My sister in law and I will be taking our 4 daughters (ages 18-22) to Paris for 5 days at the end of February. It will be our first trip to Paris. I would appreciate suggestions for getting the most our of a 5 day 4 night stay over a weekend. Information on sites we should not miss, hotel suggestions, restaurants and shopping would be very much appreciated. M

I hate to be repetitive- but if you do a search above you will find both a bunch of threads on doing Paris with teens - and a destintion guide that will give you a starting point on all the basics of what to see and do.


For hotels and restaurants - if you give us some idea of you price range and arrangements (are you lookng for 2 triple rooms or 3 doubles?) people can be much more helpful.'

And if you give some idea of your special interests ( history, churches, fine dining, dance, designer shopping, bargain shopping ????) people can make specific suggestions to match them.

While waiting for more personal recommendations, you might read through Fodor's information on Paris, if you have not already. Click on "Destinations".

I will do the search you recommend. We would be interested in bargain shopping and moderately priced hotels. I would also be interested in quaint cafes over fine dining. I am sure the girls would be interested in night life like dancing with kids their age. We want to see museums, churches but we know we can only hit the hightlights and don't want to exhaust ourselves trying to see too many attractions. We just want to be able to enjoy the sites of the city. Hope this helps. M

Hi MB,

>...moderately priced hotels.

what's your budget?

>... bargain shopping

For what?

The Batobus is a nice way to see the city from a different viewpoint.

www.batobus.com

You might want to look for an apartment for the 6 of you. Many are available for less than a week, particularly in February which is certainly not high season. It could be cheaper and more comfortable. There are millions (only slight exagerration) of threads on here about paris apartments if you are interested.
The best thing about Paris is walking the beautiful streets and absorbing it all. having said that, you should get a map of the metro and make sure that wherever you stay, you are near a Metro stop. In February you may have cold and rain, and the metro suystem is wonderful.

Margaret...I have stayed at the small Hotel Le Regent several times. The location on the Left Bank is close to many attractions, especially Notre Dame Cathedral. Hotel Britannique is also a good choice...good central location. With such a large group though you may want something like Hotel Mayfair...roomier buy more expensive. The choices though are endless. ~Lisi

I would not recommend an apartment unless it had at least two full bathrooms if there are 6 women going on this trip. Also be aware that apartments in Paris are usually very small (sq. footage) and pictures taken for websites usually reflect the widest angle possible. We have family in Paris and I've been in alot of apartments visiting people. While apartments can be fun (you have kitchen to prepare snacks, etc.) I would not bother for a short stay of 4 nights.

I personally think you would be better off with a couple of hotel rooms, each with it's own bathroom. You can find triple occupancy rooms - 3 (or however you choose to split your group up) will still give you 2 bathrooms.

You really need to define your budget, it is impossible to recommend anything accurately if there is no advance knowledge of what you want to spend. Remember, to one person $100 is a fortune, to another $1,000, etc. etc.

Even tho I do not know your budget I will make a couple of recommendations. If you want to stay in the 7th Arr. I can recommend Hotel Relais Bosquet which is very close to Ecole Militaire Metro stop and within walking distance of the Eiffel Tower. We had a room facing the street (no noise) and it was billed as a "superior room", which meant it was slightly larger then standard. The bathroom was nicely done too. No matter where you stay in Paris you will NOT be near all the sights and/or shopping. The Metro will get you places fast tho. Also in the 7th is Hotel Muguet, Hotel Champs de Mars, Hotel de Cadron to name a few, all near Rue Cler. All are small hotels but in a great location. All these hotels have websites and English speaking staff (if that is an issue).

If your group is more inclined to large American style hotels the Holiday Inn Republique is marvelous. From the outside it appears to look like a chateau and it is a historical building. The inside is very pleasant and comfortable. Room sizes vary, we got an upgrade so our room was slightly larger then some of the others we saw but in general the hotel is very comfortable. 5 Metro lines connect right outside in the plaza so it is easy to get places without changing lines. (several cafes, a McDonald's etc. are in the plaza as well). We had the included buffet breakfast plan which was a regular American style buffet. Large eaters may appreciate this as it will surely hold you till dinner time . Reservations can be made on website or 800 number.

The Best Western chain has many affiliated hotels in Paris - they are all individually owned so the vary in accommodations. It is very easy to make reservations on their website or 800 number.

For shopping I personally like the large department stores, i.e. Galleries Lafayette, Au Printemps. You can wander around forever in them.