Help! I am beginning to reserach a trip to Paris and was shocked to see how many arrondissements there are in the city!! I don't know where to start! Where to stay to do a typical week of touring in Paris - be close to many things - and get that "old Paris" feel? Anyone have a good link that explains all the various areas? It's very overwhelming!

Try this site for a map of the arrondissements:

<http://www.intransit-international.c...-tour.html>

Harzer

Try the Left Bank or St. Germain de Pres for Old World Charm and colorful people and ambiance. Of course, visit the main attractions, but I love to get out and get to know the locals - ask them for restaurant recommendations, art galleries, shopping. The locals (and hotel concierges are good resources, too) know the hidden gems....

Also, consider getting a Paris Metro visite card.

Regards,
Julia

Before you go off willy-nilly buying a <i>Paris Visite</i> card, find out what alternatives exist, from <i>carnet</i> to <i>Mobilis</i> to <i>Carte Orange</i>.

What days of the week do you arrive and depart, and from what stations (plane or train)?

How much walking and how much riding will you do in the course of your sightseeing?

Will you want to visit Versailles or Disneyland (or anything else outside the central zone of 20 <i>arrondissements</i?

How old are you?

I would have to say that the most popular arrondisements for visitors tend to be the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th. The 1st is good for sightseeing, but you may not get a &quot;quaint&quot; feel. Try a Paris guidebook for an explanation of the various arrondisements.

On our first trip we stayed in the 4th; on the next two trips we stayed in the 7th, but nearer to the 6th; on our next trip we are staying in the 6th.

I started at the library. Check out a couple of Paris travel guide books (with photos). Most are divided into chapters by district (arrondisement) and will give you a good start on understanding the different areas.

What you read in the guides will lead you to do more research on the things that interest you. (And believe me, you'll do LOTS of research!).

PS: While you're at the library, see if they have some French-for-travellers books.

I've stayed in the 7th twice now and loved it. It's close to the Eiffel Tower -- we've stayed at The Grand Hotel Leveque,and The Hotel de Champ du Mars, both Rick Steves recommendations, and we enjoyed both tremendously, as they are in the Rue Cler area, and just a 5-10 minute walk to the Eiffel Tower. The price was right at less than $100E per night for a decent double.

We often would go &quot;home&quot; at night and still get a walk over to the park to see our Tower before turning in.

Next time I might stay in St. Germain or up towards the Marais just for a new experience, but I can say that the 7th is lovely.

Plus it's centered near several metro stops and the buses along Rue Bosquet run you right up towards the Arc de Triomphe and Sacre Couer, and the 69 bus takes you off of Rue Dominique to the Orsay, the Louvre, and right by Ile de la Cite/Notre Dame/Ste. Chappelle.

Happy travels,

Jules

I'm probably starting to sound like a broken record, but here is my advice for any traveler, especially when going to Paris or any other large city for the first time.

Go to a large bookstore, with a cafe, Borders, Barnes and Noble, etc., pull as many books on Paris or France, from the shelves and while you're enjoying a coffee, go through them. To name just a few, Fodors, Frommers, Lonely Planet, Let's Go, Rick Steves ...

In most good guidebooks, everything is broken down by area, and they will of course give you info on sights, hotels, restaurants, transportation, etc..

Buy the book or books that best fits your style, budget etc..

THEN come back here and do a Search on specific areas, hotels, etc.. and THEN post specific questions. You'll find that you will get more info that you need (not a bad thing), and can start planning your trip.

You don't say when you will be traveling, but since Paris hotels, especially the reasonably priced ones, tend to be booked months in advance, no matter what time of year, I would get my hotel reservations ASAP - you can always change your mind if something better or more interesting comes along, and of course get your plane reservations.

The rest is the fun part, what where to eat, what to see, etc.. Get a guidebook that feels good to you and you will find that it will be your constant companion before and during the trip.

The areas recommended above are all excellent for return or first time visitors.

Other areas may sound older and much more quaint or whatever, but they can be far away from major sights and you will miss out on the true feeling of Paris by not being able to walk to many places, spending too much time and money on public transportation.

Looking forward to helping you.

Nina

Having been to Paris once, I consider myself somewhat of an expert ;-).
As stated above, a rule of thumb is that you want to stay in the single digit arrondissements, (4,5,6,7). You may get a better mix with the locals if you stay nearby, such as the bastille area, but generally, the 4,5,6 and7th districts will likely be better for a first time visitor.
Once you get a better grip of things, I would recommend you picking up a copy of Ernest Hemingway's &quot;A Moveable Feast&quot;. He writes as a young writer in Paris and writes of landmarks including Cafes that are still there and would give you a better appreciation of the locales.

Every nationality has its favorite areas. Actually, the 9th arrondissement is reputed to have more hotel rooms than any other, but since it is preferred by European visitors, North Americans tend to stay elsewhere. Many American visitors are enchanted by lower Montmartre, particularly the rue des Abbesses area in the 18th arrondissement, because it looks exactly as it did in the film &quot;Am&eacute;lie.&quot; In any case, budget conscious travelers usually stay in the outer arrondissements -- the closer you get to the center, the higher hotel prices tend be, but there are exceptions everywhere.

Hi

My wife and I went to Paris in April and I have posted a trip report with pictures and links on my homepage http://gardkarlsen.com/Paris_France.htm . Maybe you can find some useful info there

Regards
Gard
http://gardkarlsen.com - trip reports and pictures

I don't know where to start! - Here:
http://www.fodors.com/miniguides/mgr...;feature=30011

Where to stay to do a typical week of touring in Paris - be close to many things - and get that &quot;old Paris&quot; feel?
You are close to many things by using the metro - an effective subway system. Within the city (Arr. 1-20) you will find a station at a diameter of maybe 300 meters.
That old paris feel is in the visitor´s head, the hotel is where the visitor sleeps at night.

So, if you want to do the typical touring, choose your hotel by the luxury you think to be necessary (air condition is considered as a luxury in Europe and not to be found at hotels offering basic comfort) and the prize you want to pay.

It ha been said already, that the 9th (and also the 10th) has a lot of hotels frequented by tourists from Europe - for that paris look and feel I would go for faubourg montmartre, an area between Rue Lafayette and Les Grands Boulevards - but Americans prefer Rive Gauche, well, maybe they still feel like Hemingway, and also Rick Stevens with his Rue Cler (C) is a kind of a taste-maker.

Thanks to all for the pointers - -
We are planning on going late Sept.-early Oct. 2007 but I agree we need todecide on a hotel and reserve early (maybe not THIS early tho). We will be there about one week - the four of us are between 54 and 60 years old.
We wil probably not venture too far out of the city for other sightseeing - definietly not Disney. We will do a fair amount of walking but like to be able to get the metro or a cab if we get tired. So - I have lots of research to do - but that's all part of the fun! I'm sure I'll be back asking lots more questions. Thanks again.

Dorgal -- to stay in a nice place in the 7th -- you'll want to book in January. Most hotels don't want to book for that late in the following year until the new year has come around. But I wouldn't wait much longer, since we tried to book a hotel in the 7th in April for a stay in September last year and they were already full up.

Good luck!

Jules

Dorgal,
we have been to Paris many times,each time in a different area,the easiest way to explore around the area,last april we stayed on the 9th ,the hotel Tryp Blanche Fontaine,wonderful hotel with a great breskfast included in the prize,half a block from the Moulin Rouge,the Metro and the Montmartre train,3 blocks to the cemetery .
If you are arriving on a sunday ,explore the Montmartre area that day,you may need to buy just 1 metro tickets to come back to the hotel or walk back,then on monday buy the carte orange for a week,bring a picture,you can buy it for Paris metro area or to go to Versailles,we did that,look on their web side for new prizes and zones,it is worth it,but you only buy it for monday to sunday for the week,even if you arrive monday or tuesday is a good buy.

Maybe there's a view in Paris that you're dying to have from your hotel room? It would narrow down your search.

For me, it was a view of the Eiffel Tower, which we found at a nice hotel in the 7th, Hotel de la Bourdonnais. We had a little balcony, with a full-on view of the Tower, looking up a pretty tree-lined boulevard. That was my ideal, and I'm glad we found it.

While you are doing your research to decide which arrondissment you might be interested in, you may also want to research apts. Since you mention that there are 4 of you, an apt might be a larger and sometimes cheaper choice.

Our family of four was in Paris in June and we rented an apt in the 7th, but close to the 6th. Once I make it back, I will definitely stay in the 6th as it was much closer to shops and restaurants that were open later. The 7th seems to close down quite early.