garden back from the street, quite magical. However, you need to reserve far ahead there as it's quite popular. Try to get a room on the garden if you go there.
Otherwise, sounds like Henri IV would be perfect for you.

mah1980

I just looked at the website for Hotel Grand des Ecoles. It looks really nice, and I especially like the fact that it seems like it would be quiet due to the courtyard.

However, there is no overt mention of the rooms having a/c; I'm assuming that means that they do not? Will this pose a problem for an early May trip? I don't think so as I imagine it is in the 50's or so at night.

It appears that for a May trip, the earliest I could reserve a room there would be January 2008.

Teri01

I've been to Paris 4 times in the last 10 years. If there is anything I can reccomend to you, it would be to centralize your hotel in the heart of the city. You'll be surprised how quickly your week will go by. Whether you choose the left or right bank is of little importance overall. Eack arr. has it's own flavor, as you'll soon experience. The left bank, though the student section of the city, is quite delightful.
As to excursions, I would reccomend a day trip to Mont St. Michel. It is absolutely breathtaking. The tour I took a few years ago had a stop in Chartres on the way. You won't be disappointed.

nancy1652

I don't remember Grandes des Ecoles having air conditioning and, you're right, you can only reserve three months in advance due to their popularity. May weather can vary considerably. If you're worried about AC, you probably should book the Henri IV. You could email Grandes des Ecoles and ask them though.

ambesparis

Of all places to visit, I so dreamed of Paris. I returned a few days ago and vow to never go again. Beyond more than disappointing as it was smelly, dirty, dog feces all over and the most important thing was how rude all the workers were. I wouldnt waste my money. We stayed in thge 7th but traveled all over. Same thing everywhere. So sorry I went.

robjame

ambesparis - so sorry you had that experience... more room for the rest of us
(please change your screen name to ambes[insert your favorite city])

travelbunny

ambesparis, please post a trip report..and dont give up on Paris. I disliked it on my first visit and warmed up to it on my second. I subsequently lived there and now go back frequently. I know in my case why my first trip was a bit of a bust. Perhaps we could critique your report and give you suggestions. In addition, hearing about the bad is as impt IMO as hearing about the good.

StCirq

The Latin Quarter really isn't much more hectic than many other parts of Paris, and it's quite central, so I wouldn't give up on the idea of staying there.

Personally, I prefer the 7th arrondissement, but that's just become my favorite over many, many years to traveling to Paris.

But what truly concerns me is your mention of putting croissants in the fridge. Please....no matter what arrondissement you end up in, do not put the croissants in the fridge! They are meant to be devoured immediately while warm and should never be exposed to cold temperatures!

mah1980

I will take pains to make sure that we do not at any point in our trip put croissants in the fridge. That would be so very pedestrian of us.

I talked to my husband about the A/C issue, and he doesn't want to take any chances in the event of a freak 90 degree heat wave. We will probably book Henri IV Rive Gauche for the trip, but I'm still looking. Grandes Ecoles and Residence Henri IV both lack A/C, so they are out.

hdm

mmmm...croissants...mmmm!

We definitely needed the AC in May. Partially because of the weather, partially because Paris hotel rooms are small, and partially because it's too noisy for us if we keep the windows open (it was absolutely silent with them closed).

I assume Henri's AC will be all fixed by next year but remember to ask just in case. And the location was great.