mom04

I have found two apartments that we are interested in. We are leaning towards the st. Denis apartment. We come a very multicultural city and are not bothered by much. Do you think we are ok?

gomiki

I wouldn't want to be that far out of the central city. It's
nice to be close enough to go back to the hotel/apartment easily.

Kathie

St Denis is at the very end of the metro line, so it would take time to get anywhere. Personally, I would find that bothersome. No question, this is a poorer part of the city. This was the only area where we saw fighting in the metro station and some aggressive panhandling. I didn't feel unsafe, but I wonder how it feels in the evening there.

adrienne

It depends on the type of experience you're looking for. If this is your first visit to Paris and you want to see traditional sights, located near the Seine, and you're only in Paris for a short time (5 days or less) then you'll want something more central.

If you're on a tight budget and don't mind traveling or want a less tourist experience then the areas are fine.

It would help to give links to the apartments as Montmartre covers a large area and St. Denis is a town. There may be areas that are not the best and you would need someone local to provide input.

kerouac

Are you talking about the suburb of Saint Denis, the rue Saint Denis or the Faubourg Saint Denis?

mom04

The apartment is in the town of st. Denis. It is on Rue Dezobry. We have been to Paris before and are not to concerned about being in the heart of Paris. We also have a large group and are staying for nine days, so we need to be comfortable, if we chose not to be out and about.

kerouac

In that case, Saint Denis is perfectly fine as well as being a more interesting location that a lot of places inside Paris.

Christina

Is it near the river and the RER stop? It's cheaper to take the metro actually, but that's too far to the metro stop. By RER, it's in zone 3, but just a regular metro ticket if you take the metro as those are good on any metro stop. That's kind of a grim area IMO, nothing very attractive around there (near the RER stop and to the immediate east of it).

I'd probably pick Montmartre, what's that location?

mom04

The other is on Rue Lagille.

mom04

The reviews for
Both places are very good.

kerouac

I maintain that Saint Denis will provide a much more enriched cultural experience and should be perfect for people coming from a "multicultural" city.

nukesafe

And you don't want to share links to them because ---?

mom04

I am very technically inept and none of my computer experts are home right now.

kerouac

Frankly, I would not share links either. There are far too many busybodies who insist on taking control of a lot of these trips to Paris.

Dukey1

Your questions have been answered; there is no need to share any links since we already know the sections you are interested in. What good would sharing a link do? Have a great trip.

mom04

Thank you. I am thinking this may be one of the last trips we take as a complete family. My children have a large age range, and it is getting harder and harder to be together without someone have other commitments.
I always worry until the major parts are in order (travel and accommodation).
You have all helped with that tremendously. Thank you.

Ackislander

We went to St Denis on our last trip to see the Cathedral, but we stayed to enjoy the town.

As we turned the corner from the Metro into the square, a bride in white ran past us on her way to the Mairie, late for her own wedding!

As we approached, we heard a brass band playing and lots of shouting. Oh, no, a greve! Oh, no, an anti-American demonstration!

No, it was a community parade, with everyone from Boy Scouts to a Pilates Club, marching through the town. Our waitress at the cafe fronting the plaza had lived in California for six months and wanted to practice her English while we practiced French. When the lunch crowd was gone, she sat down at the table with us to chat,

In the Cathedral, a group of adults from a variety of cultures was being prepared for their First Communion.

Would I recommend it to someone from a small town or a wealthy suburb? If you are comfortable being a member of a minority, go for it!

Christina

The area near the RER isn't like the area around the basilica at all IMO, though. St Denis is large, that's the problem with these questions. Someone has been on a street around the cathedral and assume all of St Denis is like that. It isn't an issue of minorities, it's that some areas are not very nice nor scenic nor pleasant. I don't call that interesting, but I live in a big city and don't find going into crummy, dull parts of town with graffiti and no green spaces, etc., to be interesting.

TDudette

In terms of convenience, both places have challenges. Metro to St. Denis, if I recall correctly, was not a straight shot from our Montparnasse location.

We took metro to Montmartre and had some uphill walks that were difficult for my breathing issues.

Otherwise, I think Montmartre would be slightly closer to the sites. mom04, you wrote that you've been to Paris before. Are the kinds of things you envision doing this time independent of the location?

kerouac, would there be more convenient shopping for food and supplies in St. Denis?