walesgirl

Please help, We have been booked into The Altona Hotel in Paris. I've read quite a few bad reports about it so wanted to know if it's really bad. (It was shown in a different location on the brochure map.
Also I'd like to try Chez Chartier what's it like? I tried to get in last year when visiting but unable to get a table. Is it worth the wait & what is the exact address?
Thanks, trip planned for end of week.

Jean

It would be helpful (to you) if you included the names of these hotels in your title. If there are few replies to the current post, try another with a new title...

Robert2533

The Altona Hotel is your basic, inexpensive, 2-star hotel at 166 Rue Faubourg Poissonniere in the 10th, close to Gare de Nord and Gare de l'Est. The nearest metro station is 20 meters away at Barbes-Rochechouart. It's also very close to Sacré Coeur, a very busy area.

I'm sorry, but I'm not familiar with Chez Chartier. If you want to check on other restaurants in Paris, then the following web site may be of some help.

http://www.pagesrestos.com/

jody

Chartier is worth going to just for the dining room decor and history..I wasn't wowed by the food but it was certainly good enough. The address is 9 rue de Faubourg -Montemarte, 75009. Try it for lunch , it's a great place to end a visit to the Passages

tod

When we had a GTG in Paris a few weeks ago now, one of the Fodorites told me that the metro stop Barbes-Rochechouart was a bit scary and there was an incident where they felt threatened by a gang of pickpocket women.
I hope she reads your post and can tell you about it.
I think you could do better.

Travelnut

What are your dates, budget and how many people (2?)... wé'll suggest some much better choices than Altona.

lucielou

Gare de Nord and Gare de l'Est, is an area where you have to have your wits about you so to speak,i personally wouldnt stay there.

nytraveler

If Chartier's is the place I remember I can't imagne you need a reservation. Although if you show up at prime dinner hour you would certainly have a wait.

This is a very casuale old-fashioned Parisian place where semi-abuse by the wait staff and eating at large tables with a bunch of strangers is part of the fun. The food is tasty but plain - the prices very low.

walesgirl

Thanks for all replies. I'll remember to put hotel name in next time I ask a question. We are in Paris for 3 nights. Our budget is £200(ish) I don't want a fantastic hotel, just clean & in a good safe location. Reasoning behind this is, we are going to see all the sights & spend as much time in the city not in the hotel.

Keren

Hotel Résidence les Gobelins. It's located just outside the Latin Quarter, in a beautiful, quiet, residential neighbhourhood. Run by a lovely couple, half of which is a native English speaker. A simple, nice and clean hotel. Doubles for 67-76 E.

Keren

I forgot to add the hotel's website:
http://www.hotelgobelins.com/

alr837

Personally, I'd look for a hotel in the Latin Quarter, esp ones that are near the Saint Germain Boulovard.
The area is lovely, and feels incredibly safe. I'm booking to go back again in january and will be staying there - last time i stayed in the Hotel California, small but nice hotel, well by uk standards!
Is 5 mins from Notre Dame and the river - which you can see from the window, 5 mins from the Pantheon and the Sorbone, and a similar distance to a main metro stop. Its also the same sort of distance to the open top bus tour stop, if that's your sort of thing!
Its easy to get anywhere from here!

Gretchen

Dear heavens, for that budget you can stay anywhere better than that area. Look for something more in the center.

Travelnut

I'm wondering if the stated budget is meant to be for the entire stay, not a per-night rate..?

djkbooks

Check out http://www.hotel-langlois.com/en/index.html

We loved that place!

Christina

I imagine that budget is for 3 nights, or around 70 GBP a night. You can do better than Altona, I wouldn't recommend you choose that location for your visit.

I think the name Chez Chartier is the confusion, I've never heard of a place called that, if you just mean Chartier's in the 9th arr. I think it's name is simply Chartier or Chartier Restaurant or perhaps Bouillon Chartier. No, it's not worth a wait at all, the food isn't that great. The address is 7 rue du Faubourg Montmartre near the Grands Boulevards metro stop. I ate there once just because I was in the neighborhood and wanted lunch, but had no wait at all. It was very crowded, noisy, had rather brusque and minimal service, and was not a pleasant meal. It was very cheap and the food was okay for that price. I would not go out of my way to go there nor wait to get in (unless you were hungry and there already, and the wait was only going to be a couple minutes). There were a lot of American tourists in a certain part of it when I was there, I think because some package tours tend to book some hotels in that neighborhood.

suze

Can you cancel and look for a place in the 5th/Latin Quarter that meets your budget?

To me, in Paris, the central and safe location would matter more than the specific hotel.

indytravel

I was not impressed with Chartier when I had dinner in 2003. I've posted this before about it.

"I must say I was disappointed in Chartier this spring. Banished to the stuffy balcony with the other non-French speakers and the worst service I've ever had in France. I wouldn't waste a dinner on it, but maybe a late, late lunch might not be bad. I doubt if I ever bother to eat their again. The ambiance is killer "belle epoque." But the food was only so-so and combined with the lousy service, now I'd just walk in the door, look and leave."

cindymal

check out tripadvisor.com.great for reviews and you can check to see which hotels are avilable.Also do a search on this site.I think it is wise to listen to those bad reviews

ira

Hi W,

This hotel has been recommended by some other posters.

http://www.france-hotel-guide.com/h75012lux.htm

You can tour the neighborhood by entering the address at www.pagesjaune.fr