Jackiano

Dear Fodorites,
I have been reading posts on cheap Latin Quarter hotels over the last couple of days and have narrowed it down to 4 (all of which are available). I have found alot of info on all of them on this forum but still can't decide which of the following to book:
All for 4 nights
Hotel de la Sorbonne- 75 euros per night
Hotel Cluny Sorbonne- 60 euros per night
Hotel Excelsior- 78 euros per night
Hotel Residence Monge- 84 euros per night
I know that questions like this always get asked and are difficult to respond to and I also know that Fodorites have been asked to compare a couple of these hotels before (and have done so), but as the prices are different for each of the four, I have found it very difficult to make a decision. ANY opinions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks for your help and time,
Regards

ira

Hi J,

How important is saving 15-24E/nite?

Jackiano

Hi Ira,
If the more expensive hotels are alot better then the cost doesn't really matter that much. I'm looking for the best value for money.
Thanks

Travelnut

I would rank them this way:
Hotel Residence Monge
Hotel Cluny Sorbonne
Hotel de la Sorbonne
Hotel Excelsior

Monge will probably have the nicest rooms, and I believe they have a/c if that is applicable. Metro is within a block, and so is a twice-weekly market. And you can walk to rue Mouffetard... You may be able to get a room overlooking the Arenes...

I've read some complaints about how very small the rooms or bathrooms at H.de la Sorbonne were...Someone on Tripadvisor complained about smoky smells...

Eurocheapo mentions Cluny Sorbonne is about equal in comfort but is a bit brighter; baths are dated.

Excelsior is a real budget hotel, with a not-so-good review on Tripadvisor.

Residence Monge, while not quite as close-in as the others, gets consistently good comments, and it is still very conveniently located.

Jackiano

Thanks Travelnut,
I agree about the Excelsior; the rooms don't look too great on the website. I read the Cluny review on eurocheapo and thought it sounded great but I am still unsure because I've read a couple of bad reviews about it and, again, the rooms don't seem that nice on the website. De la Sorbonne and Monge are probably my favourites at the moment. As you said, Monge seems the nicest but is it 9 euros per night better? As I mentioned before, money isn't that important but I don't want to spend money for very little reason.

Jackiano

Any more opinions would be much appreciated. Am leaving on Friday so need to confirm the reservation asap. Having spent a bit more time looking on the forum, it seems that Monge is better reviewed (but i'm a bit hesitant because the cost and location aren't too great). What do you guys think about the cost and location (in value terms- compared to the sorbonne)? Are the rooms at the Sorbonne really that small? I don't sleep well at all and don't really want to feel too couped up in a room with the person i'm travelling with.
Also, any advice on restaurants and bars in the area would be greatly appreciated. We're in our twenties and are looking for good cheap restaurants (anything from traditional French to Greek/Middle Eastern)and fun cheap bars.
Thanks

ggnga

I have stayed at Monge several times and Excelsior twice. I had a room at Monge overlooking the arena and it felt cramped and dark to me. I much preferred the street view rooms, roomier and much brighter. They have very good glazed windows and noise was not a problem. also, AC would block out noise if you are there in warm weather.
Beds are comfortable. Great location, near a couple of metro stops and a market street as mentioned above. Very clean, everthing matches but a lot of "fake" flowers.

Excelsior definitely had larger room and bathroom. I shared a twin room with a friend and it was fine. I think is has much more charm and feels like a Paris Hotel with some beamed ceilings etc. I liked it a lot. Monge has more of a feel of a nice, pleasant hotel but not much charm. Excelsior is further from the metro, and not as good a location in my opinion.

I think they are both good picks. If you want some Paris charm, Excelsior.
If you want AC and and a better location, Monge. I would not hesitate to recommend either. Staff at both hotels were nice. Just to let you know, I have stayed at Monge more recently than Excelsior. It has been about 2 to 3 years since Excelsior.

Hope this will help some. I don't know the other two.

ggnga

I missed that you are leaving Friday. AC wil not be a factor of course.

I can recommend a good, and very reasonable restaurant near Monge. Tire-Bouchon, 47 rue Descartes, Tel 01 43 26 39 11, Metro Place Monge or Cardinal Lemoine. Good fixed price. I love their escargot, blue cheese walnut salad, hunter style chicken and beef bourguignon. The owner is very friendly and will give you a free little after dinner drink. The fixed price is about 15 to 20 euros.
Have wonderful trip.

Travelnut

Here are some other posts:
Author: jay ([email protected])
Date: 09/03/2004, 12:58 pm
Message: We have stayed at the Excelsior and the Hotel des Trois Collages in the 5th. They are both fine hotels. The Excelsior is a little less money but does have clean rooms and in-suite bathrooms.

More reviews, prior to August 2004:
http://www.paris.org/Hotels/hotel.cg...01197775707075

Note: there are several "Excelsior" hotels so write down the address if you take a taxi...

Jackiano

I had kinda written off the Excelsior but am now not too sure. I know that it's me who's gonna have to make the decision but I really have no idea which to pick. Help still much appreciated.

Christina

I probably would have written off the Excelsior also, as I never had thought of it as having any charm and real some bad reviews about it somewhere. But, I have not stayed there so my impressions could be totally wrong, and would pay more attention to comments from someone who'd stayed in both. However, realize that hotels at this level do have a wide variety of size and quality often, and any price difference or room difference could account for that (such as comparing a twin room to a single).

I've stayed at the Sorbonne, and my room (which was a small double) was not abnormally small, I liked it. I think it was larger than many other Paris hotel rooms I've had at that price level, but I was younger then and maybe not as dicriminating. So, maybe it wasn't particularly large, but I'll bet it's not smaller than most hotels you'll get at that level. I think people who complained about that may just never have been in a 2* Parisian hotel or something. The bathroom I had was nothing like the complaints on tripadvisor nor unusually small, it was very nice. So, from my experience, I would decide based on assuming the Sorbonne rooms are smaller than the others in that list. I do think Travelnut's order may be about right, that would be my guess. I do believe you pretty much get what you pay for within a certain level of hotel in the same area and just don't believe you will get the same quality of hotel room for 60 euro as 84 euro. I don't think hoteliers are that clueless about comparable properties.

Jackiano

Thanks Christina,
I agree with you about the relationship between price and quality, and unwilling to surrender the latter have ruled out the Cluny. Still deciding between De La Sorbonne and Monge. As you're the second person to rate Monge higher looks like it may be the best. How does the location hold up?

Christina

hi jack, I made a mistake in my post and meant that I would NOT assume the Sorbonne's rooms are smaller.

You know, I read all the reviews on Tripadvisor on these and top three on Eurocheapo and don't see Excelsior as looking charming nor does it have a good review on any of those. I guess it dependswhat one thinks of as charming, I thought it was basic modernish just like many hotels at that level, and like the other ones you are comparing (except Sorbonne, which was more traditional decor).

YOu can also read reviews on www.paris.org/Hotels to round out your opinions. I also probably would not rate CLuny higher than Sorbonne, maybe about the same.

Now you know I have heard nice comments about College de France near there, and now someone who stayed there who said it was very charming -- but small rooms. You will get small rooms at this price. That might be more expensive though. Have you considered the Hotel St Jacques nearby? That's another option in this range, as well as the Hotel Suez.

The only problem with Suez is that it's right on bd St Michel but otherwise people like it (can be noise issue). But, I guess you need to decide ASAP. YOu know I haven't stayed at the Monge, that's just my impression that it is higher quality from staying at the Sorbonne, although I've seen outside and various reviews/photos. Part of that price is probably the AC.

Both locations are fine, you'll find people who prefer Sorbonne as it's close to Notre Dame and the Seine, etc., and others who like the other. They both have merits and it probably doesn't really matter for four nights. I like the Monge location a bit better as it's a little more out of the main tourist area, but first-timers might not.