111op

I was just taking a look at the thread again: "I'm keeping my favorite relais in Antony a secret, but check these boards and you will find plenty of people who have found accommodations out on the far reaches of Lignes 4 and 7."

Somehow, this reminds me of another poster to this board, who when pressed, simply tells us that his/her favorite places are secrets, and please go find your own.

Ok, how are we to judge which is better given incomplete information? Of course, that person is always right. The rest of the masses are simply unenlightened.

There's no room for discussion.

At least try to make a concrete suggestion rather than say something vague. Or else, don't bother chiming in and then proceed to argue with people who've made concrete suggestions. I don't think that that's too much to ask.

Robespierre

Please show me where I ever called anyone a coward.

starrsville

Ah, but you did. I'll look for it later. Time to get on the road. I'm traveling and it's time to check out of the hotel.

By the way, after you did, others joined in on that thread to tell me not to worry about it - that you had said similar to them. I am not the exception (nor is my preference to stay in central Paris so I don't have to take the metro back my hotel).

Robespierre

We look forward to the results of your research.

Meanwhile, here is my take on transfers between downtown Paris and Charles de Gaulle airport:

<b>http://tinyurl.com/7nspo</b>

Mara

I stayed at the Hotel Picard - link below a few years back. It should be in your budget. It is in the 3rd on the edge of the Marais and close to the Place de la Republique which has a number of Metro lines. It has en suite facilities. It is not charming but it was entirely adequate. Have a great trip.
http://www.france-hotel-guide.com/h75003picard.htm

goingtobeijing

I'd like to thank everybody for their suggestions and feedback. Since this will be my first solo overseas trip I am being very careful.

starrsville

Happy traveling, goingtobeijing! Paris is absolutely wonderful - magical really.

Roby, I'll be glad to take the time to find that exchange, but first would you respond to 111op's question and request? Will you share a specific hotel recommendation for goingtobeijing that is not in central Paris, not in 1-8 but accessible via the metro and provides more amenities at 60euro and therefore is a better deal than a 60euro hotel in central Paris? Other posters have given suggestions that match gtg's criteria. I would be interested in a better option at the same price accessible via metro.

WillTravel

R's statements spurred me to research hotels in Antony. So far as I can tell, this town is near Orly Airport. This 3* hotel has air-conditioning and other amenities, and is in the price range mentioned, but the fact is, it's just too far out for most tourists. Going back to your room during the day would be very inefficient. Returning at night would require close attention to the transit schedule to ensure you could still get back to the hotel, and from what I've read it's hardly a wise idea for a woman to take the RER late at night in or around Paris, particularly going to the suburbs.

http://fr.federal-hotel.com/hotel_ho...ntony_3157.htm

starrsville

I missed the reference to Antony. Had no idea where it was so took a look via mappy.com.

THAT'S where R. suggests a solo female traveler on her first trip to Paris would want to stay?!?! The relais can remain a secret, I'm sure. No problem.

StCirq

I, too, missed the reference to Antony. Good grief!! What solo, female, first-time traveler to Paris would even CONTEMPLATE staying there? It was bad enough when Marzipan chose to stay in some seedy part of Montmartre that apparently contributed to a really horrible experience in Paris, but ANTONY?? Get real!

goingtobeijing - listen to the people who are recommending decent low-cost places IN Paris.

starrsville

WillTravel, am I reading the RER schedule correctly?

R just CAN'T be suggesting a first timer to Paris take a 25 minute train ride to and from her hotel?

Extra amenities are one thing, but a 25 minute train ride for them???

mahya

Really! I'm reading these threads to glean some information for my first trip to Paris in April.

I really wish all posters would STOP the sniping at each other. It's not helpful or nice for me, or others here for the same reason I am, to read.

thanks

111op

Pretty funny. Maybe there's some irony in Robespierre's comments I'm missing. But he seems like the (very) literal kind of guy. At least he likes to correct my French accent placements.

Thanks for researching Antony. At least I learned something out of this argument.

Antony or Hotel Tiquetonne for me? I think it's a no brainer....

Robespierre

Well, congratulations on your excellent detective work. The one I use is actually a **** where I get a suite for 135&euro;, but the Geo should do for gtb.

It should not have escaped anyone's notice that you can't <i>touch</i> a *** for 50&euro; downtown. As noted above, you're stuck in a * with the bathroom down the hall.

Hundreds (or maybe thousands) of French people use the RER in the evening to commute to the suburbs or ride to Orly. Antony is as safe as the Latin Quarter.

I used to take the 19h01 from St-Michel, arriving Antony at 19h17. That's 16 minutes, or the same as St-Michel to Champ de Mars-Tour Eiffel on RER C.

mahya

Beijing,

I found this site which gives maps, color pictures, rates, location, reviews and arrondisments of hotels in Paris. Maybe if you put in one stars near a sightseeing place (i.e. Louvre) that you want to visit, it will come up with hotels for your price. Unfortunately they all seem to charge extra if you are traveling alone.

Maybe other posters have ideas of how to get around that. Here's the site:

http://www.cybevasion.com/hotels/france/paris.html

starrsville

I'm trying to gain more information as well. If there is a better option than staying in central Paris, I'd like to know about it.

Posters have been discouraged from staying in CDG airport hotels and traveling into the city daily. Someone recently asked about taking day trips in from Giverny and posters recommended against that as well.

More information is what we are asking for.

Robespierre

Here's more information: the price that hotels charge reflects their costs.

A large portion of a hotel's cost of doing business is the value of the real estate the hotel occupies - whether the operator is leasing or buying. The inner arrondissements are the most expensive land values in Paris. The next tier are less expensive. Outside the p&eacute;riph&eacute;rique land is still less expensive.

It shouldn't take a PhD in Economics to realize that the further you get from Notre Dame the more you get for your money.

Our OP is looking for a $60 room (not 55&euro; or 65&euro;, by the way - you keep jacking up the price) in a central, safe area, with ensuite bathroom. The Geo in Antony for 50&euro; fits as many of the stated criteria as any of the other poster's suggestions, it's just not &quot;central.&quot; But neither is a hotel in the VII, which is reachable by RER in the same time as Antony - and costs twice as much. I can rock until well after midnight (and have) and still get home in 15 minutes.

By the way, I missed where gtb's gender was stated. All this &quot;single female alone at night&quot; is a bunch of window dressing. And I'm still waiting for a reference to where I called anyone a coward.

starrsville

Well, this is all I could find in Antony at 60euro (at low season) and up to 100 euro.

http://www.abritel.fr/self_catering/...ion-568064.php

No thanks. I'll stay in a 2* in St. Germain and be a few short blocks from the Seine.

Unless there's something I'm missing, it's still a &quot;no brainer&quot; for me.

WillTravel

&gt; It should not have escaped anyone's notice that you can't touch a *** for 50&euro; downtown. As noted above, you're stuck in a * with the bathroom down the hall.
&gt;

The Tiquetonne has a double for 50 Euros with a private bathroom, so this is incorrect. In addition, this is not the only hotel which has such prices.

111op

Thanks, WillTravel. I was just going to say that Tiquetonne offers rooms with private bathrooms for 50 euros, but you beat me to it. In fact, I even stayed in a single with a private bathroom at 40 euros a night.

I've not looked at the website mahya gave, but I've looked at this one before:

http://www.hotelsearch-in-paris.com/

It offers some very nice maps, and it will mark the hotels it knows of on a map. So it's quite useful that way. However you'll have to contact the hotels separately to check the rates, etc., and to book.

I think that the nightlife issue will make it a no brainer for me. On my past trip I was out walking about (and passing by Passage du Grand Cerf) around 3 am in the morning. I wonder what choices I'd have in Antony at 3 am in the morning.

My guess would be that the original poster sounds like a younger person who is probably not looking for a suite at 135 euros in Antony, unlike some married Americans who don't seem to want any nightlife at all and who's happy with suburbia.

But then, maybe I can't read very well, as I evidently seem to have a lot of trouble with French accents. So I shouldn't be so presumptuous.