We are considering Hotel Tourville in the 7th district near Les Invalides. Can anyone share their sense of the neighborhood setting? Thank you. We are a family traveling with 2 teenage children.

I'll top a post from a few weeks ago that posed the same question. BTW, the French Army Museum and the WWII Museum, at the Invalides, are both really interesting, especially if you have a son(s).

Here's the relevant info from a few weeks ago. In general, the 7th can be fairly quiet with significantly less of the cafe life than is available in the 5th or 6th.<BR><BR>Message: I know two days isn't enough but the trip was overdue. This is the first time my wife and I are visiting.We are not very big museum people. My wife is a shopper. I am just looking forward to walking the city. Could use help on restaraunts modest prices. I have three questions I really need help with.<BR>1 How is the Timhotel Invalides?<BR>2 Can you enjoy the sights of the eiffel, notre dame, the arc and lovre with two full days?<BR>3 Is the 7th good for parisan life ie. cafes people watching. etc..?<BR><BR>Thanks for the input love this site!<BR><BR>P.<BR><BR>Author: Ryan<BR>Date: 02/24/2003, 01:05 pm<BR><BR>Message: Can't help on question 1.<BR><BR>Question 2, you can see many of the major Paris sights in 2 days. Central Paris is actually fairly compact, so walking between major locations isn't a problem. (The D'Orsay, Louvre are just across the river from one another and Notre Dame is about a 10 to 15 minute walk to either.) In addition, the Metro has good coverage in and around most city and cabs are plentiful.<BR><BR>In terms of the 7th, we found it to be a bit lacking in terms of cafe's, people watching, etc. On our first trip there, we stayed at the Paris Hilton in the 7th, and found that we wasted time in cabs or on trains going to/from the 5th and 6th, which are much more lively. You might consider looking for a hotel in the 6th Arr. as St. Germain is definately a better spot for a view of Parisian life.<BR><BR>In terms of resturants with modest prices, most traditional bistros are fairly reasonable. (Of course, this may depend on the exchange rate which faily high, right now.) By law, restaurants are required to post thier menu's and prices, so finding a place within your budget should be fairly easy.<BR><BR>Author: uhoh_busted<BR>Date: 02/24/2003, 01:15 pm<BR><BR>Message: Timhotel is a comfortable group of hotels, and Invalides is a great location. While I don't know the hotel personally, it is included in many air/hotel packages and with that location I'd go for it. You will be well situated to see the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, The Arc de Triomphe, etc. Whether or not you want to spend time in the Louvre is up to you, but I'd suggest you skip it this trip and just enjoy the sights. Take a bateaux mouche (sight seeing boat) tour. It is fun and a neat way to see a lot of the city. The 7th is great for cafe and people watching. I think the best shopping in Paris for a &quot;shopper&quot; is in the Marais. Depends on whether you wife likes big department stores or little shops. The big department stores are huge -- but not that different from big department stores here. (That's a generalization, they are pretty cool in their own right...but again, with limited time, you'll get more Parisian life in the neighborhood shops.)<BR><BR>Author: uhoh_busted<BR>Date: 02/24/2003, 01:18 pm<BR><BR>Message: oops - you're right Ryan -- I was thinking of the 6th for cafes. But Pascal, the distances are only 10-15 minutes on foot.<BR><BR>Author: Ursula<BR>Date: 02/24/2003, 01:24 pm<BR><BR>Message:<BR>Oh my, from let's say Rue Cler to the intersection Blvd. Saint-Germain/Rue de Rennes you don't walk within 10-15 minutes. Jamais!<BR>From the 7th, take bus Nr. 69 on Rue Saint-Dominique and get off at Rue du Bac and walk to the heart of St. Germain-des-Pres.

Thank you, Ryan. I'm vascillating between the 6th and 7th, but the Tourville has been very gracious and their suite sounds as if it will accommodate us.

Hello Betha, My family, also with 2 teenagers, is renting an apartment located on the Rue Cler this summer. I found that the value of having more space available for less money than a hotel made this a better option for my family. You can find a lot of information about apartments in Paris by doing a search on this site. Laurie

Hotel Tourville is a wonderful hotel just over a short block from Place de L'Ecole Militaire, where there is a metro stop, along with half a dozen or more bus lines and a stop on L'Opentour's route. There's a taxi stand right around the corner. The neighorhood is quiet and safe (you would feel comfortable permitting your teens to explore, shop, cafe-sit on their own). It's chock full of wonderful, moderately priced, restaurants (reservations recommended for dinner, even weekdays - someone at the front desk will make them for you). It's also not far from Champs de Mars and the Tour Eiffel. The neighborhood is our favorite for staying in Paris.

Thank you one and all. You've been so helpful.

Was at the Le Tourville for a week last March. We thought it was very nice and liked the neighborhood as well. It's upscale residential and not trendy like the 6th district. As has been noted, the Metro is one block away, the Eiffel Tower about 4 blocks, etc. Several good reasonably priced restaurants in the area too.

Last year, we stayed in the 7th near Ecole Militaires at Hotel Bourgogne et Montana ( which I would NOT recommend). We have previously stayed only in the 6th, and as it turns out, we much prefer the 6th for location, choice of restaurants, and setting.<BR>The 7th is a residential district that is very quiet ( compared to the 6th) day and night, and for us, offered much less choice of walking to restaurants, cafes, and tourist sights other than the Eiffel Tower and Musee D'Orsay. Too, when we did try to take cabs, it was a LONG process, esp. at night.<BR>Don't know what your budget is, but in the 6th, I would recommend, from high to moderate, Hotel De Fleurie, which offers a family room ( one double bed connecting to two twins, one bathroom),Hotel Danube, or Hotel le Clos Medicis, which is right across from the Jardin du Luxembourg.<BR>Good luck, and have a great time!

You have selected a great area....for adults. We love it. Your kids will not. This upscale residential sector offers little of interest to teens. Pick a quiet hotel in the touristy 5th or 6th if you want to keep the kids interested and off your back. You will pay more, maybe 25% more, but will save time not spent on the metro or bus lines. JP

we stayed in the 7th over the christmas holiday. i found it a little far from the shops (champs elysee etc.) But, it was convienent if you want to be near the eiffel tower. enjoy your trip !!!!

Betha,<BR><BR>I have stayed at Le Tourville on four different occasions. The location is great, the rooms are quiet and the staff is terrific. Oh yeah, and my wife loves their pillows. You are near the Tour Eiffel and my favorite place to hang out in the morning, the Rue Cler. While my wife sleeps in, I go down to the Rue Cler, grab a USA Today on the way at the corner newstand and drink my cafe au laits until she joins me. I highly recommend Tourville.

Thanks for all the great feedback. I'll let you know how it turns out.

you have made a good choice. the people complaining about hotels like the bourgogne et montana are indeed rigfht- their location is is a residential neighborhood near nothing much in terms of restaurants but near the Orsay. you, on the other hand are one block from the metro (ecole militaire and two blocks from the start of the champ de mars, there is a bus line that takes you right to the etoile (arc de triomphe) which is the head of the champs elysee. there are many good restaurants and rue cler has lots of snacking establishments--essential for teens. it is a very safe and very Parisian neighborhood unless you want lots of bars;. if your teens are girls, they might want to hang around the ecole militaire and scope out the occassional hunky cadet who wanders out. have a great time.

We have stayed in the 7eme and enjoyed it greatly. It is a veritable crossroads for bus lines and the Metro. There are some of the best restaurants in Paris within a 6 block area. There is the rue Cler street market for shopping and food. What is not to like.

We spent 5 days at the Tourville in 2000 and then a week in 2002 at Parc St. Severin in the 5th. Both great experiences, just different. The 7th is quieter, more of a residential feel, we felt very safe there. The 5th was bustling with lots of activity, sometimes well into the night. <BR><BR>As for the Tourville itself, we can highly recommend (although I would opt for something more than a standard room next time which was all they had when we booked).<BR><BR><BR><BR>

You've all been so helpful, and we are now even more anxious to go. Thank you!