paris apartment for 6
 

hi fodorites,

i'm hoping you can help me out. my parents (70-ish), my brother/sis-in-law, niece (7), and nephew (4) are heading to paris in april. they've asked me for some apartment recommendations.

so far, they've hit dead ends with paris best lodge (where i stayed in 2008 and 2009), PVA and paris perfect. there's either no availability or no inventory for such a large party.

can you recommend an apartment for 6 people with the following preferences:

- 6th arrondissement (in the heart of st germain)
- maximum 2nd floor (unless there's an elevator)
- washer/dryer
- minimum 2 bedrooms
- 5 night rental

thanks so much!!!

There was no filter for floor/elevator, but, with the rest noted, here are some to look through:

https://www.airbnb.com/s/Paris--Fran...ss_id=6xn0rx91

www.vacationinparis.com

Happy Travels!

www.specialapartments.com They were there every step of the way this past July.

I can suggest 2 resources for vacation rentals in Paris but neither are in the 6eme.. One is a vacation rental that's in the 3rd (Marais). It's a two bedroom and two bath apartment. https://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p202517. The owners have another 2 bedroom apartment that is just next door.

The other is Adrianleeds.com. You'll see many properties of all sizes on her website, but they are mostly in the 3rd and 4th arrondissements. She is a property manager so you would not be renting directly from the owner.

Before you follow up the AirBnB recommendation, read the threads on this site on the down sides of AirBnB in Paris.

We have found a Paris rental for similar size group through Just France.com

"...read the threads on this site on the down sides of AirBnB in Paris."

While Airbnb seems to get the bulk of the criticism, it's short-term apartment rentals in general that are the issue, as far as I can make out. There are several recent threads on the legality issue and it applies, I believe, to them all, Airbnb being just the largest facilitator of apartment rentals. So the statement above might better read "on the down sides of renting almost any apartment in Paris".

Good point. Almost certainly applies to Adrian Leeds, for instance.

Airbnb has made a big advertising push in Paris to entice residents to rent out their apartments which is basically the only on type of vacation apartments, with a few exceptions, which are offered legally.

Because of short term rental restrictions coming from the government of France, Adrian Leeds has stated, here on Fodors, that she no longer owns any of the apartments she might manage. Managing apartments is not illegal; renting them as an owner, for the most part, is illegal.

Several issues you might want to consider:

1. Lease agreements usually only penalize the renter in the event of a cancellation; rarely the owner if he terminates the agreement or is forced to by either the city or his homeowners association.

2. Vacation rentals are not sanctioned nor regulated by the government. If you have a problem which results in any type of legal action, your original rental agreement and any protection it might hold for you, could itself be determined to be illegal.

3. The owner may or may not have any liability insurance in the event of damages to you or your property.

4. Many apartments in Paris do not have elevators.

5. There is no oversight guaranteeing that the apartment you rent meets basic building code requirements such as the installation and maintenance of operable smoke detectors.

6. If you have a problem, there will be no front desk to assist you. Nowhere to leave your luggage when you arrive at 09h00 and your apartment check in is hours later.

7. The nice lady down the hall who sweetly smiles at you as you come and go absolutely hates that strangers have access to the building she calls home. You probably would too.

8. Consider that most of your neighbors do not appreciate the constant turnover of vacationers in their buildings, the noise they generate, and the security risks they represent.

While renting out one´s apartment when on vacation is an idea that has helped many residents of Paris supplement their incomes, the system has evolved into a giant loop hole for large professional real estate operatives who evade city laws and absorb limited apartment resources which where once the homes for residents.

Vacation rentals have become very popular in Paris but the effects of their popularity have not been good news for everyone.

Citadines Saint-Germain-des Pres: A one bedroom for the parents and the children and a studio for the grandparents could work. http://www.citadines.com/en/france/p...ent_types.html

I don't know the budget but you are not exactly looking at an inexpensive part of town. Take a look at Paris Perfect, which might have a new name now, but they have some larger apartment. They are a bit pricey. http://www.parisperfect.com/apartmen...ris/corton.php might work for your group.

The Citadines mentioned above is a good choice, and you might check this nice little apart'hotel for either two adjoining rooms or two separate rooms on the same floor. http://www.residencehenri4.com/en/rooms/
You will definitely need two full bathrooms, and a little extra privacy would probably be welcome, too. It's in a great location in the Latin Quarter, convenient to everything. If your family has not been to Paris before, and if you won't be with them, I would definitely place them in an apart'hotel with a 24/7 front desk staff.
And even though you have rented successfully in the past, it's a good idea to pay attention to Sarastro's comments. The rental climate has changed.

You might want to check hotel elysees union, on Amiral Hamelin street. In the 16e I think - west of Arc de Triomphe, not tat far from Eifel tower.
They have rooms and appartments.

We liked it. 2 separate rooms, 2 bathrooms, and a third room where you can accomodate the kids + a kitchen.

It may be difficult with those picky requirements, and for April which isn't that far away. There are various websites you can easily search by date and number of people, though, like flipkey (which is owned by Tripadvisor and at least has some reviews on it).

for example, flipkey lists those by my apartment in Paris, including this one which fits your requirements and is free in April http://www.my-apartment-in-paris.com...-in-paris.html

The 3 BR one on rue d'Assas, no. V06976 and it's very reasonably priced at only about US$450 a day, I guess, but maybe its not luxurious enough of one wants something like Parisperfect. 2 BR, 2 baths, 5th floor but with elevator, etc. It even has a washer/dryer (which is a requirement that one might consider not demanding for such a short stay, it may limit options, as well as insisting on St Germain). Trying to figure out and use some of those foreign appliances isn't worth the trouble, the washers/dryers can often take much longer than you'd expect, actually.

Can't personally recommend it, I've never had to stay in one that large. And I also agree for people who have never been to Paris and for a short stay, maybe not being on their own would be good. But there are going to be options if you search more common websites like flipkey.

I'll just add this for first-time visitors thinking of renting an apartment in Paris, and especially if nobody in the rental party speaks French well - not to encourage paranoia, but merely as something to consider from a practical standpoint.

If something should happen, such as the two events the city suffered this week, the people you have rented from will not be available to explain things to you, or to offer assistance and advice should you need it. In most cases, you would be able to reach someone during business hours, or leave a message with an "emergency number". It may take several hours or even days to receive a response.

I know several people who decided to leave early due to the attacks, and expected much more in the way of refunds than they received. Two couples were in fact charged extra, since a manager had to make after-hours visits to collect keys and sign off on inventory. The rental agency stated that since the circumstances were unusual, they were willing to try to work with the clients, but that the owner did not deserve to be penalized. One couple accepted a partial refund, and marked it up to experience. The other plans to contest the entire amount with their credit card company. Another solo traveler rented directly from the owner, who only charged for the nights stayed, but who made it clear he wasn't happy about it.

Again, anything could happen (or not) in any city you choose. But it would be wise for first-time visitors to stay in a hotel or apart'hotel with 24/7 reception service.

hi all,

thank you SO much for all of your help. i've passed along the recommendations to my family. :)

I suspect a lot of hotels would also refuse to refund you for a prepaid stay, or even if not prepaid, would say you were past the cancellation deadline. So I don't see the apartment cancellation problem as an argument against them. (There may be other good reasons not to rent, discussed at length in the past.)

The refund issue was not an argument against apartments, just an explanation about what happened to people I know. Since apartments do not operate like hotels, lots of people seem to expect different or preferential treatment, especially if they deal with individual owners or managers with whom they feel they have developed a relationship.

My main point was that first-time apartment renters don't always understand that they will be left on their own, whereas they would certainly benefit from having a reception staff on duty 24/7.

hi all,

just wanted to close the loop on this one. my family has decided to stay at the citadines apart-hotel. all the apartments they were finding didn't have an elevator and i warned them that senior citizens (although energetic) and little kids would probably benefit from an elevator after a long day of sight-seeing.

thanks to all for your suggestions!

I'm glad to hear they decided on the Citadines. I think they will be happier than in an apartment.