Diane

I can get a great apartment in Montmartre, reasonbly priced. Is that a good enough base for a Paris trip. Obviously, never been there before -- will want to see all the top attractions. . . <BR> <BR>Thanks

Neal Sanders

It's a tradeoff. Would you stay in an apartment in Queens if you were visiting New York? Would you stay in an apartment in Evanston if you were visiting Chicago? Most people visiting Paris for the first time spend a day, or part of a day, in Montmartre seeing the vista of Paris from atop the ridge, seeing Sacre Coeur, and exploring the "artist colony." Apart from those attractions, Montmartre is simply an out-of-the-way Paris neighborhod; walking distance to nowhere. It's a hike to the metro and then a 15-25 minute ride to the points of interest where you'll spend most of your time. That said, if you're getting a really great deal on an apartment, and the trip would otherwise be unaffordable, then perhaps the tradeoff is worthwhile. I know that I'd never choose to stay in that section of the city. I hope that helps; I'm sure others will venture their opinions.

Christina

It's kind of hard to say without knowing where in <BR>Montmartre it is. Generally, Paris is a fairly small <BR>city and it is easy to get anywhere in a short time <BR>by the metro system, assuming you are staying <BR>near a metro stop. If you're not, then totally <BR>forget it. However, Montmartre it a little out of the <BR>way and a rather hilly area so is not going to be <BR>quite as easy to get around as some other parts of <BR>the city closer to the Seine (right or left bank). Also, <BR>a big warning that Montmartre has a residential, <BR>decent area and very bad porno/sex/drugs <BR>area around blvd. Clichy and place Pigalle. If this <BR>great apartment is right near those streets or the <BR>Clichy, Blanche , Pigalle, Anvers or Barbes- <BR>Rouchouart metro stops, you will be in rather to <BR>very bad areas. <BR>

Frank

I'd like to second the two previous opinions. It's not an area I would want my daughter to stay in. Trey to find something in the Marais or on the left bank.

Donna

I wouldn't recommend staying in Montmartre. Even after reading discouraging comments in nearly every tour guide, we just had to see the Sacre Coeur and the view from Paris from the steps. Wish we hadn't bothered. The view was disappointing and the neighborhoods made us so uncomfortable we couldn't wait to get out of there. Steep hills to navigate just wandering around and to and from the metro. But, if the apartment (which also has its advantages) is nice enough and cheap enough, you may not mind any of the disadvantages of staying in the area. It's not that out of the way considering that no matter where you stay you will want to go all over. But, if it's more than a block or two from a metro stop, stay elsewhere.

francesca

It's true that Montmatre is at the north end of Paris <BR>and therefore not that central. But there are beautiful parts of Montmartre that are hard to match for "picturesque-ness". <BR>The lousy areas around Barbes are colorful in their own way. In terms of danger, nothing compares to any metro area in the US. <BR>If you are not ON the blvd Barbes and less than 10 minute walk from a metro stop, I'd go for the apt, watch yourself as you would in any big city and have a great visit! I've lived here 9 yrs and had no problems anywhere in Paris. <BR>

Meg

Since this is your first visit, I'd stay closer to the river. Montmartre is worth a visit - during the day - but even with a close Metro stop, you would be spending too much time riding. Try to find something in the Latin Quartier,St. Germain Des Pres, or the Marais. Paris is wonderful!

bonbon5

I'm glad I read this post. I too am thinking of staying in Montmartre. While trying to arrange a home exchange in Paris, I contacted two families; one with an apartment in Montmartre and the other family is in Pantin. Looking at a map I see it is a suburb close outside of Paris, think on the NE side. I didn't know about the hills and seedy areas in M, and can't find any info about Pantin on the web.
I'd been basing my decision on ease of getting to the sights i.e. travel time not seediness or crime.
Does anyone know anything about Pantin?
And thanks for the specific names of areas and streets. I'll ask the prospective home exchanger what neighborhood the apt. is in, how near the streets mentioned it is and how near it is to the metro. That also is a good point which I hadn't considered. Especially if it's hilly. We're older ( 60 and 65) so it's something to also consider.
This is a very old post. Might the quality of those bad neighborhoods have changed since 1998?
Is Pantin worth seriously considering? Any significant difference in metro expense if I commute from there? I don't think an extra 15 min. train ride into Paris from there makes much difference all things being equal neighborhood wise.
Thanks.

kerouac

Just as for Montmartre, it depends what part of Pantin. Honestly, some of these questions leave a lot to be desired. "Is Montmartre a good place to stay?" What about "Is Manhattan a good place to stay?" (<i>Do you prefer the Bowery or Harlem in Manhattan? Or were you perhaps thinking of another part of Manhattan?</i

The only way to give advice is to know the name of the street you are wondering about.

HailtotheDuck

I didn't realise while reading the early posts that they were so old. I'm just back from Paris and completely agree with most of the comments made about Montmartre - it's very picturesque and worth visiting for the art connections (if you don't mind walking up a lot of hills), but there are still dodgy bits and I would recommend staying somewhere else. Sorry, I can't comment on Pantin.