Hotel Henri IV Rive Gauche in Paris?
 

Hi
I’m planning to come to Paris by late august for my honeymoon. I booked in Hotel Henri IV Rive Gauche for 6 days with free cancellation. Does anyone know about this hotel? I want some honest reviews. Booking and TripAdvisor both give a high rating for the property but I don’t want to rely solely on them. I’d appreciate your advice.

Sorry there seems to be two Henry hotels, the one I book at is not River Gauche but the Residence Henri IV. Anyone knows about his hotel?

It has been a few years, but, my family stayed there three times on three separate trips. The hotel is on a small street, so it feels private, quiet. The decor is very pretty and the location in the 5th is central.....great bakery close by, small park outside the door, Metro close by.............they would stay there again.

The location is ok, I always look for metro close by. A little stodgy looking for me. I am a minimalist, more fluff means more dust. 6 nights would get you a great apartment. Just look for a registration number. But to answer the question and not my opinion I have never stayed there. You have two unis close by so lots of young people. A honeymoon in Paris is a great choice

I’m having second thoughts, I think I prefer to stay at series hotels such as Le Meridien Etoile. It charges the same price as Henry IV but much better rooms and more modern. Yes it’s not in the center, but it’s only 15 minutes by metro from most attractions, and it’s close to Champs-Élysées. What do you think?

Hotel Residence Henri IV has a great location for a tourist stay. You can walk to numerous restaurants, the Metro, and several important tourist sites. There are numerous normal shops and a pharmacy nearby, a real neighborhood, not a business district. A hotel that is "15 minutes by Metro" from your desired sites is more than 15 minutes, as you need to walk to the Metro and wait for a train. In addition, if you want to make a quick stop at your room during the day, that's an hour wasted round trip with associated waits and walks. I seriously considered it for our last trip to Paris but decided on the much more modern Hotel Atmospheres, a few blocks away, but its website indicates it is closed.

Thanks for your insightful reply. I’m really hesitant now which hotel I should pick. I mean Residence Henry IV is at a great location, but I’m thinking this is a honeymoon and maybe the room should be nicer than this. I will have a hard time deciding 🙂.

Please If you have any other hotel suggestions, I’m open to hear them. My budget is 150-200 euros per night

I don't know what you find lacking in the rooms at this hotel. This is my kind of place... small, boutique-y, charming decor, great central location. As long as reviews are positive, I'd stay there in a heartbeat.

I find most of the larger chain hotels fairly impersonal and way too big for me. Decor often feels chain/corporate and looks like you could be anywhere rather than representative of where you are. A Marriott is a Marriott is a Marriott, if you know what I mean. Le Meridian (Marriott) Etoile is adjacent to the convention center, so its target market is conventioneers and not honeymooners.

Thank you Jean for your reply.

Maybe because I only stayed in chain hotels in my travels, I don’t know if I’ll like the boutique hotels. I currently have the two hotels booked just in case. From your experience, do you think the Residence Henry IV is suitable? Or maybe you have a better recommendation?

If it were me, it's a no-brainer. I think Residence Henry IV looks like a charming place in a FAR better location than Le Meridien Etoile. I much prefer the small, boutique-style hotel over the less intimate chain hotels. And the location of the Meridien is just not that convenient.

I love the area close to Jardin du Luxembourg and have stayed in an Airbnb (with license) in that area. There's a lovely hotel, Hotel L'Abbaye, but it is much pricier than Residence Henry IV. For the money and the location the Residence would be a lovely place to stay on a honeymoon. I wouldn't care for the Meridien.

Let's think, stay in a branch of Marriot or a boutique hotel in Paris?

I struggle to think staying in the Marriot is a likely choice.

People don't get married in business attire. You wear special clothes, perhaps a one time dress up. Honeymoons should not be in a business "attire" hotel either. You both will remember the Henri IV. No one remembers a chain hotel. And if you tell Henri IV it's your honeymoon, expect special treatment.

Thank you all for your insightful replies.

So I guess everyone think it’s a no brainer that the boutique is a he obvious choice, I think you’ve changed my mind and I’ll go with it.

brogol suggested Hôtel de l'Abbaye Saint Germain, I looked at it and it’s really amazing. It seems exactly what I’m looking for, cute rooms and nice garden with a beautiful view from the room. However, it’s about 500 euros more for the whole stay compared to Residence Henry IV.

I’m considering booking it but do you think it’s worth the extra 500?

Thanks again for your great help.

I am one of those people who tends to prefer chain hotels in many circumstances, because I like modern plumbing, air conditioning and heating that works, new mattresses and bedding, double glazed windows, a nice modern television with a large choice of channels, a buffet breakfast worthy of the name.... and quite a few other things regarding amenities and staff competence. Yes, some boutique hotels fit the criteria but it's rather hit and miss.

As for hotels in Paris, I don't have the slightest idea since I have lived here for 48 years. I've seen lots of friends' hotel rooms and was very rarely impressed, either in modern places or boutique hotels. One place that impressed me was the Westin Paris Vendôme, but that's kind of normal considering the rates and the fact that it was a "junior suite."

It's been many years since we stayed in this hotel, but looking at the website it looks even nicer now. It's called Le Notre Dam Hotel and faces the Seine and the cathedral. Link below, looks to be in your price range but I notice there's a warning they are receiving when I first pull up the website but then it seems you can book them. Check it out.

https://hotelnotredameparis.com/

I'm not sure I could bear staying in a hotel with 'unparalleled views of Notre Dame Cathedral' just now (even if they are taking bookings). It would just be too sad for me with all the scaffolding/damage. I'd want to walk by maybe once to see how things are progressing, but I'd hate for a constant reminder of the fire every day.

YMMV

I kind of agree, janis. It is the most depressing sight in Paris.

Okay, so I might have forgotten that little detail. No wonder the prices were so reasonable. We used to have lots of Paris hotel threads on this site...

Here's another place we stayed a few years ago by l'Arc de Triomphe:
https://www.regencia.com/en/

We stayed at the Residence Henri several years ago and loved it. We had a top floor room with a tiny balcony, overlooking the neighboring park. The view out the bathroom was over the rooftops. I think it would be lovely.

If you’re concerned about location, how about the Hotel Brittanique? It’s on a quieter street right off the Chatelet Metro stop - you cannot get any more “central” than that. We stayed there in the smallest room (which I would not recommend, I’d upgrade to a larger one). It’s a very nice, classic boutique hotel.

whatever you decide, I would book fast - sounds like you’re almost ready to leave.

https://www.hotel-britannique.fr/en/

OK, forget whatever I said before, I just took a look at the Hotel de l’Abbaye - the garden alone would make me go there. In fact I’m marking it for a future trip. If it were me, I would spend the extra and stay there.

now you have to write and tell us all where you ended up! And what your experience was. Have a beautiful wedding and honeymoon, sincerest congratulations! I am sure that wherever you stay it will be perfect.

Thank you all for the very helpful replies.

Iwan2go, that’s exactly what I did. I just finalized my booking at the Hôtel de l'Abbaye. It really looks very nice, unique, and in a great location. This made me even more excited for my honeymoon.

I’m glad that I posted here and you really gave me insightful suggestions.

Thank you very much,
Ali.

Have a wonderful time! Everyone here on Fodors is so helpful - I saw some of your other questions/ answers. Congratulations.

Congratulations Ali91, best wishes and have a wonderful honeymoon! Your choice of hotel sounds perfect and I’m sure you’ll enjoy Paris and all it has to offer. I too will make note of Hôtel de l’Abbaye for a future trip…

Ali,
Congratulations! I’m glad you made a decision that you’re comfortable with. And I also felt that a honeymoon is worth spending the money for! You can watch the budget on the next trip, but enjoy this one as fully as possible!

🎉🎉🎉

Oh yes I feel satisfied with my decision. Thank you for suggesting the hotel in the first place. Fodors is really a great community with great and helpful people, thank you all.

It's what we do.

Have a great trip!

Have a wonderful trip!!!

good travels

Hoping you get a lot of cash for the wedding to cover the cost. I am frugal betty but this is your honeymoon! This is less fussy and beautiful area.

That looks like a great choice!! Just a heads up that Paris has some of the smallest hotel rooms for the money, so don't be surprised by the size of the rooms; but that is the case pretty much everwhere in the area. Have a great trip!

Thank you all for your congrats.

I’m aware but actually I don’t mind the small rooms as long they have a nice vibe to them. Thanks for the heads up.

Hi Ali, two tings:
Ting One: Hotel St. Paul on the Left Bank used to have a 'free extra day' policy, according to Sawdays. We once tried that, but the staffer who handled our email inquiry claimed to know nothing about the deal. Oddly, the manager themself sent their own email reply to us about 3 days later, but by then we'd already decided to rent instead of going the hotel route. Dunno whether they still offer that same deal, but wouldn't hurt to check.

Ting Two: The original Henri IV hotel, aka The Henri 'Cat'. Sweet Jayzus. It used to be in lovely Place Dauphine til 2015, when it closed permanently for renos. Afterwards it became private residences.
I say 'Sweet Jayzus' above coz the hotel was a classic, no-star dump. In '94, we paid 195 francs and that was a ripoff by any measure. The washrooms were accessed by an ancient outdoors, spindly staircase. The mattresses were lumpy, the floor seemed tilted (it was--editor). The so-called breakfast was beneath the 'continental' status.

But the main thing that travelers used to recall was the evil manager woman. She used to spew verbal abuse onto every. single. guest. God Help You if you were foolish enough to request say, a new pillow, or a repaired whatever. We used to get up early enough to be the first down to the breakfast room, solely so we could witness her rude rants from the front desk, aimed at unsuspecting, half-awake guests as they stumbled down the stairs.
"WHADDYA' MEAN YOU WANNA MORE TOILET PAPERZ?! CHILDRENS DYING AFRICA AND YOU COME TO ME WITH THEES?!!"
Classic.
Absolutely fantastic location mind you, in that wonderful leafy square.
I am done. The end.

I know that place! It's the reason I originally checked out this thread. Due to friends' recommendation, we had reserved rooms to stay here back in the late 80s. When we arrived our room was not ready but they let us take our luggage to the room, big mistake. My husband took one look and said, "The reason I work is so that I don't have to stay in places like this." We found another hotel close by and left. So glad we did. What a dump! And we don't take that friend's hotel recs anymore.

That's a good choice. I wouldn't rate the Henri IV Residence as highly as some people on here. I have this personal thing that I pretty much refuse to book any hotel that puts the TV up in the corner near the ceiling, which I think is tacky (and you can't view it like that), reminds me of a real cheap hotel. Usually hotels do that because the rooms are so small they can't even spare a couple inches at the end of the bed. IN this case, it doesn't make sense as they put a mirror at the end of the bed, which is bizarre, and the TV in the corner near the ceiling. The room size is big enough that they shouldn't have to do that. I think it's because that is a queen size bed, I usually stay in a hotel wiht a room a little smaller and even they just put the TV on the wall at the foot of the bed, nowadays with screens so slim, no reason you can't do that.

I don't really care for the location of the Henri IV< either, that street is kind of weird at that location (sort of hilly), and it's not near a lot of restaurants. .It's an uphill several blocks from the closest metro stop. I think the Abbaye is a better location.

Maybe I'm in the minority, but in the US I stay in Hyatts, Marriotts, and all the rest, so why would I stay in a similar generic modern hotel when in Paris? When in Paris I look for charm, character, even if it means slightly smaller rooms and quirky atmosphere. That's what I love about traveling -- being somewhere that isn't like home.

L'Abbaye is a great choice.

Thin,aristocrat 🦌

I have stayed at l'Abbaye at least 20 times. You will love it.

I am late to this thread.. The hotel you have booked looks really lovely.
I stayed at Hotel Residence Henri IV back in 2013. so some time ago. The hotel was fine. It was in a really good spot because it was walkable to pretty much all the tourist sites.
But I think you can find better for your honeymoon - which it looks as if you did.

have a wonderful trip.