Paris - d'Aubusson vs Esprit St Germain
Sep 17th, 2008, 08:53 AM
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Paris - d'Aubusson vs Esprit St Germain
Another Hotel comparison request. This time its d'aubusson (superior rooms) vs. Esprit St Germain - (deluxe room connecting to a superior).
Esprit seems more modern/hip but d'Aubusson is more widely and positively reviewed (although Esprit is no slouch). Location seems similar. Esprit costs 15 euro more per room/night
Issues to compare - room size, cleanliness, service, staff attitude, bed quality, shower pressure, breakfast quality (included at both), noise levels, and anything else you think important.
Thanks much as this is always a wealth of good info.
Esprit seems more modern/hip but d'Aubusson is more widely and positively reviewed (although Esprit is no slouch). Location seems similar. Esprit costs 15 euro more per room/night
Issues to compare - room size, cleanliness, service, staff attitude, bed quality, shower pressure, breakfast quality (included at both), noise levels, and anything else you think important.
Thanks much as this is always a wealth of good info.
Sep 17th, 2008, 09:16 AM
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I haven't stayed at either, so can't comment on that, but I do like that the Aubusson specifies room size on its website. I would simply ask the Esprit the size of the rooms rather than general adjectives you might get (big, small, etc.) so you know for sure. That is a lot of money to pay for a room and have it be half the size of the other hotel IMO. The AUbusson room sizes seem very large to me, but I could have sworn someone on here, or more than one, have said the std rooms are small. However, they say they are 20 m2, which I consider large for a std. room. So I would find out if they are lying when they say that on the website or is that what people complain about being very small on Fodors.
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=35089592
I always ask a hotel for the room size if it matters to me (which generally means for longer stays or some place very expensive).
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=35089592
I always ask a hotel for the room size if it matters to me (which generally means for longer stays or some place very expensive).
Sep 17th, 2008, 09:45 AM
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Hi golfin,
We've stayed at Hotel d'Aubusson and will be going back for a second visit in April. I'm pretty sure that my kids were in a superior room when we visited in July of 2007. If so, it's a very nice room,with extremely comfortable beds, fairly sizeable for Paris, with a small but perfectly outfitted bathroom and excellent shower.
The hotel has double glazed windows, so there's really no noise once you're inside your room. As for breakfast, it was a typical buffet style- croissants, jams, boiled eggs, fresh juices. But if you opt out of it, there are excellent patisseries just across the street from the hotel, and they are much cheaper!
I would never call Hotel d'Aubusson hip or modern (!), but it does provide an updated but old-fashioned charm, especially when you walk through the lobby as the resident jazz trio is performing.
The staff is very good, and the location is deal for sightseeing. By the way, I could be wrong, but the other hotel you mention is ( I think!) several blocks away from Hotel d'Aubusson.
We've stayed at Hotel d'Aubusson and will be going back for a second visit in April. I'm pretty sure that my kids were in a superior room when we visited in July of 2007. If so, it's a very nice room,with extremely comfortable beds, fairly sizeable for Paris, with a small but perfectly outfitted bathroom and excellent shower.
The hotel has double glazed windows, so there's really no noise once you're inside your room. As for breakfast, it was a typical buffet style- croissants, jams, boiled eggs, fresh juices. But if you opt out of it, there are excellent patisseries just across the street from the hotel, and they are much cheaper!
I would never call Hotel d'Aubusson hip or modern (!), but it does provide an updated but old-fashioned charm, especially when you walk through the lobby as the resident jazz trio is performing.
The staff is very good, and the location is deal for sightseeing. By the way, I could be wrong, but the other hotel you mention is ( I think!) several blocks away from Hotel d'Aubusson.
Sep 17th, 2008, 10:19 AM
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golfin,
I've stayed at the Esprit St. Germain but not the d'Aubusson.
I loved the Esprit location near St. Sulpice, just around the corner from Gerard Mulot and Pierre Herme-in retail heaven. I also enjoyed the complimentary champagne, homemade chips, cafe, tea, cookies always available in the downstairs lounge/living room. When I came in from sightseeing or shopping, the concierge always encouraged me to sit and brought me some treat of food or drink. I could have helped myself from the open bar, but she always made a point of greeting me upon arrival and serving me herself. I found the service to be top notch.
We were personally escorted to our room and asked if we wanted help unpacking. Before we left for our dinners out, the concierge on duty would hand us a print out with walking directions to our restaurant (although we knew how to get there, it was a nice touch). And when we checked out and left for the Montparnasse station to take the TGV, she sent us off with a gift bag of sables from Poilane. Another nice touch.
We took breakfast in a lovely and quiet, secluded upstairs lounge with wide, plush chairs and sofas and lots of cushions. We had the brk. lounge entirely to ourselves one morning.
The Esprit St. Germain is extremely quiet and very private. There's no front desk, really, just a foyer, like in a private home, and no downstairs public rooms other than the cozy lounge with fireplace (and chill out music) which is available only to guests.
If you want the hamman and spa area entirely to yourself, just tell the staff-they'll book it for you and you alone for a couple of hours-no problem.
From the street it looks like an elegant town home. My taxi driver past by it at first, not recognizing it as a hotel and missing the number.
And the way the rooms are distributed in nooks and crannies rather than down a long corridor gives your stay even more of an aura of privacy.
Their slogan, "just like home", I found to be true-it felt like staying in a very exclusive, ultra chic, designer-decorated Parisian home with a superior staff. It's quite stylish and yes, hip, but not "trendy/fashionista".
The "classic" (standard) rooms are quite compact and baths even more so. Our room made up for the lack of space with the "twinkly lights" above the bed (romantic), the supreme comfort of the bed itself, the quiet and the office desk with high speed internet.
The deluxe rooms are considerably larger with space for side chairs. For a really large amount of space to walk about and with separate seating area, there are the prestige rooms with private sit-out balcony. But you should be fine with a deluxe.
We noticed the compactness of our classic (standard) room more, perhaps, because we're used to the spacious (even by Paris standards) deluxe rooms we've enjoyed at the Hotel d'Orsay and the Madison.
We stayed at the Esprit on business, and the staff could not have been more attentive to our needs.
Hope this helps.
I've stayed at the Esprit St. Germain but not the d'Aubusson.
I loved the Esprit location near St. Sulpice, just around the corner from Gerard Mulot and Pierre Herme-in retail heaven. I also enjoyed the complimentary champagne, homemade chips, cafe, tea, cookies always available in the downstairs lounge/living room. When I came in from sightseeing or shopping, the concierge always encouraged me to sit and brought me some treat of food or drink. I could have helped myself from the open bar, but she always made a point of greeting me upon arrival and serving me herself. I found the service to be top notch.
We were personally escorted to our room and asked if we wanted help unpacking. Before we left for our dinners out, the concierge on duty would hand us a print out with walking directions to our restaurant (although we knew how to get there, it was a nice touch). And when we checked out and left for the Montparnasse station to take the TGV, she sent us off with a gift bag of sables from Poilane. Another nice touch.
We took breakfast in a lovely and quiet, secluded upstairs lounge with wide, plush chairs and sofas and lots of cushions. We had the brk. lounge entirely to ourselves one morning.
The Esprit St. Germain is extremely quiet and very private. There's no front desk, really, just a foyer, like in a private home, and no downstairs public rooms other than the cozy lounge with fireplace (and chill out music) which is available only to guests.
If you want the hamman and spa area entirely to yourself, just tell the staff-they'll book it for you and you alone for a couple of hours-no problem.
From the street it looks like an elegant town home. My taxi driver past by it at first, not recognizing it as a hotel and missing the number.
And the way the rooms are distributed in nooks and crannies rather than down a long corridor gives your stay even more of an aura of privacy.
Their slogan, "just like home", I found to be true-it felt like staying in a very exclusive, ultra chic, designer-decorated Parisian home with a superior staff. It's quite stylish and yes, hip, but not "trendy/fashionista".
The "classic" (standard) rooms are quite compact and baths even more so. Our room made up for the lack of space with the "twinkly lights" above the bed (romantic), the supreme comfort of the bed itself, the quiet and the office desk with high speed internet.
The deluxe rooms are considerably larger with space for side chairs. For a really large amount of space to walk about and with separate seating area, there are the prestige rooms with private sit-out balcony. But you should be fine with a deluxe.
We noticed the compactness of our classic (standard) room more, perhaps, because we're used to the spacious (even by Paris standards) deluxe rooms we've enjoyed at the Hotel d'Orsay and the Madison.
We stayed at the Esprit on business, and the staff could not have been more attentive to our needs.
Hope this helps.
Sep 18th, 2008, 03:34 AM
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These are both fantastically detailed reviews on both hotels -- THANKS.
Re: room size at Esprit - they tell me 19 for the superior and 21 for the deluxe. Smaller than the superior at d'Aubusson which is 25. Hard for me to guess whether the difference between 21 and 25 is a big deal.
Re: location. Absolutely correct that they are different - I guess I didn't appreciate how different (a couple blocks either side of st germain). Anybody care to give pros/cons on the two locations? FWIW, we are we are family of four (two girls 14 and 16) who will hit the typical tourist sites and want to shop at non-chain, non-glitzy name boutiques.
Re: Esprit - any reason to prefer one floor over another? They are giving us our choice of first through fourth (the have been incredibly responsive to emails - as has d'aubusson)
Finally, this may seem like nitpicking, but Weadles and maribel, can you describe the shower facilities? After a long hot August day walking Paris, we'd really like a decent shower with good water pressure!
Thanks again for all your help.
Re: room size at Esprit - they tell me 19 for the superior and 21 for the deluxe. Smaller than the superior at d'Aubusson which is 25. Hard for me to guess whether the difference between 21 and 25 is a big deal.
Re: location. Absolutely correct that they are different - I guess I didn't appreciate how different (a couple blocks either side of st germain). Anybody care to give pros/cons on the two locations? FWIW, we are we are family of four (two girls 14 and 16) who will hit the typical tourist sites and want to shop at non-chain, non-glitzy name boutiques.
Re: Esprit - any reason to prefer one floor over another? They are giving us our choice of first through fourth (the have been incredibly responsive to emails - as has d'aubusson)
Finally, this may seem like nitpicking, but Weadles and maribel, can you describe the shower facilities? After a long hot August day walking Paris, we'd really like a decent shower with good water pressure!
Thanks again for all your help.
Sep 18th, 2008, 04:07 AM
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If I am correct, I'd say Hotel d'Aubusson has a better location for the kind of shopping teenage girls want to do.( Our 19-year-old daughter was with us last July and loved the area.) We know this neighborhood well because we've stayed many times around the corner at Relais Christine.
Anyway, on the corner of rue dauphine (where hotel is located) and rue andres des artes there's an incredible ethnic jewelry store selling a wide range of items from Nepal, India, Bali, South America, and Europe. It's one of my favorite haunts in Paris, and would you believe I've forgotten the name?!
On rue andres des artes itself there are lots of small boutiques selling clothes from all over the world, as well as jewelry and unique household items. Just off that street,(to the right almost immediately after you enter the street from rue dauphine) there's a tiny lane leading out to St. Germaine that is full of small cafes,( Mexican food in Paris?!) more boutiques, etc.
And only a few minutes away, is the famous Latin Quarter, which has more of the same plus creperies, great gelato, lots of young students!
Rue Dauphine, which is where the hotel is located, is an excellent retail street that has some upscale stores mixed in with smaller boutiques, patisseries, and chocolatiers.
Now getting back to the hotel for a minute: My husband who has been known to use up all the hot water in our house, had no complaints about the shower/water pressure at Hotel D'Aubusson.
Good luck with your choice!
Anyway, on the corner of rue dauphine (where hotel is located) and rue andres des artes there's an incredible ethnic jewelry store selling a wide range of items from Nepal, India, Bali, South America, and Europe. It's one of my favorite haunts in Paris, and would you believe I've forgotten the name?!
On rue andres des artes itself there are lots of small boutiques selling clothes from all over the world, as well as jewelry and unique household items. Just off that street,(to the right almost immediately after you enter the street from rue dauphine) there's a tiny lane leading out to St. Germaine that is full of small cafes,( Mexican food in Paris?!) more boutiques, etc.
And only a few minutes away, is the famous Latin Quarter, which has more of the same plus creperies, great gelato, lots of young students!
Rue Dauphine, which is where the hotel is located, is an excellent retail street that has some upscale stores mixed in with smaller boutiques, patisseries, and chocolatiers.
Now getting back to the hotel for a minute: My husband who has been known to use up all the hot water in our house, had no complaints about the shower/water pressure at Hotel D'Aubusson.
Good luck with your choice!
Sep 18th, 2008, 05:03 AM
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Thanks Weadles. Do you have an opinion on the area around the Esprit? Note that we have never been to Paris so don't know whether the relatively small geographic distance between the two hotels actually constitutes different "neighborhoods." They look really close but perhaps I am misreading the Google map!
Sep 18th, 2008, 10:19 AM
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Yes, Weadles,
The Esprit isn't that close to the d'Aubusson, whose location I do know well. The Esprit is closer to Luxembourg gardens. Although to reach the Seine it's an easy walk-just to the corner of St. Sulpice and Rue de Seine and down.
The Esprit isn't that close to the d'Aubusson, whose location I do know well. The Esprit is closer to Luxembourg gardens. Although to reach the Seine it's an easy walk-just to the corner of St. Sulpice and Rue de Seine and down.
Sep 18th, 2008, 10:26 AM
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golfin,
If room size is a deciding factor for you, I would definitely book a deluxe room at the Esprit, if that ends up to be your choice. As for floors, the place is quite small, so it doesn't really matter. I think there are only 4 floors. We stayed on the 2nd.
The shower was powerful-that's something important to us, so I remember that while the bathroom was tiny, the shower was great.
The rue St. Sulpice lies between the rue Bonaparte and the rue de Seine, both which lead to the river. Both hotels are located in the St. Germain area.
If room size is a deciding factor for you, I would definitely book a deluxe room at the Esprit, if that ends up to be your choice. As for floors, the place is quite small, so it doesn't really matter. I think there are only 4 floors. We stayed on the 2nd.
The shower was powerful-that's something important to us, so I remember that while the bathroom was tiny, the shower was great.
The rue St. Sulpice lies between the rue Bonaparte and the rue de Seine, both which lead to the river. Both hotels are located in the St. Germain area.
Sep 22nd, 2008, 09:18 AM
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Wow - thanks for all the helpful info. Let me throw a third choice into the mix. Again, in what I think is the same "general" neighborhood, what do you all think of the Hotel Bel Ami on Rue Saint-Benoit about a block or so towards the river from Blvd Saint-Germain? With pretty good August discounts, it appears to be in the same price range as the others, maybe a couple of euros more. Room sizes for the two levels we're looking at (superior and deluxe) are 20 and 25 respectively.
Any experience or views on Bel Ami would be appreciated?
Thanks
Any experience or views on Bel Ami would be appreciated?
Thanks
Sep 22nd, 2008, 09:29 AM
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Golfin:
I have been resisting, but, since you brought up a third choice, I am going to bring up a fourth! Take a look at the Hotel de l'Abbaye. Wonderful hotel-very "French". Nice patio, too. Good location in the 6th close to St. Sulpice. Request large twin or better. My room had a new bathroom all done in marble with separate shower with lots of pressure, too.
www.hotelabbayeparis.com
I have been resisting, but, since you brought up a third choice, I am going to bring up a fourth! Take a look at the Hotel de l'Abbaye. Wonderful hotel-very "French". Nice patio, too. Good location in the 6th close to St. Sulpice. Request large twin or better. My room had a new bathroom all done in marble with separate shower with lots of pressure, too.
www.hotelabbayeparis.com
Feb 7th, 2009, 06:41 PM
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Your trip may be long over but I almost stayed at Esprit, considered D'Aubusson (it was booked)and ended at Pavillon de la Reine which we loved. We did visit Esprit while walking to Jardin du Luxembourg and although hotel was very luxurious, discreet and upscale it seemed very small in public spaces and more so than I thought it would from internet photos. They were friendly and let me look around. Location was definitely ideal for left bank walking, eating and shopping (we went to some open market near St. Sulpice and bought a beautiful oil portrait).
That said, I have a very good who LOVES Bel-Ami and has stayed several times. Good luck!
That said, I have a very good who LOVES Bel-Ami and has stayed several times. Good luck!
Feb 12th, 2009, 09:25 PM
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We love the Hotel d'Aubusson. My son was married in Paris seven years and our family and several friends stayed there. He had a Welcome party in the large room (I guess you'd call it a lounge) Breakfast was wonderful, staff excellent, rooms comfortable.
The location is excellent. We have stayed in that area many times, and it is ideal for teenagers.
We stayed at the Hotel de l'Abbaye some years, and although it is well-appointed, I prefer the location and room of the Aubusson.
I can't give an opinion on the Esp[rit St. Germain since I never even heard of it.
Good luck, and let us know what you decide.
The location is excellent. We have stayed in that area many times, and it is ideal for teenagers.
We stayed at the Hotel de l'Abbaye some years, and although it is well-appointed, I prefer the location and room of the Aubusson.
I can't give an opinion on the Esp[rit St. Germain since I never even heard of it.
Good luck, and let us know what you decide.
