Hello,

We will be visiting Paris in the middle of April this year.

I have been once before but don't feel like I know the neighborhoods all that well. So I wanted to get suggestions on the best location for sightseeing.

And if anyone has any links to apartments you'd stayed at in the past, that would be great! We would need one that would fit 3.

Thanks for your help!

Take a look at the Paris Apartment thread, with lots of reviews and suggestions:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=35159017

I don't think it matters much in terms of best location for sightseeing, as long as you are near convenient transportation (metro especially). If you've been there before, maybe you have a map and can check locations that way, just trying to be near a metro stop and one with several lines crossing is best, I think. Of course, it isn't very convenient if you are on the far edges of Paris, so something within a mile or two of the actual dead center is fine IMO (the dead center is Notre Dame, I believe, or at least very near it).

If you don't plan to do anything but see things right around Notre Dame and the Louvre, etc., I suppose it would be more convenient to stay right within walking distance of those, but most people do day trips or at least things within Paris that are spread out more than that.

To preface things, the Metro/RER/bus system is so extensive in Paris that you are never really far from access to public transit, so sometimes a choice could be dictated by hotel/appartment prices. In my last trip, I stayed in one of the outer areas..so I could play "local" for a few days. No tourists, just Parisians going about their daily lives.

Ok, so Paris is split into twenty arrondissements (districts) that start with 1 at center and then circularly increase from there (2, then 3 going east, 4 east then south,5 south heading west,etc..) A google search will give you a better picture

http://www.parisnet.com/parismap.html

Each has its name tag...common ones are 1st Louvre, 4th Marais, 5th Latin Quarter, 6th St Germain, 7th Eiffel.

The 1st I find a bit more commercial than the others, but in that area you have Louvre, Tuileries gardens,Opera Garnier, Palais Royal, Place de la Concorde...on to Champs Elysee

If I had to pick, 4-7th would be good choices. In the 7th it will be a bit quieter. The 5th and 6th are nice for being able to walk to Notre Dame, St Chapelle, Luxembourg Gardens, Seine, etc...4th has Notre Dame, Ile St Louis, Place des Vosges, nice old mansions,etc..7th has Eiffel, Invalides, Orsay, Rodin Museum.

Lots of restos and tourists in 4-6th

We just returned a couple of weeks ago and we loved the 2nd. It was convenient to walk to sights and also very convenient for the metro.

Tina

I would stay in the 6th.

Thingorjus

Thanks for the help! The link is great! I'll check out the recommendations there.
And I think I will be looking for something in the 6th. So if anyone knows of a flat in that area, please let me know!!

If you're a couple and a single, I can recommend vacationinparis.com's #122.

The bedroom has a large bed (seemed larger than a US queen but not quite a king) and a fold-out couch in the living room that was said to be comfortable.

I like their service as they are US based all transactions are in dollars. They have support staff on site in Paris. They have other options in the 6th.

If stairs are an issue, read apartment descriptions carefully as many buildings do not have lifts.

We love the 1st. It has everything. We are planning our third trip for September and are staying in an apartment about 3 blocks from the Opera Garnier and about a 15 minute walk to the Louvre. If you have access to Google Earth you can see everything, map your hotel/apartment find grocery stores even get walking maps and directions. I take my laptop with me and and I have everything I need.

We stayed in the same apt as cathinjoetown and loved it. It was nice to have the half bath downstairs . There was a boulangerie a few ateps away and the transportation options are terrific with bus and metro practically at your doorstep.

Dealing with Vacation in Paris is a real pleasure and getting the keys before you leave and not having to depend on meeting someone is special to me.

Everyone has their favorite area of Paris to stay in. Ours is St. Louis en I'lle. Our favorite apartment is with www.guestapartment.com

It's called "Hibiscus" under properties and then large studios.

It's a huge, gorgeous studio with a King size bed and 2 sofas(one of which is a pull out bed) and a full kitchen.

Being on the island is close to all the activities of St. Germain, the Marais, Notre Dame, the Louvre, Luxembourg Gardens, & the Tuilleries.

They have a concierge office around the corner where they will help you with anything from airport transfers to reservations for tours or dinners.

Check it out!