Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Paris 14th arrondissment

I disagree with the previous posts on how dangerous this area is supposed to be. To me, that is a perfectly fine area of Paris, and it has many advantages over more touristy areas--it is more residential, cheaper, and a real Parisian neighborhood. Yes, that street is in-between the Alesia and Plaisance metro stops, and it is called the Plaisance neighborhood. (It's a lot more than 4-5 blocks blocks from Gare Montparnasse) In the early part of this century, it was filled with smaller worker cottages and attracted artists who were also not of great means (ie, Giacometti). Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir lived around there a while, also, at the Hotel Mistral. It has sort of a faded charm with some spots of arts/intelligentsia. There are some great bakeries and other shops in the rue Daguerre area just north of there, There are remnants of an early artist settlement in the Passage des Arts with small gardens and houses, and other charming courtyards and small cobbled streets around rue du Chateau and rue des Thermopyles; great art film theatre (L'Entrepot) on rue Francis de Pressense, and a good hangout in its cafe-restaurant. A neat 20s style cafe at corner of rue Raymond Losserand and rue du Chateau, I think. Rue Alesia has tons of discount stores if you want to look for bargains, as well as several movie theaters. There are some good restaurants around there much cheaper than in the touristy areas of Paris (check rue des Plantes for restaurants--one specializes in rabbit but is good for other dishes, also--called Monsieur Lapin or something). Don't get me wrong, like a lot of Paris, a lot of the former "charm" is gone and there are newer buildings, etc., but unless you miss souvenir and T-shirt shops, I think you'll like it. I suspect the people who warned you about this area don't really know it; the 14th arr. is quite large and has different characters in diff parts--I can't think of any of it that is that dangerous, though (maybe right around train station at night, I suppose), although there's certainly parts that aren't that attractive anymore, like a lot of Paris and any big city. The Montsouris neighborhood is also an interesting area in the 14th arr. Heck, I've been in that area quite a bit as I stayed at Cite Universitaire one summer, which is nearby, and I've never been mugged going to the Alesia metro stop or shopping on rue Daguerre (one of the best bakeries in Paris is there at no. 82: Le Moulin de la Vierge), and never seen any suspicious activity whatsover. I've seen a lot worse in the Latin Quarter around where there's lots of tourists. Yes, you will have to take the metro or bus to get back to your hotel from the tourist sites, and I will admit I am not familiar with walking in the dark in the blocks right around your hotel. Personally, I am not comfortable doing that anywhere in Paris, though. I would think this area preferable to the 3rd arr., as somewhere else suggested, and certainly just as good as many parts of some of the other arr. named (1st-7th). If you are uncomfortable at not speaking French, you might want to stay in a more touristy area, as even in restaurants and stores around there, they usu. only speak French.