A friend of ours who is from and lives in the Jura Mountains of France suggested that we stay in an Ibis Hotel chain hotel while we stay in Paris. Does anyone have any experience with these hotels? There seem to be a few in Paris. Which, if any, would you recommend or should we not stay in any of the chain's locations while in the city? Thanks.

I don't think any of them are in the best area. think of them as the "Motel 6" of France.

Some are in pretty good areas - like the Ibis Grands Boulevards and the Ibis Bastille.

But it's also quite possible you can find a Mercure or Novotel, which are somewhat nicer hotels in the same corporate family, for a cheap price too.

Try www.accorhotels.com to get a list of all possibilities in this company.

It is rare to find room photos of an Ibis hotel, but here is one (the style is pretty standard/consistent):

http://www.parisby.com/ibisconvention/index.html

My guess is your friend thinks because you're American you want this type of chain hotel - I've known lots of French people who have this attitude. Not that there's anything wrong with it, if that's indeed what you want.

But is it? Why not stay in a charming non-chain Paris hotel? You don't have to pay more to do so.

We've stayed in quite a few Ibis hotels
out of necessity - but nary a one would I want to return to! I'd upgrade
to a Mercure or Novotel for sure.

<I don't think any of them are in the best area. think of them as the "Motel 6" of France.>

proof of why you don't want to put much stock in things you hear on the Internet

Ibis are on par with Holiday Inns, not Motel 6, which accor hotels also owns in addition to much more upscale Ibis.

And some are in great areas - and all offer depenkdably modern clean rooms - they8 are not the proverbial Latin Quarter small non-chain hotels but also have dependable modern facilities like great showers, etc.

IMO Ibis hotels are amongst the greatest bargain for what they offer not only in Paris but many other European cities www.accorhotels.com or www.ibishotels.com

richarbab has not actually stayed in Ibis hotels, many centrally located to make such a ludicrous statement - anyway that's my take on it

This chain is part of the Accor group, which has a range of hotels in differing standards. I also consider Ibis to be a bargain - always clean, modern facilities and sure, the rooms are generic, but that may be just right for the time and the place. We too stay in a variety of different places - some charming, some luxurious and some basic.

We have stayed in the Ibis in Paris and it suited us just fine at the time.You can be assured of the standard of accomodation.

Accor actually owns Motel 6 too!

Ibis is not Holiday Inn. Holiday Inns in the US are mostly 3* hotels. Which is really similar to Mercure in the Accor group.

Ibises are more simply. I actually think they are equivalent to Motel 6 here, most of which are quite acceptable, despite some people's poor opinion of them. I think most will find that they're not as nice as Holiday Inn Expresses (known as Express by Holiday Inn in Europe and elsewhere).

We have stayed in Ibis hotels in many parts of France and have not been disappointed one time. True, they lack the charm of a many non-chain hotels but we have found them to be consistently clean and comfortable, with a friendly and knowledgeable staff and one of the best breakfast buffets in France. However, in Paris, I would opt for a nice non-chain hotel in the center of town. Thats part of the charm of Paris.

Agree Totally with reglann above. And I personally equate Ibis with Holiday Inn more than a Motel 6.

When on the road continuously, we tend to stay at an Ibis every 3rd to 4th day because "you know what you're getting" and they have always had internet access in the room (we take our laptop). This is not the case in most of the hotels "with character/charm" in the smaller towns...they just aren't wired right in these older buildings. And we definitely like using our laptop.

For me in Paris, I stay in a one starred cheapie that oozes character because that's how I like to experience Paris...it "fits" my image and expectations of that city...not as comfortable (no a/c or elevator), but lots of fun to experience.

I have question for those Fodorites that are familiar with the Ibis Hotels: are they similar to Arcade hotels?. We have used the Arcade Hotels, many times when traveling with our children many years ago. In Paris, in Place Cambrone.
I used to like very much the Arcade Hotels, having stayed in all France and some cities in Germany.
Now with the Euro going up I might need to stay again in similar hotels, so I shall appreciate if someone can give me a clue about this.

Ibis Hotels are indeed quite similar to Arcade Hotels -- since all of the Arcade hotels have been rebranded Ibis. The Arcade name disappeared at least 10 years ago.

There are 55 Ibis Hotels in Paris. Most but not all of them are renovated older hotels, so they can have some quirky rooms -- sometimes much larger than a standard Ibis room. Others are the standard format modern Ibis hotels that one can find all over the place. The Ibis hotels in Paris are quite variable in price depending on the location -- from over 100€ a night down to 55-60€. You will see the variations on the Accor Hotels site.

I've seen some Ibis hotels listed as 2* and others as 3*, also some have A/C while others do not.

This past May, I spent 4 nights at an Ibis hotel just off the Place d' Italie (Av. Stephen Pichon). Luxurious it isn't, but if you want a place to sleep with a small measure of comfort and a cheap but filling breakfast, then the Ibis hotels are fine. I have stayed at the Lutetia, the Brighton and other expensive hotels on those occasions when I am traveling with my significant other.

Otherwise when on my own, the Ibis hotel I felt was just fine; about 80 Euros a night

The Accor chain of hotels are my hotels of choice throughout France. I have stayed at many many Ibis hotels. You can always count on a very clean room, great bathrooms (no tub just showers)cable tv with one English language channel, wi-fi internet service available for a charge throughout hotel and a better than average breakfast buffet for a very modest price. I have also used many Mercure, Novotel, Etaps and a couple Formulaire 1 hotels. The rooms at Ibis are identical at all the hotels. Another advantage is you can cancel right up until 6:00 pm day of arrival.

Larry J

I've stayed in a few Ibis hotels (Lyon and Carcassone) which had little to no character. The two I stayed in had hard uncomfortable beds as well. They are considered mostly budget two star accommodation.

I've had better luck with the same chain (Resinter) in their more upscale choices of Mecure which are similar in quality to Holiday Inn and the Sofitel which would be 4 star quality.

I think there are some better choices in the budget category in Paris. It would be nice to have something with a little local character.

Most of us in France are just happy not to be faced with the faded flowery wallpaper of what is called a "hôtel de sous-préfecture" -- somewhat akin to the Bates Motel in Psycho.

ETAP would be a more equivalent of Motel 6 in France - IBIS IME is better than Motel 6 - especially in that the lobbies have shops and restaurants.

Formule I in France is the lowest accor hotels - they share wc facilities with other rooms.

To equate Ibis with Motel 6 is silly, although Motel 6 may have revamped themselves in folks' minds they are still the bottom of the motel barrel - not so Ibis in Europe.

One nice thing about IBIS for rail travelers is that it seems there is often an IBIS near the train station.

Like in Nice and Amsterdam the IBIS is right on an extension of the platforms - so even though not the proverbial quaint hotel it can be so convenient for rail travelers.

And at times, esp on weekends, when their usual business clientele is not there i guess, IBIS can offer reduced rates that are especially attractive.