Paris Apartment Thread
Dec 16th, 2008, 03:11 AM
#122
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I thought this review of the apartment I rented in Paris would come in helpful for future travelers. This is the weblink to the apartment....
http://www.rentparis.com/appart-en-8.html
I really enjoyed my stay at 22 rue Rambuteau. First, the reservation process with rentparis.com went very smooth, even though I only booked 48 hours in advance and paid via paypal. They helped me with all my questions and send me all the information I needed.
Upon arrival in Paris, I immediately called the Paris agent and he gave me instruction on how to meet him. The hardest part was figuring out the dialing pre-fixes. About a half hour before arriving at the flat I called the agent again to confirm the time. As planned when I was dropped off at 22 rue Rambuteau I was greeted within minutes. I think it was Jean-Pierre? Anyway, he assisted me with my luggage, took me thru the courtyard to the building. He was very friendly and explained everything!
When I walked into the apartment I thought, oh dear. This place is not big but it does look like the pictures. Truthfully I didn't expect it to be big. I will say that within a day I was very use to it and felt at home. By the end of the week I felt like a resident of Paris. In general I loved this apartment and would stay here again, here's why -
-The location is excellent right in the Marais and within walking distance of many sights.
-The neighborhood is excellent. Right outside your door you have a butcher, supermarket, wine store, cheese shop, produce stand, patisseries and boulangeres (plus cafes and bistros). Wake up in the morning and go get a fresh croissant or baguette!
-The washer/dryer combination is great. Carry less clothes! Be sure to get instructions on how to use it, there are a lot of dials in French! The machine doesn't wash huge loads and the clothing can come out quite -wrinkled, but the apartment does have an iron.
-The bathroom has a nice shower and good water pressure.
-The apartment is on the 7th floor and the building has an elevator!
-Even though the apartment is small there are tons of windows and it get a lot of light. The views over the roof tops of Paris are great.
-The building is very quiet, I never heard anyone. The neighbors are friendly and always greet you with a "Bonjour" or Bonsoir".
-The bed is comfortable but if you are use to having 2 people in a queen size bed, be warned! It was nice having a separate bedroom even though it is tiny.
-I took the internet option and it worked great. Note - If you take the internet option you get free calls to the United States or wherever home is!
-I was there in November and the heaters worked great!
-There was a good combo microwave/convection oven. Great for heating things from the market or bread.
-All the utensils and kitchen gadgets you will need are here!
-The refrigerator was tiny but good enough to hold milk, cheese, meats and other French treats.
-What does one do when they run out of toilet paper of other essentials? I just bought it from the market.
The only thing I found as a con to this apartment was that the lighting was bad at night, but that wasn't a big deal. If you think that you want a self catering visit to Paris this is a great place to stay. OK it's not the Ritz, but it was worth a million buck to become a resident of Paris for a week!
http://www.rentparis.com/appart-en-8.html
I really enjoyed my stay at 22 rue Rambuteau. First, the reservation process with rentparis.com went very smooth, even though I only booked 48 hours in advance and paid via paypal. They helped me with all my questions and send me all the information I needed.
Upon arrival in Paris, I immediately called the Paris agent and he gave me instruction on how to meet him. The hardest part was figuring out the dialing pre-fixes. About a half hour before arriving at the flat I called the agent again to confirm the time. As planned when I was dropped off at 22 rue Rambuteau I was greeted within minutes. I think it was Jean-Pierre? Anyway, he assisted me with my luggage, took me thru the courtyard to the building. He was very friendly and explained everything!
When I walked into the apartment I thought, oh dear. This place is not big but it does look like the pictures. Truthfully I didn't expect it to be big. I will say that within a day I was very use to it and felt at home. By the end of the week I felt like a resident of Paris. In general I loved this apartment and would stay here again, here's why -
-The location is excellent right in the Marais and within walking distance of many sights.
-The neighborhood is excellent. Right outside your door you have a butcher, supermarket, wine store, cheese shop, produce stand, patisseries and boulangeres (plus cafes and bistros). Wake up in the morning and go get a fresh croissant or baguette!
-The washer/dryer combination is great. Carry less clothes! Be sure to get instructions on how to use it, there are a lot of dials in French! The machine doesn't wash huge loads and the clothing can come out quite -wrinkled, but the apartment does have an iron.
-The bathroom has a nice shower and good water pressure.
-The apartment is on the 7th floor and the building has an elevator!
-Even though the apartment is small there are tons of windows and it get a lot of light. The views over the roof tops of Paris are great.
-The building is very quiet, I never heard anyone. The neighbors are friendly and always greet you with a "Bonjour" or Bonsoir".
-The bed is comfortable but if you are use to having 2 people in a queen size bed, be warned! It was nice having a separate bedroom even though it is tiny.
-I took the internet option and it worked great. Note - If you take the internet option you get free calls to the United States or wherever home is!
-I was there in November and the heaters worked great!
-There was a good combo microwave/convection oven. Great for heating things from the market or bread.
-All the utensils and kitchen gadgets you will need are here!
-The refrigerator was tiny but good enough to hold milk, cheese, meats and other French treats.
-What does one do when they run out of toilet paper of other essentials? I just bought it from the market.
The only thing I found as a con to this apartment was that the lighting was bad at night, but that wasn't a big deal. If you think that you want a self catering visit to Paris this is a great place to stay. OK it's not the Ritz, but it was worth a million buck to become a resident of Paris for a week!
Dec 16th, 2008, 03:24 AM
#123
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I rented this apartment from parisbestlodge.com a few years ago and I really loved it.
http://www.parisbestlodge.com/rivoli.html
Here is the review i left on their websight...
I rented from parisbestlodge.com and really liked the experience. First of all, Thierry who runs parisbestlodge.com is a great host and very friendly. He answered all my questions and gave me great directions. Once I arrived and was let into the unit, he stopped by to collect the money and show me around. He is a very honest man.
Second, the apartment was my little home away from home. The price I paid was lower than a hotel with more amenities and lots of space. The apartment had a washer/dryer, kitchenette, big bathroom, CD player, TV with VCR and a lot of little extras like CD's and guidebooks.
The apartment was very cute and had a comfortable bed, leather love seat and 2 chairs. The view out the 2 French doors was over the rooftops and within view of the top of St Pauls church. The bed was real comfortable and had good sheets, duvet and fluffy pillows. I also love the old beamed ceilings.
I especially love the location on the rue Rivoli right at the St Paul metro station. Right across the street was a "supermarche", boulangerie, wine shop, cheese shop, chinese take away and more! There are also a bunch of good bistros and wine bars in the area. The Marais is really a fun neighborhood and really make you feel like you are a resident of Paris.
http://www.parisbestlodge.com/rivoli.html
Here is the review i left on their websight...
I rented from parisbestlodge.com and really liked the experience. First of all, Thierry who runs parisbestlodge.com is a great host and very friendly. He answered all my questions and gave me great directions. Once I arrived and was let into the unit, he stopped by to collect the money and show me around. He is a very honest man.
Second, the apartment was my little home away from home. The price I paid was lower than a hotel with more amenities and lots of space. The apartment had a washer/dryer, kitchenette, big bathroom, CD player, TV with VCR and a lot of little extras like CD's and guidebooks.
The apartment was very cute and had a comfortable bed, leather love seat and 2 chairs. The view out the 2 French doors was over the rooftops and within view of the top of St Pauls church. The bed was real comfortable and had good sheets, duvet and fluffy pillows. I also love the old beamed ceilings.
I especially love the location on the rue Rivoli right at the St Paul metro station. Right across the street was a "supermarche", boulangerie, wine shop, cheese shop, chinese take away and more! There are also a bunch of good bistros and wine bars in the area. The Marais is really a fun neighborhood and really make you feel like you are a resident of Paris.
Dec 17th, 2008, 05:12 PM
#125
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Per Lilaki's request, here is a review of the place we stayed at Nov. 29-Dec. 6, 2008:
We found a lovely place through VRBO and had a wonderful stay there two weeks ago. (VRBO #56871). A spacious (by Parisian standards) 1 bedroom had a great kitchen, nice sitting area and dining table, comfortable (through low) bed and a fantastic shower.
Located in the 6th just two blocks from the Odeon metro and three from the river, the apartment was warm and welcoming after a day out seeing the sights. We ate breakfast and a few dinners at the apartment and found the kitchen to be very well stocked. (And we became addicted to the Nespresso machine.)
The only drawback to the apartment was the toilet, which was not with the rest of the bathroom but in a tiny closet just off the living room. It made for a bit of a trek in the middle of the night and a bit weird otherwise. But a small price to pay for an otherwise very nice apartment.
The owner was a dream to work with; we were allowed to bring a personal check as a deposit with us to the apartment. Her son met us at the apartment upon arrival, showed us how to use everything, answered all our questions about what was where in the neighborhood, etc. And then he stopped by the day before we left to return the deposit check.
We loved having an internet connection and a washer/dryer, which allowed us to bring minimal clothes and carry on our luggage.
Would definitely stay there again.
Hope this helps, y'all!
We found a lovely place through VRBO and had a wonderful stay there two weeks ago. (VRBO #56871). A spacious (by Parisian standards) 1 bedroom had a great kitchen, nice sitting area and dining table, comfortable (through low) bed and a fantastic shower.
Located in the 6th just two blocks from the Odeon metro and three from the river, the apartment was warm and welcoming after a day out seeing the sights. We ate breakfast and a few dinners at the apartment and found the kitchen to be very well stocked. (And we became addicted to the Nespresso machine.)
The only drawback to the apartment was the toilet, which was not with the rest of the bathroom but in a tiny closet just off the living room. It made for a bit of a trek in the middle of the night and a bit weird otherwise. But a small price to pay for an otherwise very nice apartment.
The owner was a dream to work with; we were allowed to bring a personal check as a deposit with us to the apartment. Her son met us at the apartment upon arrival, showed us how to use everything, answered all our questions about what was where in the neighborhood, etc. And then he stopped by the day before we left to return the deposit check.
We loved having an internet connection and a washer/dryer, which allowed us to bring minimal clothes and carry on our luggage.
Would definitely stay there again.
Hope this helps, y'all!
Dec 17th, 2008, 06:39 PM
#126
We rented #126 from Vacation in Paris this past May. It is apartment #176 at 95 Rue Sebastopol just steps (88, I counted them) from the Reumur Sebastopol station. There is a Monoprix in the same building. Is that convenient or what? The neighborhood is ok and actually a bit better than I expected. Up to the sixth floor by elevator and we guess at which may be the apartment since the number was not in sight.
The apartment looks pretty much like the pictures. A small studio about 24'X 12' in size and clean. It has a usable kitchen, small table with 2 mismatched chairs but nice dishes and utensils including a cork screw for our welcoming bottle of wine as advertised. I understand that the apartment has since been airconditioned. The bathroom is of decent size with a shower THAT HAS A DOOR. My fondest hope realized. The bed is comfortable. There are only 2 sets of towels to last 5 nights. Using the included washing machine for the towels will not be practical because there is no dryer. VacationinParis told us this in advance so we were prepared. Did we bring our own towels? You bet. Were they bulky? No. We had bought a couple of microfleece towels at the auto department at Target. Much cheaper than the ones in the camping stores, light, not bulky, and they dry very quickly. All in all, the apartment is basic, comfortable and a great value at what had become 64 Euro per night due to the declining dollar since VinP is paid in dollars in advance. One negative is that there is no closet for hanging clothing - we pretty much lived out of the suitcase. Did I mention that the apartment also had wi-fi and free local and north american phone service?
My favorite thing about the location is that the Montorgueil Market is only 4 very short blocks away (under 500 steps, I counted 'em). This market is a delight, I prefer it to Rue Cler. and it looks little changed from when painted by Monet.
The apartment looks pretty much like the pictures. A small studio about 24'X 12' in size and clean. It has a usable kitchen, small table with 2 mismatched chairs but nice dishes and utensils including a cork screw for our welcoming bottle of wine as advertised. I understand that the apartment has since been airconditioned. The bathroom is of decent size with a shower THAT HAS A DOOR. My fondest hope realized. The bed is comfortable. There are only 2 sets of towels to last 5 nights. Using the included washing machine for the towels will not be practical because there is no dryer. VacationinParis told us this in advance so we were prepared. Did we bring our own towels? You bet. Were they bulky? No. We had bought a couple of microfleece towels at the auto department at Target. Much cheaper than the ones in the camping stores, light, not bulky, and they dry very quickly. All in all, the apartment is basic, comfortable and a great value at what had become 64 Euro per night due to the declining dollar since VinP is paid in dollars in advance. One negative is that there is no closet for hanging clothing - we pretty much lived out of the suitcase. Did I mention that the apartment also had wi-fi and free local and north american phone service?
My favorite thing about the location is that the Montorgueil Market is only 4 very short blocks away (under 500 steps, I counted 'em). This market is a delight, I prefer it to Rue Cler. and it looks little changed from when painted by Monet.
Jan 6th, 2009, 02:10 PM
#131
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http://www.slowtrav.com/france/vr/review.asp?n=2982
This is my apartment review on Slowtrav.com It's a great budget studio in the 11th arrondissement at 60 euro a night. More photos here: http://cerf.smugmug.com/gallery/3711...12742289_4LwS2
Also to mention, there is air conditioning for the summer.
This is my apartment review on Slowtrav.com It's a great budget studio in the 11th arrondissement at 60 euro a night. More photos here: http://cerf.smugmug.com/gallery/3711...12742289_4LwS2
Also to mention, there is air conditioning for the summer.
Jan 14th, 2009, 01:16 AM
#134
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We are just back from our trip to Paris and I would happily recommend http://www.ahparis.com/ as an apartment rental agency. We booked apartment 163 which was in the 7th district - very handy for walking and the metro, and all the arrangements and details when smoothly and as planned. We had a little problem, which was dealt with quickly. The apartment itself was very small, but we were hardly there so it didn't matter. It had everything we needed, was warm and had a comfortable bed, and at 100Euro a night wasn't too bad.
Jan 14th, 2009, 02:40 AM
#135
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My suggestion is WAYTOSTAY, the selection of apartments in the city (http://www.waytostay.com/Paris-apart...en-109.html)is interesting... and some friends booked with them having no problem, the feedback at the moment of the bookings from the agency has been perfect and they found an apartment with a 20% of discount (I think it was in the 7th arrondissement, not so far from the tour Eiffel...)
Jan 18th, 2009, 03:09 AM
#136
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Wow what a thread! I have just finished reading it all. Thank you to all the contributors.
I have been researching apartments and would appreciate some feedback please as this is our first time renting, haven't been to Paris for 25 years.
We will be in Paris for 5 nights, would prefer the 4th 5th or 6th districts but have looked at others.
I have been looking at the following apartments:
VRBO 171439
VRBO 103254
VRBO 117217
VRBO 21191
VRBO 4435
Rentparis no. 30 Rambuteau
Any feedback would be most appreciated as this is all new to us.
We are Australian and our exchange rate is not looking so good at the moment so looking at places no more than 100 euro per night which equates about $200 australian
I have been researching apartments and would appreciate some feedback please as this is our first time renting, haven't been to Paris for 25 years.
We will be in Paris for 5 nights, would prefer the 4th 5th or 6th districts but have looked at others.
I have been looking at the following apartments:
VRBO 171439
VRBO 103254
VRBO 117217
VRBO 21191
VRBO 4435
Rentparis no. 30 Rambuteau
Any feedback would be most appreciated as this is all new to us.
We are Australian and our exchange rate is not looking so good at the moment so looking at places no more than 100 euro per night which equates about $200 australian
Jan 18th, 2009, 07:57 AM
#137
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aussie10, a couple of quick reactions:
vrbo # 171439, Rue de Beauce: I stayed in a small flat two streets away and loved the area. Great food shopping on Rue de Bretagne. There is a very untouristy feel about the whole area. I wouldn't hesitate to return to this part of the 3rd arrondissement.
vrbo # 103254, in the 11th near the Voltaire métro. This is well off the typical tourist track in an area that is becoming quite vibrant--lots of new restos, etc. I'd give it a whirl, but that flat may be quite dark. (You'll notice that they say a lot of light comes in the garden doors; is that a hint that it is otherwise pokey? Not sure.)
vrbo # 117217, in the 4th. I suspect it is between Rue St Paul and the Seine. Great area, I've walked through there many, many times. Looks like there is no shortage of windows in the flat, I find it quite appealing.
vrbo # 21191, in the 7th on rue Amélie ... I am less familiar with the neighbourhood but I wouldn't hesitate to rent in that area.
The last two, vrbo 4435 and RentParis #30 (www.rentparis.com/appart-en-47.html, if anyone else wants to see the listing) leave me a bit cold. The former has a loft and the latter just looks less attractive.
Anselm
vrbo # 171439, Rue de Beauce: I stayed in a small flat two streets away and loved the area. Great food shopping on Rue de Bretagne. There is a very untouristy feel about the whole area. I wouldn't hesitate to return to this part of the 3rd arrondissement.
vrbo # 103254, in the 11th near the Voltaire métro. This is well off the typical tourist track in an area that is becoming quite vibrant--lots of new restos, etc. I'd give it a whirl, but that flat may be quite dark. (You'll notice that they say a lot of light comes in the garden doors; is that a hint that it is otherwise pokey? Not sure.)
vrbo # 117217, in the 4th. I suspect it is between Rue St Paul and the Seine. Great area, I've walked through there many, many times. Looks like there is no shortage of windows in the flat, I find it quite appealing.
vrbo # 21191, in the 7th on rue Amélie ... I am less familiar with the neighbourhood but I wouldn't hesitate to rent in that area.
The last two, vrbo 4435 and RentParis #30 (www.rentparis.com/appart-en-47.html, if anyone else wants to see the listing) leave me a bit cold. The former has a loft and the latter just looks less attractive.
Anselm
Jan 18th, 2009, 10:42 AM
#138
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VRBO 117217 looks bright and sunny, but being on the 4th floor (5th floor U.S.?) with no elevator would rule it out for an ancient like me. that would make popping out for a baguette in the morning a major expedition, rather than a pleasure.
Jan 19th, 2009, 01:05 AM
#139
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Thank you for your imput
I have received advice back from both VRBO 117217 and VRBO 171439, both are available. I now need to choose the area I prefer.
I must admit being close to the Seine is very tempting, however the apartment in the 3rd does sound tempting but for the stairs. Worst part will be carrying our bags up and down.
I have seen some apartments in the 5th & 6th maybe a bit more expensive but would we be in a better location for atmosphere?
It is soo hard to choose. I can't make a decision!
I have received advice back from both VRBO 117217 and VRBO 171439, both are available. I now need to choose the area I prefer.
I must admit being close to the Seine is very tempting, however the apartment in the 3rd does sound tempting but for the stairs. Worst part will be carrying our bags up and down.
I have seen some apartments in the 5th & 6th maybe a bit more expensive but would we be in a better location for atmosphere?
It is soo hard to choose. I can't make a decision!
Jan 19th, 2009, 12:49 PM
#140
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Has anyone stayed in vacationinparis apt. ID74--in the 7th. It looks very nice, but would love some feedback if you've been there.
www.vacationinparis.com/apts/id_74
www.vacationinparis.com/apts/id_74
