Paris Apartments - 7th or 16th arrr?
 

I will undoubtedly earn a prize for being the 1 millionth person to post a question about paris apartment rentals :) - so apologies in advance. I've read a number of the recent postings and they have been quite helpful but I am curious whether anyone has stayed at the two I've managed to narrow my choices to, both from vrbo.

One is in the 7th arr (rue de Grenelle) and the second in the 16th arr (near Place Victor Hugo). We have stayed in the 16th previously (near Passy Metro) and we really enjoyed the residential feel of the area, and did not find it too removed from "Paris central".

For anyone interested the links are:

http://www.vrbo.com/36111
http://www.vrbo.com/45955

Any comments on either of the apartments (or on the areas generally ) would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Hi whiskey,
we looked at those apartments also.
Here are the reasons we decided against them.
The rue de Grenelle apt is very pretty but it is on the 4th floor, with no elevator. That can get tiresome after a day of sightseeing.
There were so many nice apts, I did not see the need to take one without an elevator.
The apt on Victor Hugo is also nice and one we considered.
In the end, we thought that we would be happier in the 7th and found an apt there. ( through parisperfect.)
I guess you are dealing with Mr Walid? I think his name is? He was very quick to answer any questions and very nice..
If you like Passy, there is a great apt that is named Passy in the vrbo lists, see if you like it.
Good luck, it is sort of fun and sort of frustrating , apt shopping online, but I have high hopes that it will be a great new way to see Paris.
Hope this helps, Scarlett

I agree about no elevator on a 4th floor apartment. (and don't forget to most of us a Paris 4th floor is really a 5th floor).
Also, how many of you are bothered by a bed against a wall. Does one person really have to climb in and out over the other one?

The Victor Hugo one is nice, but expensive.
Just for comparison, here's the apartment we rent for less money than either of these properties -- it's in the 6th on St. Germain, but much larger and nicer (judging from appearances).
www.sant.com

Thank you for the replies (Scarlett the thread you started was very helpful by the way!). The vrbo Passy apartment you mentioned was actually our first choice, but it is not available the dates we need - nor were the ones we looked at on parisperfect. Patick the apartment you referred to was on my "long list" as well. The elevator point doesn't bother me to be honest - maybe I'll just flip a coin. Thanks again.

whiskey,
when you look at an apt on the vrbo site, if you see where they say - look at my other apartments, go there! You might find something else not on the original lists. We did that and found a couple that were very nice but we could not get them for the nights we wanted. Don't give up! I was shocked at how many apts there were!
Glad my apt thread helped :D

“There is only one way to live cheaply abroad -- live as the people of the country live.”
-- Blanche McManus, “The American Woman Abroad," 1911

The 4th, sans ascenseur, was THE place to be before there were any, or many, elevators. It lifted you above the disagreeable life of the streets. And climbing stairs is good exercise!

Yes, Dave, it is good exercise. But after a day of good exercise, including perhaps walking up to the top of Sacre Cour or Notre Dame, or just from one end of Paris to the other, I fear that an additional 4 or 5 flights of stairs would kill me off before I could finish my holiday :D

Start slow with a place in the entre sol between the rez-de-chausee and the first floor. (By the way, I'm 62, and the left hip isn't quite what it used to be.) And our 80-something neighbors, where we used to live,all died less than a year after the elevator was installed. We moved.

Why not try and have an elegant stay in this greatest of cities? There are options after all! When the credit's gone, order champagne--we recently stayed in a dynamite flat, certainly not cheap, but beaucoup elegant!we found the owner at www.wewillalwayshaveparis.net and had a champagne time there with splendide surroundings. We rarely went out for dinner! Bon courage! Lillian

We like variety (extremes, if you please). A while in a 6th-floor walkup and a while in a four-star spot. (No, I'm not kidding.)

The Victor Hugo area is my favorite area in Paris. If we ever move to Paris, that's where we'd live. We always stay there when we're in Paris. Beautiful apartments, lots of restaurants and cafes, greenery, excellent shopping, easy connections to anywhere in Paris. It think it's even more enjoyable than Passy. I like the 7th, too, but I would pick the Victor Hugo area over Grenelle in a flash.

I happen to live in a three story townhouse without elevator, so I'm pretty used to stairs. But like I mentioned on a recent thread about staying close to the "action" I like a place where I go in and out a number of times a day.
One has to think twice after getting up in the morning about "running down" 5 flights then back up to go get a croissant, then doing it again 5 or six times a day.

Patrick,

It true, unmotorized life on the sixth floor focuses the mind. At my age, it needs focusing!

Here is the ground-floor St. Germain apartment with terrace we'll be staying in: http://www.rentalfrance.com/index.ph...&picture=2 Have read great things re this agency on various websites.

Thanks to everyone who responded. I feel like I've spent more time looking at pictures of apartments than when I bought my house! We've decided to go with the 16th - with an elevator no less. I guess I will have to find another way to burn off all those pain au chocolat :)

Cheers