Anyone have any information on whether or not Kyriad Republique is a good hotel? First time tourists to Paris for 5 days... Is it a nice hotel? Is it in a good location for tourist-ing?

Kyriad Republique
11e Arrondissement
39,Rue Jean Pierre Timbaud

Hi... and welcome to the forum.

The search function here can be useful, and sometimes it turns up some useful information when used with less specificity than you might otherwise think to try.

A search on "Kyriad" here retrieves a number of reports on the considerable number of Kyriad locations in Paris. A consistent theme resonates on the reports: affordable, good value, even if not "special". Other locations might be a tad better I did not try to determine distance to a metro stop which is often one of the most important criteria.

The website tripadvisor.com can be more useful than anything you find here on Fodors - - although for this specific location there is only a single review. Fairly glowing though - - focused more on nice design for a (relatively) budget hotel, but the reviewer does have fairly favorable comments on the location as well.

Best wishes,

Rex

I know the address well. Rue Jean Pierre Timbaud runs east-west from the Marais to Boulevard Belleville.

There are no major tourist sites nearby (though you can walk from the hotel to the Canal St. Martin, with cobblestobne quays, footbridges and locks). There are several nice and reasonably priced restaurants, including the Astier, across the street from the hotel. The public transportation is good, with the Republic, Oberkampf, Parmentier and Goncourt stations walkable from the hotel.

Perhaps you were considering this hotel for its price. If so, you may also want to take at look at the next-door Cosmos, a nice, family-run hotel with double rooms for 55 euros per night.

http://www.cosmos-hotel-paris.com/

In either case, you would not be in the heart of Paris that comes to foreigner's minds, but you would be in a "real" and interesting Paris neighborhood, where you would be more of a curiosity than a "nuisance" to people you meet, and with good transportation links to tourist sights.

Just to add: I have been in that hotel after it was opened, following a total reconstruction, but before it became a Kyriad. The rooms are small, even by Paris standards - so think tiny. But in that long-ago time they were bright and pleasant enough. Having seen other Paris hotels in the Kyriad group, I expect that's still the case. Nevertheless, for value, the Cosmos stands out.

While I have not been to either Kyriad or Cosmos hotels, I agree that the neighbourhood is interesting, one I would be happy to come back to. I had a very good time there 6 months ago, staying at the hotel Verlain. Its prices are higher than the two hotels mentioned above, but sometimes it offers discounts on weekends and a 4th night for free during the week. It's a very nice 3-star.
http://www.verlain.fr/index.html

Dave, do you know the Beasejour, on 71 ave. Parmentier? it's now available for reservation on Venere. I know it's been recommended by Routard. Any thoughts?

Hi Keren,

We lived on rue Jean Pierre Timbaud for several years after our arrival in Paris, and still visit the neighhborhood. I've walked past the Beausejour on numerous occasions but have never been inside. A coincidence: I stayed at that address one night a long time ago when it was a "working man's" hotel. Not long afterward, it was gutted and redone. There also is a modest hotel on the Square Gardette whose name escapes me. I like the square, with its greenery and children's playground, though the commerce alongside it has never risen to the level of the site.

Otherwise, the Beausejour would be a bit less convenient for Metro transportation than, say, the Kyriad Republic or the Cosmos, with the Parmentier, Voltaire, and St. Ambroise stations the nearest to the Beausejour. There is some wholesale clothing business creeping up Avenue Parmentier from Place Voltaire, but it's not as overwhelming along that stretch of Parmentier as it is from Metro St. Ambroise to Place Voltaire on Boulevard Voltaire, where there's hardly any other commerce left. Zeroing in one the couple of blocks around the Beausejour compared to Jean Pierre Timbaud between Ave. de La Republic and Ave. Parmentier, I prefer the latter, both for the proximity to Place de La Republic with its transport options, several large and open late brasseries, including the prominent Alsacian Chez Jenny, restuarants like the classic Astier and the less well-known Normandy restuarant Les Fernandaises, and for what I find to be a little more interesting other shops. But neighborhood loyalty can affect judgement.

Hi Dave,
Thanks for your response. I think the hotel you mentioned is the Garden. The square is indeed lovely. I actually prefer the location of the Beausejour to ones closer to République. I enjoyed much more staying in rue St Maur than in rue de Malte, though I'm sure the St Maru hotel being far superiour had much to do with it. I had a fabulous time walking all the way down to Nation from my hotel, passing through Parmentier. One boulangerie looked especially tempting.

Next time I'm probably splurging and staying at the Madeleine-Opera in rue Greffulhe, I would very much like to stay around the Haussman-Miromesnil area once, this is the cheapest hotel I could get there. But I'll probably walk over to the 11th and check the Cosmos and the Beausejour.