Quiet Hotel on Ile-St.Louis in Paris?
 

Can anyone tell me please how quiet the island really is since there is not much car traffic there?

Also any infomation on the following hotels:
Hotel des Deux-Iles,
Hotel de Lutece,
or others on the island that you know is much appreciated.
Thanks!
Fred

When we stayed at the Lutece, we had a 5th floor room on the street. I heard nothing, but my husband said he heard someone in the street, a bottle breaking or something, then quiet again. My daughter stayed there last year and had a room on the "courtyard"..there was absolutely no sound in that room :)

I think that Ile St. Louis is a noisy busy place to stay. There is only one street with hotels on it. There are tons of tourists, the restaurants are busy and the prices are high. Stay on the left bank and walk over to Ile. St. Louis

Haven't stayed at the hotels but we did rent an apartment on the island. I thought it was very quiet. We weren't right on the main drag, but were only about 1/2 block off it, if that. Friends of mine honeymooned at Hotel del Lutece and loved it, FWIW.

Thanks for the replies.
Ita, can you suggest a quiet hotel (that is one where we can leave the window open at night) on the left bank?

We were at the Ile Saint Louis last week and I am surprised to hear it described as noisy and busy. It was very quiet and we returned to it another night because we liked its quaint atmosphere so much. Granted it's not tourist season yet, but still it seemed like an out-of-the-way place without many tourists.

I liked the looks of the two hotels you mention (dex Deux-Iles and de Lutece) and picked up their brochures for my file. They are side by side, and each lobby looked very, very nice. You probably already have their websites: www.paris-hotel-lutece.com and www.deuxiles-paris-hotel.com.

If you read my trip report, you'll get information about the hotel in the 7th we liked very much, the Hotel la Bourdonnais. The 7th is very upscale and quiet. Also I mention restaurants we liked, one in particular on Ile Saint Louis. (click on my name above and you'll pull up my posts-- look for the trip report)

ita, which hotel did you stay in on the Ille St Louis?
fred, the Hotel Jeu de Paume is also on rue St Louis en Ille, down farther from Notre Dame. While on the street, the hotel is set back some and the rooms are very quiet..
http://www.karenbrown.com/franceinns...sso?RecID=9812

I don't think of Ile Saint-Louis as being quieter or noisier than most places in Paris. There is plenty of car traffic on the island. I don't think cars are allowed right down the center street, but plenty of other places.

Cars are allowed on rue St Louis en Ille, we took a cab from a restaurant to St Germain one night around 10:00 pm. We took cabs from our hotel (Lutece) to and from the airport.
But at night, when the shops close, the people/tourists go home or elsewhere, it is quite quiet :)

Hi Scarlett,
it appears that the Hotel Jeu de Paume is almost Euro100 more per night (for a double) than the other two plus the two reports on Fodor's Hotel site [... unclean rooms and lackluster service. I literally found a used medical needle box under my bed table when I was looking for my glasses. The Jeu De Paume is not sylish nor quaint nor charming...] are not very inviting. :-(

Did the hotel get better recently? Management change?

Fred,
I stayed at the Lutece, my daughter and some friends have stayed at the Lutece. They and we were very happy with the hotel , the location and the staff at the hotel.
I just remember checking out the Jeu de Paume when we were there.
We stay on rue Jacob on the Left bank now.
The Lutece is definitely charming and clean. I think it is air conditioned too.

Scarlett,
Thanks for the details.
Where do you stay on rue Jacob?
Fred

The D'Angleterre
44 rue Jacob

they have a web site,

http://www.angleterre-paris-hotel.com/

<font color="red">http://www.hotel-dangleterre.com</font>

Sorry, this is the right one :)

Thanks, this looks like a very nice hotel and close to the Metro.
I'll look into it a bit more.
Fred

We stayed at the Hotel des Deux Illes last November. We had a room on the second floor (american) on the street side. The beds were hard as rocks and I couldn't sleep. My hips and back were sore and I felt like you-know-what the next day. We were there over a weekend. There is a theme restaurant down the street (has to do with the Army - picnic tables, baskets of sasuages on the tables) and it seems to be party central. There were rowdy &quot;soldiers&quot; partying in the street until late even in November.

I understand this island has the most expensive real estate in Paris and so I believe you pay more for a hotel room. Take the others suggestions and stay somewhere else. You can do better than these hotels.

There is little vehicular traffic on the island and it is pretty quiet even during the day, apart from the voices of tourists in the main street. It's an expensive area and there isn't much to see on the island itself beyond the main street with its small shops and restaurants. If you want quiet it will probably satisfy you but in other respects the location doesn't have any obvious advantages. There is no M&eacute;tro station on this small island so you'll have to cross a bridge to get anywhere.

We stayed at Hotel Ile Ste Louis. I did not like that hotel at all. I think an apartment on Ile Ste. Louis would be lovely, but I do think that the street the hotels are on is not enticing,it is very touristy. There is a very good crepe restaurant at the end of the street (maybe called Sarrasin?)

Once again I will tout my favorite hotel which is des Grandes Ecoles, but you must book it six months in advance. Ask for a room in the Garden building. I understand that tbe rooms in the main building are not nice. I have stayed there several times but never in the main building.

I see Hotel Monge mentioned often on this site. We stayed there once. The room was small, but immaculate and the breakfast was very good. It is very close to the Seine and the price was cheaper than the Grandes Ecoles, which is also very reasonable. Both were less money than the Hotel Ile St.Louis.

P.S. I don't know when you are going but I know that des Grandes Ecoles does not have air conditioning. The 3 buildings of the hotel surround a central courtyard so the rooms are quiet. Once we stayed in the building that faces the street. I quite enjoyed the hustle and bustle as the shops opened in the morning. That buiding does not have an elevator. Our beautiful room was on the third floor and it was a chore lugging both our luggage and ourselves up. This hotel has a great deal of charm, more so than Hotel Monge which is very plain. At Hotel Monge our room faced the Arena Lutece and was not noisy.

Any hotel on the Ile Saint-Louis should be very quiet, since there is little vehicular traffic on the island (the main source of noise in Paris), and pedestrian traffic on the main street is limited to afternoon and early evening hours (and it's not very noisy).

We stayed at the Hotel de Lutece over New Year's Eve. It's a charming, small hotel. Our room was on the 5th floor facing the rear of the hotel so it was very quiet. The only sounds we heard were the bells of Notre Dame.

Btw, our room was really comfortable as I think we were lucky because although we paid for a double they assigned us a triple. The bathroom is a good size. I think the shower is outdated and probably will be replaced soon.

The highlight of our stay at the Lutece was the housekeeping and breakfast staff members who are really sweet. Also their coffee is the best I had so far in any Paris hotel.

Must take issue, to a point, with Fred, the Jeu de Paume is highly charming -- in the lobby. The rooms are small for the price. However, my main objection to that hotel is a certain musty smell they're never managed to eliminate since opening nearly two decades ago. Carries Old World Charm a bit too far!

I think it's funny that someone would suggest staying on the Left Bank (where?) to avoid the &quot;noise&quot; of Ile St. Louis! Sure there are a lot of tourists going up and down the main street (but walking -- not in cars) -- is the poster suggesting there aren't so many tourists anywhere on the Left Bank?
Over the past 15 years I've seen Ile St. Louis grow from what seemed a hideaway undiscovered by tourists to one that is a major walk through on the typical Parisian tourist circuit. But that doesn't change the effect that due to virtually no traffic it remains one of the quietest places in central Paris. And I've been surprised when walking through after dinner, how extremely quiet it tends to get after about 9 or so -- except for those couple of brasseries right by the bridge towards Notre Dame.

I wasn't wild about the Hotel St. Louis, but it did some things fairly well. The location is about perfect, for example. And the hot water supply to the bathroom was excellent. And I slept like a baby, despite being a rather light sleeper.

Here's the view; note the crowd at Berthillon...

http://community.webshots.com/photo/...68481263kjuhUQ

In regards to the Ile St. Louis it is very crowded during the day. Our taxi had a very difficult time maneuvering through the crowds as people walk on the rue St. Louis en L'Ile. The sidewalks are typically narrow so the crowds end up walking in the streets. However, the crowds do die down at night, true. Even during New Year's Eve it wasn't noisy. It was the area by Notre Dame that was crazy during that time.

Our room wasn't noisy at night (just full up smoke wafting up the stairs from the smokers working at the front desk). that was not the problem. It is a small area that is very busy during the day with lineups at the restaurants. I guess I was disappointed because I had explored the back streets of Ile St. Louis and had chosen a hotel there because I thought it would be a charming atmosphere. the hotel was dingy and threadbare which made me think it was dirty. I did not think staying on Ile. St. Louis was worth the extra tariff for an inferior room

Re: &quot; I will tout my favorite hotel which is des Grandes Ecoles, but you must book it six months in advance.&quot;

Unless they've changed since we were there a couple of years ago, the Grandes Ecoles only opens their reservations three months in advance. You really do have to contact them right in that narrow window of time 3 months before, because they fill up immediately.

I agree that it is a great place to stay, and a very good value -- also very quiet. I don't know about the main building either, but our room in the garden building was very nice and quite large.
http://www.hotel-grandes-ecoles.com

That was the only complaint I had about the B&amp;B we stayed at on Ile St. Louis...the street noise. At night, it was noise from revelers. In the morning, there was a lot of noise from trucks -- I'm assuming trash trucks and delivery trucks. But we were right at the intersection of the 2 main streets. During the day I found the island to be peaceful and not full of tourists at all...except for Sunday when it felt like 1/2 of Paris was there. But that was actually kind of fun to see the hub-bub on the little island, since it was such a peaceful village during the day for the entire rest of the week.

To me, staying on Ile St. Louis would be the equivalent of going to New Orleans and staying on Bourbon Street. Yes, you'll be right in the middle of things, but is that what you want?

We stayed at Hotel de Notre Dame---Left Bank no more than 50 yards from the bridge leading to Ile St. Louis. It's on a tiny 1-way street. Our window looking out to the Seine was streetside, so we did have occasional noise. I don't know if it would be different in the back rooms.

I do know that we thought the location was perfect. Walk out the front door and Notre Dame is across the river in front of you. There are many nice hotels in the area...add this one to your research list. You'll find excellent reviews.

I should have added: this is the hotel on Rue Maitre Albert.

There are many hotels with similar names.

Thanks to all who have replied. We decided to forget about the Ile and head to rive gauche.
Nonnafelice, unfortunately the Grandes Ecoles is full but we can have a room at Hotel Monge around the corner.
So now we are deciding between that one and Hotel Saint Thomas d'Aquin closer to Saint Germain.
Any suggestions which area to pick?
Fred

I rented an apartment there and in was very quiet. I also have friends who have stayed at both the Lutece and the Jeu de Paume with no noise problems. If it appeals to you, just do it!

fred0211, I'm really sorry you won't be staying on Ile St. Louis. It really is quiet at night and while I like the Latin Quarter and St. Germain, staying on the island really is a unique, sweet experience.

As to your two current hotel choices, the St. Thomas d' Aquin is closer to St. Germain. It's location is formally in the 7th district, but it's on the border of the 6th. The Hotel Monge is in the 5th district (Latin Quarter). I found the rue Monge to be a nice but busy street.

Hi Francophile, thanks for the response.
Which area has the better selection of restaurants within walking distance from the hotel?
I have read some interesting comments about the markets and dining on Mouffetard, too.

[Sorry I hit the reply button to early!]
Hi Francophile, thanks for the response.
Which area has the better selection of restaurants within walking distance from the hotel?

You posted some interesting comments (in a different thread) about the cafes and dining on Mouffetard. Is similar around St. Thomas d'Aquin?
We'll spend the days visiting museums, etc, and have no interests for discos or &quot;clubing&quot; in the evening, but do enjoy eating at different places. ;-)
Fred

There is no shortage of good restaurants around either hotel. I don't know Saint Thomas d'Aquin, but from checking it online, it's probably on a quieter street. We have stayed at Hotel Monge, which we liked, but the street is noisy if you open the windows. (It does have AC so you can keep the windows closed.)

The next time we go back to Paris, I would like to stay in the St. Germain area, since we have been near Rue Mouffetard twice now. St. Germain is a bit more upscale, but both are good locations. Rue Mouffetard has a street market, if that interests you.

I think you should try the Saint Thomas d'Aquin and report back to us!

Hi nonnafelice,
you wrote &quot;I think you should try the Saint Thomas d'Aquin and report back to us! &quot;
We did stay at the Saint Thomas d'Aquin and my report is here: http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34674513

Thanks for a great suggestions!
Fred