My husband and I have decided to take our single adult son to Paris for the Christmas holiday, we will be going from London to Paris on the train, I am having some difficulty on the area of town I should search for a hotel in, so I will tell you that I cannot walk for hours and hours, we want to see the louve, eiffel tower and all the tourist things but still want to enjoy the paris feel of shopping. Can you suggest an area, perhaps a three or four star hotel, many thanks...any help with tips on traveling from train to area at this time of year. I am planning on getting tickets for all per arrival.

re area..would suggest the 6th near the 7th (or the 7th near the 6th)..my favorite part of Paris for a first trip. An even better alternative would be a hotel on Ile St. Louis. ( I can recommend either hotel Lutece or duex Iles (both run by the same people). Re the train- the eurostar leaves London and arrives in Gare du Nord. Buy your tickets now as the fare is cheaper. Use their own website. You simply put your cc in a machine in the train station and it spits out the ticket. Second class tickets are more than adequate. You may find that a rt is cheaper than a one way. If so just buy the rt and use half. Have a great time.

I am assuming you are talking about next month (Christmas 2006). It's rather late to be doing any major planning I'd think, but that's just my opinion.

Not sure if you mean you are going to get train tickets to Paris once you arrive in London. If so, be prepared to pay a fortune. Eurostar tickets are on sale about 6 months in advance (I just bought some for April 2007) and the "cheap" fares go very quickly.

You will never be close to everything in Paris (or any city) so be prepared to use the Metro or bus to get around. There are Metro/bus stops near most major sights/shopping. If you want to be near the Eiffel Tower I'd recommend the 7th Arr. (check out Hotel Relais Bosquet, we have stayed there and while it is not luxury it is a very nice place).

Since it is so close to your trip I'd check out Holiday Inn websites as HI usually has availablity (they are larger hotels) - we have stayed at the Holiday Inn Republique and I cannot say enough good things about it. Five Metro lines are in the plaza in front of the hotel so you can be anyplace quickly (it is also a short taxi (or Metro) ride from Gard de Nord station (where Eurostar comes in).

It will get dark early (4:30 or so) so plan your sightseeing accordingly.

I would recommend staying at one of the Citadines Hotels near the Seine. That way you don't have to go out for every meal if you're too tired after walking.

Jelane, check Hotel Brighton. Near Louvre, D'Orsay, Opera, and Place de la Concorde...also not too far from the Isles. Some rooms w/ terrace...in case you get sunny days! Good shopping area (some tres expensive). We have not stayed there, but we did pop in 3 years ago and they were undergoing a major renovation. There are probably recent reviews at tripadvisor.com.

Hotel Brighton
http://tinyurl.com/vrbkf

With limited walking, consider the bus. Paris buses are very nice, easy to use and (unlike the metro) there are no stairs. A couple of lines will take you past many of the main sites---you can get on and off as you please. If you'd like more specific information, email me at jeannebab-AT-comcast-DOT-net.

I love Paris at christmas. We had 10 of our extended family go 3 years ago. Be sure to catch mass at Notre Dame on Christmas Eve. We went to the earlier childrens mass and had fun. The people that went to the later masses had to wait in line in the cold. I believe that the childrens mass starts at 7:00. pm.

I have to make some sort of decision today, it is making me quite nervous, but I have decided to stay near the 7 arr....so any hotel suggestions for about 300 euros a night. Many thanks.

For that price you can stay just about anywhere. That is 4* hotel price. And 3* would be fine.
Stay in arrondisements 1-8 and you will be close to the main tourist sites. Paris IS a large city, but in some ways VERY small and imminently accessible because of its transportation system.
You might even look on Priceline and bid on a 4* hotel in X arrondisement. You might score big.
The Citadines suggestion is good if they have something. It is an apartment hotel type of arrangement. There is one on Quai Grand Augstins (someone check me) that has a view of Notre Dame and a GREAT location. I am sure you can google and find the Citadines site.

I just did some math, would be better with about 200 euros. I suppose I am putting too much emphasis on a room you are not in that much but we all know that is the first place you see and sets the mood for your holiday. I have train tickets to still buy so I need to get this room soon, wish me luck......

I'm not clear on what you're seeking. Do you want 2 rooms? Does "200 euros" apply to each room? Or are you saying you don't want to spend more than 200 total for each night?
(Even this <i>question</i> is confusing!)

My only concern about the 7th would be the walking (you said you want to limit it). The metro stops seem fewer and farther between in the 7th. It always seems like I have to walk forever to find the next bus/metro station.

I am sorry about the confusion. I just got back from a few days in Prague, and I walked some distances to go to the castle, but I never know when it is just going to get to that point of no more walking, so metro would be nice to have not too far away, but if worse comes to worse I suppose that there is taxi service. I think something in a junior suite would be ideal, or two double beds. I realize the rooms will most likely be small. I hope this is clearer, one room for 200 or so euros, three of us. I am just not familiar with any of these areas and a quiet hotel is fine with me but this trip is mostly for our son, if there is another area that would work, please offer suggestions.

Jelane:
Why don't you start a new thread: &quot;Triple in Paris for Christmas&quot;. There have been many discussions here about triple rooms.


Briefly describe your specific needs (dates, 3 adults, limited walking, etc.). Someone will have the right answer.

J

thanks, travel much, forum little, good advice.

You can research availability at www.parishotels.com

It's a no fee booking site-have used it successfully several times. The booking requests are sent directly to the hotels.

Another poster mentioned staying at the either Hotel de Lutece or the Deux Iles on Ile St. Louis. I've stayed at both hotels and while they're good I find the Lutece much better than the Deux Iles. Lutece has a triple room but it's on request.

Hi

My wife and I went to Paris in April and I have posted a trip report with some pictures on my homepage http://gardkarlsen.com/Paris_France.htm . I have also posted an interactive Google map on http://gardkarlsen.com/paris_france_map.htm . We stayed at a hotel called TimHotel Tour Eiffel as that was a cheaper option as we were staying a week. But I guess the important thing is that you get close to a metro station so you can get around. Have a great trip

Regards
Gard
http://gardkarlsen.com - trip reports and pictures

Eurostar tickets will be expensive and more scarce esp if you're travelling from London the weekend right before the Christmas (22 Dec is Friday).

so are you saying this is impossible or expensive or both.

Maybe both.
Go to the parishotels.com site and see what hotel you can find there rather than searching individually for all these being offered. At least, that is what I would do. Or the PL bid.

I would highly recommend the 6th and the Hotel le Madison was nice with a great breakfast: http://www.hotel-madison.com/. It is right across the street from a metro stop.

jelane,

I think your plan is perfectly do-able. You'll just need to book the Eurostar early. If you can be flexible, try to book outbound London-Paris leg of Eurostar earlier in the week of 18 Dec, instead of travelling Friday afternoon on 22nd or Saturday 23rd.