I reserved Hotel De Buci for 1 night july 18 from orbitz for $204.00 total.

Look for the Hotel Bourdonnais on tripadvisor.com. I booked it via Expedia for our family of four for $225/night in June. That price seems a good value, given the location in an upscale neighborhood in the 7th, with views of the Eiffel tower from some balconies. Good reviews on tripadvisor.com, too. It's not only close to the Tower, but also Les Invalides.

Thank you, Thank you for all the wonderful advice. Yes, I am certain to want to return, but alas, like I said, this is strictly a layover. Read reviews on Hotel des Mines and currently holding a room there. Sounds like it might just be what we need for the short visit... any thoughts on that hotel from anyone?
Again, thanks for the help. I plan to search out the Fodorite experiences to make the most of the day.

Not many posts about Hotel des Mines here, but there are a couple that are recent enough:

Author: shandy Date: 06/18/2004, 10:25 pm
Message: Last September I booked a hotel for Paris less than two weeks before arriving on www.wotif.com.au Had no problems with the reservation at all and the price was cheaper than that offered by a number of the competing online services. In our case we chose the Hotel des Mines which is on St. Michel Blvd. It is not in the heart of the Latin Quarter - took about 15 minutes to walk down to it propery. Had added advantage of the nearest metro stop was on the RER B lines from CDG airport so no changes to make. It was a 2* hote. Nothing fantastic but clean, furnishings good and room was good size for a Paris hotel with full size bathroom. We chose to pay the little bit more for the twin deluxe rather than the standard which is probably what gave us such a good bathroom. Was lovely to be able to have a soak in the bath after having walked for hours and hours.

Author: Ruth Date: 03/04/2003, 06:06 am
Message: We stayed at the Hotel des Mines in Jan 2002 and found it perfectly acceptable (it's a 2.5 star, I think). The room was a reasonable size and clean, the elevator worked, and the continental breakfast was OK - nothing special, but drinkable coffee and fresh croissants. I liked the location, though it is on the busy boulevard St Martin, but the double glazing removed all the traffic noise. It is right by the RER Luxembourg station (south entrance). We felt very safe (I was there with my husband and young son). It isn't right in the centre of things, but is in easy reach of almost everything. I can't say I researched it at all before booking as we bought a package in which one had to decide on the part of Paris rather than the hotel. As a hotel it didn't have a lot of character, but the staff were very helpful (indeed greeted us by name as we walked through the door for the first time) and we liked our stay there. Overall opinion: functional rather than romantic.