Paris with 10 & 13 year old...
 

We will be traveling with our 10 and 13 year old daughters in May and wondered what would be a good neighborhood to stay in? Any hotel suggestions for $250-$300 per night range for 1 room in this area?

Any of the central arrondissements--1st through 8th--would work, as Paris is compact. You might concentrate on the 4th or 5th, each containing or within walking distance of Notre Dame, Louvre, Concergerie, St-Chapelle, Latin Quarter, Place des Vosges and numerous small museums such as the Picasso, Moyen Ages. Most of the sites tourists visit are on or near an axis running east-west, served by Metro line 1 (La Defense-Vincennes).

I understand that the Eiffel Tower will be taking reservations for visits by private individuals by then. If you are interested in visiting the monument, I'd strongly recommend a reservation, as the wait can kill.

You might also investigate renting an apartment which can give you more space and privacy than a hotel room. Many of the traditional hotels in Paris feature small rooms.

Enjoy your trip.

That's a great age to travel with kids! We did a trip with my granddaughter last year- we called it "The Princess tours Paris", and she had a great time. An apartment would be the best choice, especially if there are 4 of you, as few Paris hotels rooms are designed to house that many people. Also, an apartment means you can buy some food at the markets and have some of your meals at home. We had an apartment near the Rue Cler with a bedroom and two sleep sofas in the living room. With my granddaughter, we stayed at the Muguet, also near Rue Cler and steps from the Eiffel Tower. It had a large bed in the main room, and an alcove with a single bed, but it wouldn't hold 4. The Rue Cler market is a great place to pick up little pizzas and quiches, bread and cheese, or sit in a cafe watching the people. If you're interested in an apartment, try vrbo.com.

I agree with the suggestions to rent an apartment. We rented an appartment near Rue Cler last summer with our then 9 year old daughter. It was nice to be able to spread out, have our own little kitchen and have separate bedrooms when it came time for bed so that we didn't all have to go to sleep at the same time.

Wherever you stay, I highly recommend finding somewhere very close to a Metro stop. It was so nice and convenient to just walk out our front door, cross the street and be on the Metro. It was also nice while we were out and about if we wanted to run back to the apartment to grab a raincoat, drop off purchases, etc. . .

I also suggest an apt.---it's very easy to do, and fun to get bakery in the morning for breakfast. We've used www.VRBO.com and also www.guestapartment.com for Ile St. Louis(which is our favorite location) with great sucess. IMO, the 6th also would be good, there is so much activity, and as close to the Seine as possible for convenience.

There are many apt. threads with different favorite agencies. www.parisperfect.com is another agency recommended on this site. With 4 people it would give you the most room. Most of them have an office(guest apt. does) right in the area or someone to help with questions or reservations.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...d.cfmere's
Here's one of the apartment threads with lots of suggestions.

Good Luck!

Apartment, apartment, apartment!

VacationInParis is a wonderful US based agency. I loved them as do many, many other Fodorites. A 2BR with them is right in your price range. IT is SO stress free, excellent communication and service - they even mail the apt key to your home a few weeks befroe you leave for Paris.

As for neighborhood, ANY of their apts in District 4, 5, or 6 would be right up your alley for a family with two pre-teen girls. See below:

http://www.vacationinparis.com/infop/two_br.htm

My top choices would include:
http://www.vacationinparis.com/apts/id_48.htm or

http://www.vacationinparis.com/apts/id_157.htm

and a splurge choice:
http://www.vacationinparis.com/apts/id_190.htm

You'll notice that, even within districts 4, 5, & 6, the listings that are closest to the river cost more than those further away. This extra money for premium location is money very well spent, IMO.

It is a challenge in Paris to find a room for 4. We stayed in the St. Germain area this summer with our sons (ages 11 and 13). We found it to be a great area as it is close to the sights and filled cafes and restaurants. We enjoyed wandering the streets of that area and the Latin Quarter in the evenings.

I would triple backup the apartment option.
We stayed on Isle Saint Louis with our two boys 8 and 11 and found the central location perfect for our first time visit. Walking distance to many interesting places, and convenient.
We stayed at www.parisabcd.com (which is also listed on vrbo) and it was just what we needed (though it is under your budget so you will probably be able to find even more apartment for your money!

We had a quad/family room at the Claude Bernard that worked well when our boys were about that age; its well located in the latin quarter, easy access to three metro stops, restaurants, etc.

My family and I (DH and two kids ages 14 and 12) just returned from Paris and rented an apt in the Marais (3 eme) for (I think) 135 euros per night. The reason I can't quite remember the price is that the building was being renovated and the owner reduced the price. It had one bedroom and my two kids slept in the living room. We were quite comfortable. The owner met us as we arrived and got us settled in, showed us how to set up the wi fi, and generally was very nice. The apt had a washer (no dryer, which is typical), and at least one night we cooked dinner. The apartment was very close to a metro stop (Chemin Vert). The Marais is lively with tons of shops and restaurants including the (almost) famous falafel place! We rented from vrbo.com. I wouldn't hesitate to rent an apartment, it's the only way to go.

If the Eiffel tower is accepting reservations, that would be ideal as we waited an hour to get in and then couldn't go to the third deck (which was OK by me) because it was too crowded. Of course, this was in July.

Have a great trip.

Echo the apartment! :)

I hope you all love it as much as we did. I went in 07 with my than 10 and 13 year old and in 08/09 (for christmas/NYE) for 10 nights with our family, 12 year old dd, 15 year old dd, 18 year old son and his friend - we rented a wonderful 3 bedroom apartment in the 5th.

I stayed in the 1rst the first time and in the 5th the second. I prefered the 5th. When I go back I want to rent an apartment in the 7th.

If you will use a tour person - I highly recommend Michael an American who has been living in Paris for a long time. Many here have used him and can also vouch - he will bring the city alive! :)

The catacombs are really great at that age as well.

Here is our trip report if you can get through it :) I do not think I ever did one for 07...

here it is :

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...milyh-of-6.cfm