Guess my fingers didn't type fast enough - glad you found a place though and hope you have a fabulous time.

LOL, thanks anyway, Barb
dln and OO, yes, I expect to love it there..it will be worth the price of admission to see what the Yankee has to do to get me to leave when the time comes LOL
Laidback, thank you SO much! I used their site because of your recommendation. Madelyn is emailing me and it is all quite friendly and comfortable.
Email me at [email protected] if you wish..
In regards to saying exactly which apt we will be in...
In light of the past few weeks when some deranged poster/posters have seen fit to ruin threads, attack and generally muck up the boards with their anger/hate/insanity, and even go so far as to send me smutty emails, I feel a bit better not saying exactly where I will be and when.
I send Thanks and to you all for your recommendations, this has been fun. I hope it helps others too.
Pascal of rentalfrance.com is very nice and very fast to get back to you. vrbo had a couple of people who have yet to reply, I had to skip them and go on..Apts are filling up already, there were quite a few with March already fully booked. So if anyone is thinking of doing this soon, get to work on it right away!
I did learn from this-
if you are willing to go a little farther out of the main area of town, you will find larger nice apts in the 16th, Marais and Montparnasse for a bit less than elsewhere.
We had a few issues that sort of kept us in this area..happily it worked out for us.
Now, I have to figure out what to pack and what to shop for

Barb, if you remember the name of that restaurant near the rue de l'ecole polytechnique, I would like to know it. We're staying in an apartment there soon.

Hi Scarlett,
We decided -- in spite of some negative posts -- to go ahead and book Grand Hotel Jeanne d'Arc (Marais) in June. We decided not to let one person's experience determine our choice, especially since there have been so many GOOD posts about Jeanne d'Arc.
We were considering renting a beautiful Marais apartment for 600 euros/week; of course, the one we wanted was all booked up!
So Jeanne d'Arc it is! The price was one of the best we found, and I was taking into consideration the ever-decreasing U.S. dollar.
With the money I save on the hotel, I am happy to spend on shopping (shoes, clothes, handbags) and of course, eating out!!
Warm wishes from Betty

<i>Good for you betty! </i>

Nikki:

That restaurant is Les Fetes Galantes, 17 rue Ecole Polytechnique. It's very small and only open for dinner I believe. We got there as they were jumping out of their car to open up! By the time we left they were lined up outside. Very good, inexpensive - another not far from there is Chantairelle, 17 rue Laplace -www.chantairelle.com Also Le Petite Prince, not sure of the address. Had one of my best meals in Paris here. Have a great time!!

Scarlett, thanks for starting this thread. I have been paying VERY close attention and have also run into some disappointment with availability already for the month of May. I will continue to search the other sites.

I do believe Hawaii is officially out of the running

See the World,
Another site you may want to try is www.lacigaleparis.com We stayed there once and the apartment is very spacious. They also have another apartmant called La Cigogne which was not finished renovation then but looked like it would be really nice. I have not checked their website for availability in May. When we rent an apartmant or a villa in a village as we did in Italy this past Sept. we usually do it 10 to 12 months in advance so we get our first choice.

Laidback: Thank you for the information. I will be sure to check it out.

Thanks and Good Luck, seetheworld~

Now the bills start to come in
Tonight we got the email with all the charges, full weeks rent + security deposit, now.
I need Travel Insurance, guess we will use Travelex?
I think I will see about Patricks suggestion on another thread and send them Euro travelers checks instead of using our Amex ?
Is there a particular way to do this that is easy and protects us?
sigh..But...we got great airfare and reservations and great seats so I will refrain from any whining!
<i>We're going to Paris </i>

Thanks Barb, so many restaurants, so little time. Any other neighborhood tips or recommendations?

Scarlett, I would pay with credit card instead of euro travelers checks. You have more protection that way, and travelers checks will cost you a hefty fee vis-a-vis the credit card conversion fee.

You'll have to take an afternoon stroll thru the Montmartre area. Our friend, degas, posted a wonderful walking tour of the place, along with some other wonderful walking tours. It should be fun.

Hang on to that Yankee -- he's good to you. Who's going to watch pup?

Scarlett,

Just curious as to where you bought your airline tickets to Paris (website, etc.)?

--Betty

I hope others haven't gotten the same impression Scarlett did about my often given suggestion of paying in Euro Travelers' Cheques. That suggestion is for sending deposits to those places who WON'T take credit cards and insist on cash or cash transfers. Then I think it is easier and cheaper to send them euro TC's. But as long as a place takes credit cards -- yes, charge away!!

Thank you all, especially Patrick, for all the excellent advice.
We are using a credit card.
We bought our tickets by checking fares online then calling Continental, that is the way we always do it. They were around $500. a ticket with all the taxes.
We got great seats and flights though, good luck for us!
Budman,
we have been to Montmarte but not to just stroll around, it is definitely on my list for this trip. and Yes, thank you, I will hang on to the Yankee
My daughter will take care of Pup. He will stay at her house and pretend he is a greyhound ((&amp)

Nikki:

Are you staying on Rue Ecole Polytechnique? If so, just walk east and you will run into the market at Rue Moufftard - I think every day except Mondays. It's just great to go out early and shop for the apt. Flowers, cheese, salami, wine, bread. There are tons of little restaurants along this street too. That whole area is just wonderful, so lively and colorful. The great thing about rue Ecole Polytechnique is that it is very small and is very quiet at night. I will always return to this area to stay whenever I'm in Paris. Also, if you haven't already, you should look into the Paris Walks tour of the Left Bank and also the literary walk, which begins at the metro I think, St. Michele and ends in the Luxembourg Gardens - I also did the Montmarte Walk.

Barb, we are staying in the fourth floor apartment in the same building you stayed in through Paris Sleeps. I am definitely planning to explore the rue Mouffetard. I stayed nearby at the Familia on rue des Ecoles three years ago but didn't make it to the Mouffetard market, only walked down the street one evening. Thanks for all the suggestions.

I got lists and lists from the owners of our apartment. While some people already know them, I thought I would add them here, and someone with more computer savvy than I , can put them on the Paris Superthread~

www.paris.org <i> All about Paris</i>

www.paris-france.org/musees <i>All the museums</i>

www.batobus.com <i> Water bus takes you up &amp; down the Seine to the Louvre, Notre Dame etc</i>

www.monuments.fr <i> All museums and monuments </i>

www.invalides.org

www.opera-de-paris.fr

www.antika.com <i> The Big Flea!</i>

www.e-dehillerin.fr <i> For the cooks out there <i></i></i>

Scarlett, thank you for putting together such a comprehensive list. It will be helpful in my own search.

~Merci beaucoup!

You are welcome, seetheworld!
The monuments link is incorrect, and so is antika. Sorry, I should have checked them all before posting. But the others are good!