JaneRebecca

I love Paris. Our first trip to Paris together was unsuccessful. Dead of winter, bad weather, poorly located accommodation which was absurdly small. Now I have to sell him on going back to Paris. He likes Europe so that's not the problem. I have also helped him to see that shopping can be great fun and even therapeutic. However, he rushes me while I'm shopping. So, if we can find a great hotel near to the Galleries Lafayette and other good shopping, then it will be easy to meet him back there and he will like being there, if some waiting is necessary.

We need a central hotel within easy walking to the Galleries L., and other good shopping. $200-$500 range, which I realize is a large range but we are open to spending more if we have to since going to Paris is not a frequent occurrence in our lives. A friendly environment would be nice. Small. elegant. In Rome we usually stay at Hotel Ponte Sisto and love it-- so something along those lines if you are familiar.

Fodorites have made all my trips so much better and I thank you all in advance.
Jane

Weekender

How about the Hotel Saint Vincent which is in a great location on the border of the 6th/7th? Great shopping, restaurants, museums, etc. Your husband should be able to keep himself occupied in this area. Granted it is not near the Galleries Lafayette but an all around better location IMO. Will be staying there in December. www.hotelsaintvincentparis.

StCirq

Are you sure you need to be near the Galeries Lafayette? The Opéra/Boul. Haussman area, which seems to be what you are focusing on, is SO easily accessible by bus and métro, I'm not sure you need to be in a hotel there (and it sure isn't ideal, IMO). It might take you 10 minutes on public transportation each way from any number of nice neighborhoods in Paris. Surely DH can watch CNN or find a golf shop or something to pass away such a short extra time.

kerouac

Galeries Lafayette and Printemps are in the 9th arrondissement, which happens to be the arrondissement with the most hotels.

Europeans know this, Americans less so.

yk

If OP's main objective is to go shopping at Galleries Lafayette, it may be a hassle for her to schelp all her shopping bags etc on the metro or bus to go back to her hotel; hence she's looking for a hotel close by so that she can easily go back there and drop off her purchases.

zeppole

Why don't you take cell phones to Paris so you can go your separate ways and arrange to meet in romantic places?

I cannot imagine enjoying being told to wait in a hotel in Paris for somebody who is out shopping and is late returning.

You couldn't sell me on that no matter what the hotel offered -- unless it offered me better company!

But I might be up for getting a phone call in Paris like "how about we meet at Cafe xxxxx?" or "by the xxxxx statue in the Jardins xxxxx?" or at the entrance to xxxxxx?

Maybe one that began "I'm back at the hotel waiting for you" but not "I'm still trying on shoes. Maybe you can find something good to watch on TV" ---?????

Christina

If you really plan on shopping till you drop with a lot of bags, it would be convenient to walk to/from those stores, I agree.

Alternatively, you could stay at the Lutetia which is about right across the street from Bon Marche, and I think a more pleasant area. I like Bon Marche as a store better than GL, also, but each has their points.

I think your husband would be nuts if he hung around a hotel waiting for you to do shopping, so I wouldn't choose on that reason, but on the shlepping bags reason.

But, if you want to stay near GL/Printemps and the Opera, here are a few choices that are very close (in practice, nothing wrong with that area, your husband can find things to do or cafes to hang out very near the hotel).
http://www.hotelqueenmary.com/
http://www.paris-hotel-massena.com/
http://www.levignon.com/

Of course, if you have the dough, you could stay at the Intercontinental Grand, not sure how much that costs. Sometimes people get some deals on that. Or the Sofitel Hotel Scribe is another choice at the high end, I get those two confused.

JaneRebecca

Thank you all so far. Let me explain: Absolutely, Romantic is what I want. That's why I don't want there to be any arguments or impatience. I want a little time in the mornings to shop which for me can also mean meandering through the neighborhoods browsing, discovering,(this is where he can become impatient) and then the rest of the time there can be lots of romance. That way he'll remember Paris in a very positive way and want to go back for more of that "romance".

I'm open to hearing of other shopping districts with charming hotels that you may think we will like. The Bon Marche neighborhood sounds good. Thank you for that. I will also look into the cell phone idea which is a very good one. Is it easier to arrange to use our own phones in Europe or get rentals?

We are really art and architecture freaks but I have found that a little shopping can be nice, too.

Thanks again.

danon

another vote for the area near Bon Marche. Much nicer than anything near GL.

Padraig

JaneRebecca wrote: " I have also helped him to see that shopping can be great fun and even therapeutic. However, he rushes me while I'm shopping." and then wrote: "Romantic is what I want."

As a husband, let me tell you that it is very difficult to have it every way. If you want a hotel near the shops, he'll get the message about your priorities. Park him while you shop, pick him up afterwards. Bang goes the romantic dimension.

maryanntex

I also vote for staying near (and shopping at)the Bon Marche.

We loved this store. It is close to Bon Marche. http://www.nitya-paris.com/index_nitya.php?langue=en

cigalechanta

Usually when I shopped, mostly flea markets. My husband would sit at a nearby cafe for lunch and drinks and read a paper and watch the passing parade because he hated to shop. He was an L.L. Bean and I'm awanabee Chanel...lol

JaneRebecca

Padraig;
Is that "bang" the romantic dimension is dead or bang it explodes into existence?
What do you suggest I do then?
Jane

cigalechanta

shopping is not romantic to a guy, Hmmm, unless you tell him you are shopping for those super expensive undies.

zeppole

I'm with Padraig in saying that your priority appears to be shopping, no matter how you try to disguise it, and your husband is likely to notice as well.

As William James once (almost) said: "Men and women seldom hit what they haven't aimed at."

JaneRebecca, you're not aiming for romance in Paris. You're aiming to go shopping in Paris - with a man who finds your dawdling over shopping and stores trying, apparently resulting in lost patience and repeated arguments. I don't think you're going to hit upon romance with this strategy. You sound like a shopping addict, not somebody for whom shopping is therapy.

Not only do I doubt that bringing the hotel right into the shopping district will solve the problem. I fear -- like Padraig -- it will aggravate the problem. That is more likely to be your explosion.

Do you need more than one day to shop? How about just saying well ahead of time you're going shopping for one day, and he's welcome to join you, but if he'd rather go to do something else, you'd understand. But if he does come along, then he's not allowed to complain that you dawdle and browse like a snail.

For the rest of the trip, if you see some store you like, snap a picture, including the address, and make a mental note to come back the next time.

(and you're not allowed to pout if when you meet up, he describes having had a fabulous day in Paris while you've been shopping)

Stay in a lovely hotel picked for its charms, not its proximity to Bon Marche.

cigale, I don't think it's the cost of the underwear -- and some men would rather no underwear ever at all.

JaneRebecca

Zeppole;
You have some good ideas but you are testy and rude which ruins any good you might have done. You need to work on that. Perhaps you have an addiction to the internet and to Fodor's and you should just chill out for awhile and not take it all so seriously. No doubt you have heard this before. Now take your condescension and arrogance elsewhere and leave the people who are trying to be helpful and have some fun alone.
Jane

bozama

Um, Jane, I think the previous poster actually just said what alot of us actually were thinking.
Anyone who specifically wants to stay in a certain area JUST to shop, not asking about cafes, restaurants, or museums in the area at all, is obviously only really interested in shopping. Fine , but why not admit it?/

Really why go with hubby to Paris at all, I go with out mine, so I really don't see why you can't just go on your own for a shopping trip and then share a real vacation, one that you both would enjoy with hubby somewhere else.

You say you enjoy art and architecture, but that a little shoppping can be nice too, well, how grumpy is your hubby, most don't mind A LITTLE shopping, maybe you do more then a little. Maybe you do alot.

Dump hubby and go with a girlfriend, or on your own, way more fun.

PS tripadvisor.com has a great reader review hotel listing site.

cafegoddess

Le Grand Intercontinental is a great place to stay if you want to stay near GL and Printemp.

rhy

We stayed in a nice 2 bedroom apartment about 2 blocks from the Galleries L. It was right next to Hediard. If you want the info, I can get it.

StCirq

I don't think zeppole is rude. I think he's just pegged what you're actually thinking, and that's that shopping is some sort of priority of yours, more important than your husband in fact. Not a criticism, just an observation.

You said yourself that you have helped your husband see that shopping can be great fun and even therapeutic - um, won't comment, but clearly you've got some "thing" about shopping that borders on strange Your entire focus on hotels is related to your shopping habit.
You're not looking for romance, you're looking to feed your acquisitiveness. That's not romantic, no matter how you try to play the logistics.