I've asked this question already in another post started by someone else. I would like to know if anyone else has any reasons for picking one over the other. We are considering a hotel in the 8th or an apartment in the 14th. We've got a very good rate on the Melia Royal Alma in the 8th, 35 Rue Jean Goujon. We had considered an apartment in the 14th; Hotel Residence Unic St. Germain at 56 Rue du Montparnasse. We have never been to Paris and do not speak French. We would have liked to stay in the 6th, but could not find the quality we wanted for the price to please everyone. If anyone can comment on the above locations, I would greatly appreciate it.

Click on your name and you'll see all the previous messages for your original posting. You should have been able to find acceptable accomodations in the 6th district unless there's no availabilities. It's a very nice area.

I would say you're comparing apples & oranges. The bigger issue IMO is apt vs hotel. First, here's a website with a map & description of the arr.

http://www.parisnet.net/parismap.html

Next, have you looked on tripadvisor.com for reviews of both?

How long will you be there, how many of you are there?

I would say you're comparing apples & oranges. The bigger issue IMO is apt vs hotel. First, here's a website with a map & description of the arr.

http://www.parisnet.net/parismap.html

Notice that the 14th borders the 6th. Without knowing where the apt is exactly, I personally prefer staying as close to the Seine as possible, regardless of arr.

Next, have you looked on tripadvisor.com for reviews of both?

How long will you be there, how many of you are there (ie the price to please everyone?) Have you ever rented an apt in a foreign country before? Did you like it?

I don't know the hotel itself, but I do know the region. The hotel I have used my last 2 visits to Paris is very near on Boulevard Raspail.

The hotel is on Rue Montparnasse which crosses Boulevard Montparnasse very close to the Montparnasse Bienvenue Metro station. The Montparnasse Tower is very near to the intersection.
The hotel is technically in the 14th, but the 6th is bounded by Boulevard Montparnasse, so you are very close to the 6th. A few strides north and you will be there.

Luxembourg Gardens are within walking distance, and Rue de Rennes is the next street west once you cross Boulevard Montparnasse. It leads north to the heart of the 6th district.

The hotel is just a few yards away from a very lively area with some famous restaurants like La Coupole fairly close by. I don't think you will want for activity in that region. I found that on Friday night is "surges" until the wee small hours.

I read the description of the hotel and it sounds like you picked a winner.
The hotel is air conditioned and breakfast is included. You definitely will want the ac. I picked the Aiglon for that reason and I was never sorry I paid the extra amount for it.

I think I will put this one on my list for my next Paris visit.

PS My comments were aimed at the Hotel on Rue Montparnasse.
I did not make that as clear as I should have.

The TripAdvisor reviews of the hotel at 56, rue de Montparnasse are not so good, though:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...de_France.html

I've also seen a hotel with the exact same address listed as Hotel Unic Renoir Saint Germain. Maybe check into this if important.

Egads, it does sound like a dump, based on the comments.

I will go back to the Aiglon and be happy with the room at the end of the hall. It has a real closet.
Big bathroom, and decent bed.

Following the advice above, the Melia Royal Alma is a 4*** and between Champs & the Seine, and gets good reviews.

The Residence Unic gets mixed/poor reviews, may be further from the Seine but is less expensive.

You can plug the individual street addresses into www.pagesjaunes.fr, and click on 'photo'... then use the arrows to 'walk' up/down the block to see how the neighborhood looks (boarded up/graffiti vs. shops/cafes)...

Obtain the cancellation policies, make a reservation (so you have one). Then you can dig deeper just in case you find something better, or in the 6th like you wanted.

Possible alternates (have regular rooms for less):
Hotel Raspail * * * deluxe double 162 E/ junior suite 199 E
http://www.hotelraspail.com/

Hotel du Danube* * * apartment or junior suite 210 E
http://www.hoteldanube.net/

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Thanks for the input, everyone. The Hotel du Danube looks promising. We really can get a good deal at the Hotel Melia Royal Alma and it seems to be a really nice hotel. I'm just not sure about the location. Some members of our group are concerned with the size of the beds. I see that Hotel du Danube has twin beds available. A double bed for two people is OK for us, but many people I know want at least a queen size bed.

While I did not like the Hotel du Danube in general, the bed was good. It was a double I believe and it was not two twins pushed together. Also the bolster was comfortable although there were nice square pillows in the closet if one did not like the bolster.

Francophile... May i ask what you didn't like about the Hotel Danube? I'm trying to book something in the 6th right away (May 15th) and it looked promising, so curious what you didnt like
Thanks

The 8th Arr is more central to the sites that you will want to see in Paris, while the 14th Arr is more out of the way. I have stayed numerous times in the 8th and like the fact that I am a mere stone's throw from the Champs-Elysees, L'Arc de Triomphe, etc.

Knowing some French phrases would be helpful, but you should be able to get by ok. If you have the time, I would suggest getting a listen-on-tape book from your local library (Pimsleur, Berlitz, etc). It would help you to listen to the tape going to/from work so that you can familiarize yourself with some useful phrases, words.

here-appears that I'm the only person who did not like this hotel.

To me, a hotel that has a welcoming staff (I'm not referring to staff being overly friendly that it comes across as false-I'm referring to at least a pleasant look on the clerk's face) is one factor in making one's stay comfortable. The desk clerk that was on duty for the two days and two nights that I was there was a young woman who clearly acted unwelcoming. It began when I approached her to check in and she really appeared to have cared less I we were there. As if to confirm that her attitude was not caused by me, I witnessed her speaking to another guest and she didn't act any differently. Someone here said that this clerk may have been the one they corresponded with and found out that she is pregnant and maybe it was because she's just tired. However, I don't know if the clerk I dealt with is the same girl. Even so I don't think it is fair to act that way to guests. Maybe she acts differently with guests she's familiar with already.

The room I shared with my aunt was a 2-bdr. apartment (#44 I believe). Anyway, it was just ok. I saw a small picture of the room on the website (the pink colored one) and thought it had looked nice. But in reality there was just too much chintz and it clashed with the green carpeting. My aunt took the smaller room located down a few steps. It was just enough room for a bed-nothing special.

The worse thing was the bathroom was as tiny as the one on a cruise ship. There was a lack of basic amenities such as soap dishes and another thing I didn't mention before, a toilet paper dispenser. I can understand the lack of facial tissues and washcloths as those are not the norm in Europe. But a lack of soap dishes and toilet paper dispenser are just so basic that all hotels should have these. Also the shower was old.

Dosu, I had originally planned to stay at the Danube for my entire stay (4 nights) but I am glad when I lessened it to 2 nights instead. I stayed the first 2 nights at Hotel Verneuil which is 1 1/2 blocks away on rue Verneuil. The Verneuil was totally opposite to the Danube from the staff's disposition and the beautiful room and modern bathroom stocked with amenities. True it cost a lot more but it was worth it very much. It's 145 euros for a standard double room vs. Danube at 110 euros.

I do not believe the Verneuil will have availability on this short notice but you can try. If you do stay at the Danube it is possible that you will have a better stay there than I did.

Dosu, sorry, the first sentence got cut off. In general, what I said that after comparing other former guests' comments here it appears that I'm the only one who had a negative experience with this hotel.

Thank you, francophile, appreciate the response. the pictures on Hotel Verneuil site look so nice....I will give them a try...maybe i'll get lucky.

No luck on Hotel Verneuil...has anyone heard about the sister hotel? Hotel Therese??

I haven't seen the Therese personally but since it's owned by Sylvie de Lattre who owns the Verneuil, I'd be inclined to believe your room will be well-maintained. I have only emailed the staff for information but got the feeling of first-rate service. However, on tripadvisor.com, there were a couple of trivial negative comments.