Please help w/2 bedroom apartment choice in Paris
 

We decided to go to Paris on a spur of the moment (I saw good ticket price for Air France direct flight BOS-CDG and grabbed it) and now are scrambling to find an apartment for 4. I am discovering that 2 bedroom apartments available on short notice (late March) are thin on the ground.... I am aiming for an apartment over hotel because a) there are 4 of us, myself, my husband and our 2 Moms and 2) because I and hubby paying for the trip for all of us, I was hoping to save some money on accomodation. Being able to have common space and have occasional meal in the apartment definitely make the apartment more attractive then 2 tiny hotel rooms.

Having scoured the internet for a true 2 bedroom apartment, in the 3rd through 6th arrondissements, with 2 bedrooms and most importantly, real beds, as opposed to pullout sofas most of the apartments in my budget (200 E/night) offer, I narrowed it down to the top 4 contenders below,with another handful as backup.

Rue De La Verrerie in the 4th
http://tinyurl.com/sc5u9

Latin Quarter - specific address unknow, awaiting street name from the owner
http://tinyurl.com/tqjjn

Rue d'Assas in the 6th
http://tinyurl.com/vbllx

Rue Monsieur Le Prince
http://www.vrbo.com/8471

If anyone can offer an opinion or perhaps has stayed in any of these apartments, I would be very grateful. The responsibility of securing something comfortable, particularly for our mothers' sake, while being able to afford it, is overwhelming. My criteria was: centrally located (I love Marais but would be happy in 5th and 6th), with 1 double bed and 2 single beds, in a building with an elevator or on the lower floor. My husband's Mom nearing 70, with some mobility problems, so as much as I would have liked to explore more residential, less touristy areas of Paris (this is not the 1st trip for the rest of our party, but the first and possibly only trip for my mother in law), I am trying to make it enjoyable and not too tiring for her.

Any other suggestions on affordable 2 bedroom apartments in central Paris are most welcome. I liked a number of apartments on VacationInParis site, but none were available. I checked availability and price on innumerable sites, both by owner and rental agencies, but in case I've missed something, please let me know what your favorite agency/apartment is.

Thank you,
Julia.

I really like the first apt in the 4th but I'd hesitate asking my 70 yr old mom to climb more than 4-5 steps total. The moms are going to share a small room together? Do they like each other that much? If this were me and I couldn't go over budget, I'd give the moms their own rooms and I'd sleep on a sofabed with BF. If the moms are like buddies/best friends, then you have truly been blessed by the gods.

I think you're right -- comfortable beds are important, minimal stairs, and also a public room with enough comfortable seating for all four of you. I don't use the couch frequently with just my boyfriend but I noticed whenever we travel with another couple, we use the public sitting area all the time. It would be truly wonderful if you could find an apt with 2 bathrooms with this many adults but I know that can be hard. But old people can take forever in the bathroom.

Thank you fishee - the stairs situation is the only drawback to the 1st apartment (it wins for the location).

Our mothers shared a twin bedroom in the past - they traveled with us to Florida on a couple of occasions, staying in a condo. They get along well. My Mom will be out and about by herself most likley a good portion of the time - she has insane amounts of energy, way more then I do, even if she has 20+ years on me. In fact, she's been campaining to sleep on the couch, to save us money (not an option). The sofa will not work for myself and hubby as he's got a bad back, and those things are murderous for it. The 1 bathroom situation could be daunting, but I figure we'll survive for 6 days :)

The funny/ironic thing is that we have 3 vacation rental properties in US - I am now learning the pain our guests have to go through to find and secure their rentals. I am learning what NOT to do when advertising my properties :)

I havn't looked at all of them yet - but did check the homelidays property in the 5th. Now, I really like homelidays and have had good experience w/ them. However - that flat is a brand new listing (jan 4) and has no feedback. I would lean away from that one just for that reason alone.

If it was me traveling alone - I wouldn't be so concerned/wary -- but you got the DM and DMIL to worry about . . . .

You might want to confirm whether any of these bedrooms are loft areas since those require ladder climbing.

I think it's really great that you're taking them on this trip, good luck!

The one on rue Monsieur le Prince does appear to have a bed in a loft up a ladder.

The one on rue de la Verrerie is on the second floor with no elevator. Probably means the third floor to those of us in the US.

The loft stairs are not problematic- MIL climbs out some pretty steep stairs to her 2nd floor apartment daily. She's slow but not disabled, so going up to a loft is not that big of a deal. Climbing 3 sets of stairs to the apartment, on the other hand, could be a show stopper...

Thanks Janis for pointing out the newness of homelidays listing - I missed it completely. As you said, I would not have minded taking a chance if it were just the 2 of us, but taking a chance with 2 more people makes it uncomfortable. The owner was the only one (of the RBO) who responded to my inquiry - the rest have not, even though the calendars showed availability.

I would keep looking myself, as I thin they have a lot of drawbacks given your situation.

First, I'd completely rule on the VRBO one because it has a loft with a ladder. Also, it says one BR has a "French bed", which you'd have to ask the size of as that term doesn't mean any particular size --are the owners German? Germans use that term. But I wouldn't even consider it with that ladder. Is there an elevator?

I would rule out the lodgis one near the HdV not because of the lack of elevator (although if that is important to you, that's out, but the bedrooms are very very small (8 m2 each), although you see that in another one, also. They are barely larger than the beds. However, that bathtub is scary, particularly with mobility issues. There is no shower, no handbar, and it is not one of those French tubs I like which are sort of half size and you can actually sit in them (I think they are called sabot tubs) to bathe and use the sprayer. In short, I can't imagine that tub situation for someone with mobility problems.

The Homelidays one looks ok and quite nice in parts, but I'm not sure it mentioned if it had an elevator and it's on the 4th floor. YOu decide on the recent listing thing. It is larger, but they don't show one bedroom at all which I'd want to know about. At least it has a regular shape tub with a handbar. The location sounds weird but I suspect is near the Seine -- although I don't know what they are referring to as a "leisure park" in that area. Maybe that just means a park, I picture something like Aquaboulevard down in the 15th, but there's nothing like that around there. There is a pool near the Seine on rue Pontoise so it could be around there.

As for the one on rue d'Assa. It looks okay, I guess. It does have a shower, which might be good for the mobility issues, and is only up one flight. The one bedroom with the twins is again excruciatingly small and the beds are in front of the closet. I guess that is the whole size of the room.

Just to clarify a little bit about the terminology ("leisure park", "view of town", etc) used on the homelidays site -- those are just sort of boilerplate provided by the website -- not the owners. It seems the owners fill out a form and Homelidays adds that part of the listing.

kasperdoggie: If you have good communications w/ that owner and you like the flat don't let the newness totally put you off. Everyone is new once (even Fodors newbies:) ). But I would just be especially vigilant - Does the owner have his own website? It wouldn't say so on the Homelidays site but the owner might tell you himself.

I'd just double, and triple, quadruple check before booking.

Thank you all so very much for the help!

Christina, I missed the smallness of the rooms (I guess I was mesmerized by the location and large living room, and also it's overall size is on the larger end of spectrum of the apartments I have looked at). Also, the implications of getting in and out of that tub - thanks for pointing this out! I will be more observant now when looking at the baths.

Homelidays aprt does have an elevator as does the VRBO one (the owner is Swiss, hence the "french bed" reference). Given the ladder situation (again, thanks Nikki and Christina for bringing it to my attention. I am learning to deconstruct apartment photos!), I'm going to pass on it.

The Homelidays apartment's second bedroom is alleged to have 2 single beds but there's no photo of it. I e-mailed the owner requesting it.

Janis, I just started communication with the Homelidays property owner, and as you suggested, I will be asking a lot more questions. I am not giving up on it yet, if only because there are so few apartments that will work for us, based on restrictive criteria and even more restrictive budget ;)

Here are a couple more 2 bedroom apartmenst w/availability for our dates - would you care to take a look?

Rue des Chartreux in the 6th
http://tinyurl.com/ymygsg

Ok sized bedroom, lack of shower (just the tub). 1st floor. The one drawback that it's not available for the last night of our stay, necessitating decamping to a hotel for the night and general hassle.


Rue de Polytechnique
http://tinyurl.com/yg9s4q

No pictures of the bathroom, but the floor plan indicates a regular looking tub...

Thank you,
Julia.

Just one comment re the Rue de Polytechnique flat. Sq ft wise it is large enough - but looking at the photos, it looks like the living room is very small w/ just the rocker and a 2-seat convertible sofabed type loveseat. That would be pretty close quarters for 4 adults.

The Rue des Chartreux flat doesn't have a lot of livingroom furniture either but it does look larger and w/ a bit more seating.

Another consideration for me is the shower situation. We recentaly stayed in an apartment that did not have an overhead shower or shower curtian. I was able to accept it but my husband complained all week about it. So from now on I will be scrutinizing the showers.

When traveliong whith my 70 year old parents we make a supreme effort to avoid lots of stairs.

The apartment on rue de l'ecole Polytechnique is on the second floor with no elevator. Once again, this may mean the third floor as we think of it in the US.

I think I figured out the address of the homelidays apartment by looking up the owner's name and phone number in the Pages Jaunes, well, that's if she lives in the same building. Otherwise, I googled the address and found this apartment within your budget. My mother and sister are coming in May and I've rented an apartment through this agency and they are really helpful and friendly. Take a look at this place - I wouldn't mind living in it!

http://www.parisaddress.com/paris-ap...hp?ref=CARDI28

I think this is going to be very difficult as 2 BR apts are rare to begin with for vacation rentals, and then the very short notice. Lots of vacation apts are booked up to a year in advance, and most 2 BRs will be gone because they are rare to begin with. I would probably just book a hotel myself, and then you'll get two bathrooms and no weird beds etc, and you can be clearer on the type of bathroom you get and get a very good location. If you are doing this to save money on accommodation, you may not, if that's the main goal of the apartment thing.

Anyway, I found a really nice 2 BR apt once on one of those websites for Paris and it wasn't that expensive, but I can't find it now, I'll look at home.

This is one website I've viewed and it has quite a few nice 2 bedroom apts in Paris and they are in your price range, and they show availability at the end of March. So check them out. I think they all look nicer than the above ones.
www.rentalfrance.com

Note the one on rue Claude Bernard in the 5th which has a shower, is 650 SF, and the 6th floor with elevator (I love that area, also). The ones on rue St Paul, rue de Grenelle and rue Malar all look possible also. The only exceptions may be the elevator -- rue St Paul is 2nd floor without one, and the one on rue Malar is 3rd French fllor and I don't think it has one, but I'd check as those two bedrooms are really nice-looking, and it has two baths with a shower in one.

Another website I've found is wwww.paris-apartments-rent.com which has several nice 2 bedroom places near the Sorbonne. (be sure to get the URL correct as another is close). The no. 106 is a 75 m2 with mezzanine on the 5th floor with elevator, and has 1 BR with a shower, and is only 200 euro. It does have stairs to the mezzanine, but they look like more normal stairs with a handrail and one of the bedrooms is on the lower level.

I'm glad you decided against that loft with the ladder-like stairs. I was surprised you said loft stairs or steep stairs were no problem, she just couldn't handle 3 flights of regular stairs. I wouldn't even want a place with those ladder-like stairs and I don't have mobility issues. Those are very dangerous. I found another nice place but it had those spiral stairs to the second floor, and those are bad, also.

Holy Cow Beaupeep...I love that apartment.

er... got so excited I mis-clicked!
Nice shower, the bed situation if they are just twins pushed together would be acceptable..nice light too. A lift, an adequate kitchen, its the right price AND IT IS AVAILABLE FOR LATE MARCH!?!

You know, you guys are so good at this, you could get paid for your apartment matching services if you set up a business.

Thank you again!

The choice of apartment over hotel is not driven by the desire to save money as such (the hotel would actually be cheaper) but by the desire to have common space where we can hang out in the morning and the evening, as well as being able to have a quick breakfast/snack, etc without having to go out to a restaurant (fridge is a must as DH and DMIL need milk for their tea).

Thank you for the new suggestions. I liked RentalFrance apartments quite a bit, but Rue Des Chartreux apartment is the only one available for our dates (March 27-April 2) in our budget. I considered Rue St. Paul, Rue Claude Bernard and Rue des Filles du Calvaire, all of whicn are already booked.

I totally agree that this apartment hunt may prove to be a fruitless undertaking. I am looking at the hotels as well as a backup and have secured a couple of rooms at Hotel Sevinge.

I checked out the 2 apartments suggested above (parisaddress and paris-apartments-rent) and both are lovely and would be a great choice, but the 1st only has 2 double beds, no single beds (unless I looked at a wrong apartment?) and 2nd had no availability... :(

I am currently looking at an apartment listed with NYHabitat. Has any one dealt with that agency and has feedback?

Thanks,
Julia.

I didn't even notice that rue des Chartreaux one, it looks like it has everything you want and that's a terrific location. Don't you like it for some reason? Or are you just waiting to hear.

I haven't rented from NYHabitat, but had some contact with them. Didn't care for them, but they are not an agency, so just be aware of that. It is like VRBO, more or less, only they have a markup fee to account for their advertising website. But you are still renting from the owner. The bottom line is the price, of course, just make sure you understand that.

Rue des Chartreaux apartment is fantastic - the only drawback is that it is available for 5 out of our 6 days - I am not sure it worth is the hassle of having to pack and unpack twice ...

I have a couple more places on the short list, none ideal, but all somewhat acceptable (my, how my standards are slipping). It may also be time to raise the budget... I will post a couple of more for review if you are not sick of my questions yet.

Again, thank you for taking the time to do the research and offer the help you all have done - it is much appreciated. I don't feel quite so alone in the big bad apartment hunting world anymore!

Julia.

Try Coach House Rentals (www.chsparis.com). They have some 20 properties on their books from studio flats to properties that will sleep 8/10. They also operate in London – www.rentals.chslondon.com and have many positive revues on tripadvisor.com

harley_nott: Just curious - you have posted to fodors 11 times - and, um -- and every single one was to recommend chslondon/chsparis??

(you may run a wonderful agency - but advertising isn't allowed on Fodors)

Id on;t know about date availability, but we stayed in this apartment (which is now a 2 bedroom) and had a wonderful experience! The location is terrific - ground floor off a quiet courtyard.

http://www.rentalfrance.com/index.ph...&picture=1

Ooh, I drooled over Rue de Buci apartment - alas, taken :(

Thank you for the suggestion - I will add it to my "next visit" shortlist.

The link I included above seems to be within your price range, has two bedrooms and is available in late March so maybe you did look at something else. The address is 28 bis rue Cardinal Lemoine

http://www.parisaddress.com/paris-ap...hp?ref=CARDI28

The challenge with the Cardinal Lemoine apartment is that it does not have 2 single beds, only 2 double beds - we need a couple of twins for DM and DMIL. Otherwise, I'd be leaping on it already ;)

Actually, I looked up the rue des Chartreaux one (they have their own website, BTW, it is www.parisapartment6eme.com ) and actually that isn't as convenient a location as some might want. I might it's a nice area, but it isn't that close to a metro stop, only an RER stop. It's still pretty good considering everything, though. I don't think their own website gives a price or anything, just seems to have a lot of info on it.

I probably wouldn't rent a place that was only available for five out of six days, but if you do, just book a hotel that is very nearby for the extra day and you do not have to completely pack and unpack for one day.

I've found some other nice ones, including the one I was thinking of, but they are all much more expensive than what you are seeking (like $275-350 per day).

The website of Rue du Chartreaux looks pretty good. I can't tell where it is on that map -- is it supposed to be that blue dot?

Anyway, if that busline is close to the apartment, that sounds like a great way to get to the main site and older people seem to appreciate the fewer stairs involved. I don't have mobility issues but I really enjoyed the bus -- as long as I had a schedule I didn't waste time waiting for them, either.

If they can't accomodate your first day, that would be much easier than you having to move at the end of your trip to a hotel for the last night. This apartment does seem superior in most ways, however, to your other options. If there were a hotel a few blocks away, I'd definitely consider this.

I think it is that blue dot, I just looked on a Paris map. It's down at the bottom of the "tail" of Luxembourg Gardens, just a bit NW of the Port Royal RER stop.

Actually, I think having to move out at the end one day earlier is actually fairly convenient and much better than at the beginning. I've done that, and it isn't that bad because you are forced to pack up everything the day before to go home, so then your last day in Paris you can just do what you need to do without having to worry about packing up, cleaning an apt. to whatever extent you do, etc. YOu can just wear something simple you put on the top of your bags, and then you won't have to spend a lot of time your last day packing or the day you leave town. It actually made leaving the apt. a lot less stressful when I could take my time packing up in the morning, going down one block to a hotel when I was ready, and even being able to call the agency or handle last minute problems without worrying about leaving town, getting to the airport, etc.

When I did that, I just found the closest acceptable hotel (2*-3*) to my apartment so I could just wheel my bags there, and booked it for one night. It worked out very well, actually, and also made it easier for the hotel to call the taxi to get to the airport and things like that.

Thank you for your thoughts - I am pondering this option. On one hand, it's a minor hassle, on the other, because we won't have to head to CDG until about 3:30 pm on the day of departure, staying last night in the hotel will let us leave the bags there after checkout and spend the afternoon unencumbered, saying good bye to the city...

Looks like Rue des Chartreux appartment is getting moved to the top of the shortlist :)

It's now between Rue des Chartreux apartment and this one:

http://tinyurl.com/t3sea

I am familiar with Les Halles area but not with Sentier (other then from Cara Black's book). I know the apartment is near Rue Montorgueil market and it satisfies every other requirement (well, it's slightly higher then my original budget allowed, since we'll have to pay for a minimum 7 night stay, while actually only having 6 nights in the apartment, but what the heck) - showers galore, elevators, everyone would have their own bedroom, nicely furnished living room, spacious kitchen. Makes me think I am overlooking something hideously wrong with it?

The last apartment you mention, on Rue des Petits Carreaux, is a great location, very central and near 2 good metro lines #3 and #4. Rue Montorgueil changes names for a couple of blocks to become Rue des Petits Carreaux at its northern end, where it reaches Rue Réaumur, so the apartment is essentially right on Rue Montogueil. In the exterior photos you see an arch across the street. This is the northern end of Rue Montorgueil and this is where the Sentier metro stop is.

There are also pretty good bus routes nearby, including #20, which will take you to the Marais, Republique and Bastille.

Rue Montorgueil is a semi-pedestrian market street with everything you will need for meals available right outside your door. I stayed very near by last year and am returning his spring. It's a great area.

Holy Cow!....is being 70 the crossover point for decrepitude?...the posts make a few stairs sound like Everest....I am not in any way attempting to ridicule anyone with physical disabilities, but I am 72, in just average condition, (maybe even less than),and don't even think of stairs one way or the other when considering potential digs...not trying to be huffy....maybe just not wanting to qualify for geezerhood just yet...anyway, your folks are lucky to have kids who care about them...
Dupher

Dupher,

I think the difference is that you can make that decision for yourself and you are best equipped to know your physical condition. My MIL completely delegated the choice of the apartment to me and DH - you know how mothers can be, any old shack is good for them. If I ask, she'll tell me she will climb any number of stairs and be happy about it - in reality she may or may not be comfortable doing that, but the primary motivation is the desire not to put us out, especially as we are paying for the accomodations. I'd rather not be responsible for any discomfort on her side, whether she will admit to it or not...

Fair enough...as I said, lucky MIL, to have such a considerate DIL!!

I don't think too many folks would be thrilled with an apt. on the 5th or 6th floor that was a walkup, regardless of age. I'm sure that would affect everyone's activity, and you can actually find that in Paris. Besides, you will be carrying luggage and maybe groceries, bottles of water, etc. Besides, you have to plan the best for everyone, so I don't think wanting a lower floor if there is no elevator is unusual.

I don't really think spending the last night in a hotel is that undesirable, as I said. I actually liked it when I did that, although it happened by accident for the same reasons. Because you must leave your bags somewhere, that makes it sound like a reasonable plan (what do you plan to do if you stay in an apt? Many make you vacate by 10 am or so, maybe noon if you are lucky).

The one near Sentier looks okay, though, and it would be nice for everyone to have their own bedroom, I'd say. I am not crazy about the area around the Sentier metro (espec north), but if it's south or more the extension of rue Montorgueil, that's better. YOu will have to be dealing with the owner, though, hope that is in the works. When I had some dealings with NYHabitat on an apt., which fell through, that tooks days of back and forth to get questions answered, availability, etc. Maybe that will be quicker.

If you do end up in rue des Chartreux (and you could do worse), these are the closest 2-3* hotels:

Hotel des Mines, 125 bd St Michel 2* (double/twins 94 euro)
www.hoteldesminesparis.com

It is modern and dull, but adequate and the closest to that apt. You should be able to walk there with rolling baggage unless you have tons. It's at the corner of bd St Michel and rue Michelet.

Hotel Novanox
155 bd du Montparnasse
3* doubles around 122 euro
www.pariserve.com/novanox/index.htm
That's a little farther because you can't cut through easily to bd du Montparnasse, and have to go around to bd St Michel, past Closerie des Lilas and then west on bd Montparnasse a block or so.

The location of that apt. isn't around hotels, actually, as it's around a bunch of university buildings, the park and the observatory. It is very near Musee Zadkine, though. There is a bus stop about right at the end of the street though, as it's a bus I take a lot (no. 83) and goes from Luxembourg Gardens through this area and then to bd du Montparnasse and west.

I just wanted to thank everyone who have been so very helpful in analysing my apartment choices. We ended up with a 2 bedroom apartment on Rue de Bretagne, across from Square du Temple in the 3rd (no link handy at the moment). We booked it through Lodgis and so far all the interactions with the agency and owner proved to be very satsifactory. The apartment had a couple of strong points (price, space, shower that everyone was happy with) and a couple of not so good (no elevator, which I really tried to avoid. But I was outvotted by the rest of my group. The good things is that my MIL started an exercise program to get ready for stair climbing and some serious walking in Paris).

I will post a link and a review of the apartment upon our return (I hope!).

good for you! well, you know this may be a good thing to motivate her to start exercising, so she may see how much she can improve by doing that. I've read articles about how surprising it can be that even people in their 90s can improve physically with regular exercise, such as weight-training. I've got to start doing that myself as I'm going skiing in a week and haven't been in 15 years.

So let us know how you like it and how it works out. That's a pretty nice area, the park there is really nice. There is a good cheese shop right on rue de Bretagne as I recall.

IS this the place?
http://tinyurl.com/2xaycn

It looks pretty nice except maybe I'm missing something on the shower as there doesn't seem to be one and the shower attachment on the wall is very high, with no curtain or shield on the tub. Maybe you can adjust that downwards, I prefer just the shower wand myself, with only a tub (taking a bath and rinsing with the sprayer).

Looking forward to the review, that's a good price, anyway.

I wanted to thank everyone who helped me investigate apartment rentals in Paris once again and post a review (albeit 3.5 months later).

Christina, your detective abilities are unparalleled :) Yes, that was the apartment we stayed at.

<b>Pros:</b>
<u>Location</u> - on Rue de Bretagne, within a short walk to 3 metro stops, 3 supermarkets (2 large Monoprix and a smaller Franprix down the street), covered market (best crepe I ever had in 5 trips to Paris!), fromagerie, internet cafe, a few lovely restaurants, etc. Despite being on a major street, the apartment was facing the courtyard and one could not hear the street noise. We loved the square du Temple in front of the apartment - watching local families and just enjoying lovely weather and beautiful buildings surrounding the square.

<u>Space and Layout</u> The apartment had a reasonable size 2 bedrooms, with comfortable beds. The living room could sit 6 at the dining table and on various couches/chairs. The bathroom was largish by Parisian standards, had a good size tub and a shower with nice water pressure. We always had hot water (it's on demand but we never had issues getting it right away.)

<u>Price:</u> It was a very reasonable 860 euros for the week in March/April, including the agency fee. Lodgis (the agency) processed our reservation speedily and efficiently and were available to answer reservation related questions. The owner contacted us by e-mail, was very pleasant in her communications with a great command of English. She also phoned us upon arrival. There was no security deposit.

<b>Cons</b>
<u>Construction</u>. We knew in advance that there will be construction nearby and do not hold agency/owner responsible by any means. We have stayed in buildings undergoing/near construction before and usually it had a pretty minimal impact on our enjoyment of the property. Not this time - another building in the same courtyard was being demolished during our stay and the noise was terrible. Drove us out of the apartment by 8 am. So should the construction still be in place when someone else is booking this place, I would strongly discourage booking it.

<u>Interior light and furnishings</u> - I felt that there was not enough light in the common area of the apartment - the only window in the living room was looking into the courtyard and not admitting enough light during the day, at least to my taste. I also feel that we could have use my interior lighting - there was an overhead fixture and some table lamps, but I would have preferred higher wattage as these were quite dim.