If you have time to check on. I am looking forward to your review of Hotel Bellevue et dor Chariot.

You are going in such a mild part of fall. Pop on if you have a moment and say hi to all of poor slobs! We will be hanging on your every word.

ttt

Hi Sarah…We just got back on Wednesday and had a great trip. The weather was unbelievably perfect…cool in the mornings, late afternoon, evenings, and warming up for about 3 hours a day in the early to late afternoon. We walked, and walked, and walked everywhere. Needless to say, take 2 or 3 pairs of comfortable shoes and rotate them daily. We did all the typical tourist stuff, so I won’t bore you with those details!

About the hotel: I saw 2 of the rooms. First room we were given was looking over the back part of the hotel. It was pretty spacious, but I really didn’t like it…it was dark and the view from the window was a dumpster. I asked for a room change with a view of the street and was given (with just a tiny bit of hesitation/reluctance) a new room overlooking rue Turbigo. It was much smaller than the previous room, but it was brighter (important to me) and I liked looking out over the street – but be forewarned – it is a noisy street. But that generally doesn’t bother me…I’m used to it, I live in Chicago. At night we closed the windows and they did a good job of cutting off the noise.

I have to say, at first, the room was a bit dingier than I had expected…both the carpet and the coverlet on the bed were a little dingy, not grossly unclean or anything, but they need replacing. The very basic furniture is also a bit shabby. The bathroom was sparkling clean – no complaints there at all and the sheets and towels were removed and cleaned daily. The wallpaper was also a bit worn, but I liked this aspect of the “décor.” It gave it kind of a shabby chic look…as if you were staying in a place of a different era.

I have no complaints about the staff. We are pretty independent and don’t ask for a lot of help or service, but I noticed that they were always helpfully answering questions from other guests morning and night. The breakfast room was charming, though we only ate breakfast there one morning….as others have said, there are so may other choices in the immediate area. There was a tour group there during our stay…so it was full for our entire stay.

The location of the hotel is great. You are just a couple of blocks from either the Arts et Metiers or the Reaumur Sebastopol metro stops. Also nearby is the Etienne Marcel stop (which is a little closer to Hotel Tiquetonne.) I enjoyed being near rue Tiquetonne and rue Montorgueil. You will love these 2 cobblestone streets lined with restaurants, shops, boulangeries, patisseries, cafes…rue Tiquetonne is about a 2-minute walk from Hotel Bellevue. We walked almost everywhere we went – you are less than 5 minutes from Pompidou and from there the rest of the Marais area. It was about an 8 minute walk to the Louvre and 15 or so minutes to the Musee d’Orsay.

I would definitely stay at the hotel again if looking for a budget accommodation as it is a good value. However, my guess is that the rooms at both Hotel Tiquetonne and Bellevue are quite similar as far as the “shabby chic” factor goes…so next time, I would probably just book Tiquetonne and save the extra 15 euros per night. (Over a 5-night period that’s the equivalent of a nice dinner out!) Also Tiquetonne is on a quieter street and you are just that much closer to the market street and restaurants.

There’s a small TV in the rooms at Hotel Bellevue, but we didn’t really use them that much. We had CNN International on in the mornings when getting ready, but they played only the same 2 stories over and over – avian flu and Iraq.

By the way, we had a couple of nice late-night dinners in this area that didn’t require advance reservations. One was at the Creperie du 2eme on rue d’Argout. Can’t remember the name of the other one – but you have several inexpensive dining choices in this area that does not appear to be overrun with tourists.

Hope this helps with your decision on hotels. When are you leaving? Pretty soon as I recall…

Thanks SOO MUCH FO THE HEADS UP Terri.

I am going nuts trying to find an all encompassing map that will show how far Bellevue is from NotreDame? Is it a 20 minute walk. Also how far is Hotel Tiquoetonne from Bellevue?
My biggest fear is 20 minutes of walking before I see sights. I did that in Milan when a 4 star hotel said it was close to the duomo.


Sorry to be back?

PSSS now I am frantic looking how to book the Tiquoenne How did you book?

Sarah -- Yes, I'm sad to be back...we had a great time and are planning to go back again, hopefully, next spring.

The Bellevue was literally about a 2-minute walk to Hotel Tiquetonne.

I would say from Bellevue our walk to Notre Dame, Palais de Justice, Louvre was about 10 - 15 minutes -- strolling not walking quickly or anything. The hotel is much closer to the Pompidou Center (5 minutes tops.)

If you really want to be very close to Notre Dame, there are other budget hotels that would be closer than these 2 but they would likely be more expensive.

To book Tiquetonne you have to call or fax them...nos. below. Hotel Tiquetonne
6, rue Tiquetonne

PHONE: 01 42 36 94 58
FAX: 01 42 36 02 94

I didn't know this, and it took me a bit to figure it out -- but when calling from the U.S. you don't need that 0, after dialing 011 for the international operator, start with the 1. (You only dial the 0 when you're in Paris.)

Let me know if you have other questions about Bellevue or the area...I'll be happy to answer them.

Sarah -- Here's one budget hotel that I looked at during research that's closer to Notre Dame and the Seine. (I've never stayed there.)

This review is from bonjourparis.com

Hôtel Esmerelda
Located just around the corner from Shakespeare and Company, along a tiny tree-lined street by the Seine , this hotel is legendary for its inexpensive rooms and its astounding views of Nôtre-Dame. The least expensive of 19 rooms is an unbelievable 30 € a night (just a sink mind you—no shower or toilet). However, be warned, this hotel is not for everyone and while some consider its shabby chic décor romantic, others will deem it simply shabby and not so chic (myself included). The rooms come in all shapes and sizes, with quaint country décor and squeaky floorboards.
Prices: Singles run from 30-70 €, doubles from 75-80 €, triple and quads from 90 €. Of course there are no TV's and don't even think about air-conditioning here.
(4, rue St-Julien-le-Pauvre, 5th. Telephone: 01-43-54-19-20. Fax: 01-40-51-00-68).

How far is Tiquetonne (hotel) from other areas? How did you contact them for your reservation?

Sarah -- You can get to all the major sites in the "center of the city" in 20 minutes or so. We explored all major sites in the 5th, 6th, 3rd, 4th, 2nd, 9th and 1st arrondissements by foot.

You will probably want to take the metro to the Eiffel Tower and Pere Lachaise, and of course, Sacre Coeur (if those are on your list of sights.)

I actually stayed all nights at Hotel Bellevue so the room/hotel description above is about Bellevue. I contacted Bellevue by email

Prior to making my reservation at Bellevue, I phoned Tiquetonne but they were closed during the month of August and I got their voice mail.

Then in September I phoned them again but they didn't want to confirm a reservation for 13 October until 13 September. (I called on about 6 September.) That annoyed me a little so I just gave up on Tiquetonne and just kept my reservation with Bellevue.

So you want to make sure that you call Tiquetonne no more than a month prior to your arrival or you'll have to call them back again later.

thanks Terri I really appreciate your feed back

Terri 20 minutes walking when you are starting a day of walking is a lot no?


Just wondering if its 10 blocks to Marais? Thinking about looking more central if so... I will be there when its much colder want to be able to wonder around interesting areas right outside my door. Sorry to ask you this. I have 4 books and 3 maps and all of the print is too small for me. Need to high tale it back to the book store and find a map I can read lol.

Terri, I'll be staying in the Marais in February. Did you get around without using the metro?

read the entire thread cig she did most walking withing 20 minutes of hotel. That is why people stay in Marais.

Thanks Sarah , I did but still wanted to know if she had to at some destination.
Welcome back Terry

Sarah -- We are hikers and when we travel to cities we tend to walk everywhere and pretty much all day long! So a 10, 15 or even 20-minute stroll to get to a sight or an area was not that big of a deal to me.

But something you said about not wanting to be 20 minutes from Notre Dame makes me wonder if this area is really the best for you if being as close as possible to Notre Dame is a priority for you.

Have you narrowed down which sights are your priority and which ones you prefer to have within a reasonable walking distance? And what do you consider a reasonable walking distance? 20 minutes is reasonable to me but I realize it may not be for others.

Cigal -- We were there 5 nights and rarely used the metro and got to all the major sights without it. But, we prefer to walk and don't mind walking all day.

We bought 1 carnet of metro tickets (10 tickets) and used those for going to the opera one night, to go to Sacre Coeur, Pere Lachaise, and to get us back from the Eiffel Tower one night (my feet were exhausted by this time!).

So the metro is easy and quick when you dont't feel like walking anymore. Are you trying to avoid the metro?

I am a hiker too terry but it will be 39 and rainy when I go. I usually get myself in shape before a hiking vacation in warmer HAWAII!!! LOL. This get myself in shape does not seem to be happening LOL. I need to do if for ski season though so ...

In NYC where I live if you have to walk a half an hour before you get to the museum you are going to walk around in for a few hours, yah get tired.

In Milan, I was about 20 blocks probably more maybe a good 2 miles from the duomo yet hotel website said I was very central. I found that frustrating. I just like to go back in between sight seeing drop off bags or books. Sometimes that is just what I do to orient myself..I know I sound REALLY OUT OF SHAPE.

Largely I just know it will be cold. I am also worried about twin beds being pushed together as I am traveling with a snorer.

Have I narrowed down area? ..well I don't have a huge frame of reference for Paris. I am going with a 21 year old female. I will be wanting to alternate youthful areas with the old (notre Dame, Concierrge (sp)(just love this building), and the closter of older landmarks in central Paris. I am avoiding the 1st though because I know affordable restaurants and funking shops will be another hike.

Oh, no, you don't sound as if you're out of shape at all...I just know that some people like to walk a lot and some people just don't...especially in the cold! Believe me, my feet are still hurting!

To tell you how crazy we are, we went to NYC last year for the holiday, walked everywhere (it was freezing cold) and took the ferry to Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Needless to say, I did not look very chic that day...I had on a huge puffy coat and Uggs!

Anyway, if you are at Hotel Tiquetonne you will not have any major sights just outside your door...and that's what it sounds like you're after.

Sounds like you should pick one or two major sights you want to be really close to,pick a hotel in that area, and then just use the metro for other sights. It's really easy and convenient. The 20 year old may prefer other areas of the 3rd and 4th or maybe the 5th...though I don't want to steer you away from your hotel decision.

Take a look at this map. Tiquetonne and Bellevue are basically where Rue Turbigo intersects with Boulevard Sebastopol. Sebastopol basically is on the line between the 2nd and the 3rd arrondissements...Tiquetonne is in the 2nd and Bellevue is in the 3rd.

http://www.aaccessmaps.com/show/map/...is_main_e.html

Sarah...I just re-read your post...I honestly would not have chosen the Chatelet area if I wanted a hotel where I could go to from time to time and drop off bags, books, etc. We didn't return to our hotel all day long most days.

If your priorities are Notre Dame, the Conciergerie and a youthful area, I'd guess that the Latin Quarter is where you want to be...eurocheapo.com has some good recs for this area.

Familia Hotel looks great and is centrally located...also it says it has a direct bus line to the Eiffel Tower and Musee d'Orsay.

http://www.hotel-paris-familia.com/h.../location.html