MsLimit

Hello All, a group of girls I went to high school with are heading to London for my birthday but I wanted to spend my actual Bday in Paris. This is our first trip to Europe. It's 4 of us.

We fly outta Canada April 10 (night time) and get into London - we are staying with family there for the weekend but come Sunday night or early Monday morn, we would like to head to Paris then to Amsterdam. We have the London part covered just not the rest

We need detail help with where to stay, trains etc and most importantly night life!! We would like to be heading back to London on the Friday tho, April 18 because we come back to Canada on the 21st.

So far we have some info from this site but ANY help at all would be helpful.

Thanks alot oh yea HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERY ONE!!!

jamikins

If you give us a budget and what you need in terms of rooms (2 doubles, 4 singles etc) we can help.

MsLimit

Thanks for your reply Jamikins, my apologies, we are planning on travelling VERY cheap as we would like to spend most of our money shopping!! For rooms, 2 doubles is fine or even a pull out sofa. We saw on a site where ppl were renting entire apts that seemed to interest us. what else can/should I mention?

jamikins

If you give us your exact budget in euros we can give you specific options - otherwise cheap to me may = €200 a night...

janisj

Very cheap could mean anything. What is your actual budget for your accommodation? We can help w/ suggestions but need to know how much you can spend..

janisj

Was posting the same time as jamikins . . .

Mimar

Take the train under the channel from London St. Pancras to Paris. It's just 2.5 hours city center to city center. Buy your tickets (www.eurostar.com) in the next couple weeks for a significant savings.

In Paris you'll probably want to stay in the 6th arrondissement or maybe the 5th. But any more info awaits your answers to jamikins' questions.

One hint: if you make another trip like this, fly into London and fly home out of Paris. It's called an open-jaws (or multi-city) flight and would cost about the same as round-trip while saving the time and expense of returning to London.

jamikins

as usual janisj

MsLimit

AHHH ok...so our budget is €150 to spend o accommodations per nite

PalenQ

Buy your tickets (www.eurostar.com) in the next couple weeks for a significant savings.>

ditto for Thalys trains Paris to Amsterdam - www.thalys.com for much cheaper fares - as low as 39 euros vs full fare of about 100 euros if you just show up.

Both Eurostar and Thalys tickets are non-changeable non-refundable however so be sure of your time and date.

janisj

Is that €150 for all four of you?

This thread lists a lot of budget hotels in Paris :

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ris-france.cfm

bvlenci

Most apartments can't be rented for less than three nights, which may not be possible with your schedule.

To find the cheapest hotels, look for quad rooms. Here are some booking sites that I've used to find cheap lodging:

www.booking.com
www.laterooms.com

You might want also to look into hostels, which sometimes have quad rooms, if you don't want just a bunk in a dorm room. However, for four people, a quad room in a cheap hotel often costs less than four beds in a hostel.

www.hostelworld.com

If you rent apartments, be very careful, just as you would when buying something online. Make sure you find reviews from people who have stayed in the particular apartment. There aren't the kinds of checks and balances in the apartment rental scene that there are for hotels. You basically have to trust the good will of the owner, because the listing agencies take no responsibility. Even if an agency de-lists the apartment after complaints, the owner can easily find a new listing agency, and disguise the identity of the apartment.

MsLimit

Thanks for all your responses - maybe we will opt for an overnight day trip? I read a about one on here as well. Thak you guys so much again

Gretchen

So you have about 7 days between Paris and Amsterdam? 150/night for ALL. Not gonna happen unless it's a hostel. How old are you (approximately--20's, 30's?)
You have a good bit of transport expense the way you've set it up which will eat up your budget.
You also may have a little sticker shock on your shopping. There are few bargains, but it depends on what you're shopping for.

Christina

I assume 150 euro is for 4 people as otherwise someone probably would not call that "very" cheap. So 75 euro for a double, which is VERY cheap. That thread posted above had some options.

I would not recommend St Germain, which is a posh quarter which you most likely can't afford anyway (there are actually a couple cheap hotels in it). I'd suggest for young girls wanting nightlife the Bastille or Oberkampf area over in the 11th arrondisement. If you come by train from London into Gare du Nord, it isn't very far from that, either. Hotels are a lot cheaper, it's a young quarter with lots of nightlife.

Here are some cheaper hotels over that way (but may not reach 75 euro for a double, that is very low--think Marys and Au Royal mad are that rate, though):

http://www.hoteldaval.com/en/

http://marys-paris-hotel.com/

http://www.auroyalmad.fr/

MsLimit

We could increase our accommodation we are late 20's. It's the big 3-0!!! We are setting aside a budget now just for our travel expenses but still not sure how to get from Amsterdam back to London.

when we take the Eurostar to Paris - do you cab to our hotel etc? I also read on here about the Batobus...
Batobus, which allows you to hop on and hop off throughout the day with one ticket. The seven Batobus ports include the Eiffel Tower, Notre-Dame, Hôtel de Ville, Louvre Museum, and Musée d'Orsay. Is there a way to buy advace tickets to the Batobus and also where do we get passes to these ports??

THIS IS OUR 2ND DAY PLAN: Get an early start to avoid crowds at Au Printemps and Galeries-Lafayette, two of the city's grandest historic department stores conveniently side by side behind the Opéra Garnier. Refuel at the Place de la Madeleine, where gourmet food boutiques such as Hédiard and Fauchon offer light deli foods for shoppers on the move. If the luxury boutiques on the Rue Royale aren't rich enough for you, head down the Rue du Faubourg St-Honoré and the Avenue Montaigne (via Avenue Matignon), where you pass the exclusive couture houses of Chanel, Dior, Hermès, and Yves St-Laurent.

SO A REAL QUESTION IS WHERE SHOULD WE STAY TO EASILY GET AROUND TO THESE PLACES? WE HAVEN'T EVEN STARTED LOOKING AT AMSTERDAM YET

MsLimit

WAIT A MIN, are you guys saying that we can't find a decent enough for 150€ a night? That's $200USD no?

Tabernash2

We liked staying in the Latin Quarter (near the Sorbonne), and noticed how much nightlife we encountered because it's a younger crowd who lives there. It wasn't rowdy, just pleasantly lively. We were at the Hotel St Jacques.

Paris is easy to get around, so don't worry about that aspect.

The Batobus is a good idea, and it's relatively cheap. You just buy your pass there. No savings buying in advance. But you do save if you get a multi-day pass. It doesn't run very late at night, so be aware of that.

In Amsterdam, I can recommend the Hotel Residence le Coin. Each room has a kitchenette, and it's very clean and centrally located. Our room was quite large, too. And they have connecting rooms.

Tabernash2

No, you can find a double in that range. I think there was confusion about what you meant, because you'd need two rooms, each at that price, for four.

http://www.paris-hotel-stjacques.com/en/rates

But you will need to book as early as possible for the best rates.

jamikins

You can find a decent place for €150 for one double, two would be pushing it. Check out the thread above about budget hotels in Paris.

Paris is simple to get around. You will likely be using the Metro and buses - you can buy a book of ten tickets for about €12. It will get you everywhere you want to be.

Be sure to choose a hotel in the 1-12ish arrondisments - you dont want to be outside the periphique road.

At your age you may like the Oberkampf area as the cafes are open late and are lots of fun. We always stay in the 11th - you can see my recommendation in the link above.