Hotel for 2 nights in Paris.
Discussion
The OH wants to go to Paris for a couple of nights, end of March.
I think we'd like to do the usual tourist stuff, the tower, Notre Dame and Le Louvre, anyone have any recommendations on mid/price hotels (as in not a hostel), maybe £100 p/n or lower. Just somewhere clean and convenient.
I think we'd like to do the usual tourist stuff, the tower, Notre Dame and Le Louvre, anyone have any recommendations on mid/price hotels (as in not a hostel), maybe £100 p/n or lower. Just somewhere clean and convenient.
Hotels around the Trocadero are pretty cool, in the 16th
Plenty of hotels from Best Western to Rennaisance types - you will be in budget, it is a nice part of town, very close to the Tower (you will be able to see it from some of the hotels), other attractions aren't far, and you can walk around late at night too bars/cafes etc, its a nice part of town.
Plenty of hotels from Best Western to Rennaisance types - you will be in budget, it is a nice part of town, very close to the Tower (you will be able to see it from some of the hotels), other attractions aren't far, and you can walk around late at night too bars/cafes etc, its a nice part of town.
Stayed here last March for a long weekend, couldn't really fault it, could see the Tower from the room....just.
If we went again we'd probably stay somewhere a bit nearer a bit more 'nightlife' but for a quiet 'romantic' break it was good.
Hotel Mercure Paris
If we went again we'd probably stay somewhere a bit nearer a bit more 'nightlife' but for a quiet 'romantic' break it was good.
Hotel Mercure Paris
I'm going the end of April so have been on Tripadvisor a lot lately.
Marais, Latin Quarter and St Germain are recommended.
Check Tripadvisor with the best rates hotels which will give you prices from different sites too.
Then go to that websites own hotel as sometimes it is cheaper.
Also google hotels.com discount codes. There should be a 10% code floating about, maybe on hotukdeals.
Quite a few Paris hotels are nice but the rooms are quite garish and madly coloured. I found that £100 a night or more got a nice modern hotel.
You'll pay for being more central in the lowered number arrondissements.
Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Sacre Coeur, Notredame, Montparnasse Tower and Catacombs for example are all over the place so the metro will be essential. 14.50 euros for a carnet of 10 tickets.
Marais, Latin Quarter and St Germain are recommended.
Check Tripadvisor with the best rates hotels which will give you prices from different sites too.
Then go to that websites own hotel as sometimes it is cheaper.
Also google hotels.com discount codes. There should be a 10% code floating about, maybe on hotukdeals.
Quite a few Paris hotels are nice but the rooms are quite garish and madly coloured. I found that £100 a night or more got a nice modern hotel.
You'll pay for being more central in the lowered number arrondissements.
Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Sacre Coeur, Notredame, Montparnasse Tower and Catacombs for example are all over the place so the metro will be essential. 14.50 euros for a carnet of 10 tickets.
+1 for the Mercure Tour Eiffel, even though it was chocca when we arrived there we were nice to the bloke on reception and he gave us a high-up room with a view of the Eiffel Tower 
...well, top half anyway!
The Pullman next door is even better, but quite a lot pricier. Lots of funky boutique hotels if you want something less 'standard'. Trip advisor and Expedia etc reviews help (just ignore the Americans moaning the rooms are too small everywhere).
The city centre is reasonably compact and you can walk around a fair bit, but as mentioned you'll ideally want to take the Metro if you're seeing all the sights, it's quick and regular, we got 'Mobilis' day travelcards each day from the ticket machines (which take UK cards fine) that give unlimited travel in zones 1-2 all day, for about 7 Euros.
Beware the hawkers trying to sell you tat at tourist sites, especially the African guys in groups who don't take no for an answer! -don't make eye contact/talk to them and keep walking like you've got a roll of carpet under each arm... and keep your wallet hidden!
...well, top half anyway!The Pullman next door is even better, but quite a lot pricier. Lots of funky boutique hotels if you want something less 'standard'. Trip advisor and Expedia etc reviews help (just ignore the Americans moaning the rooms are too small everywhere).
The city centre is reasonably compact and you can walk around a fair bit, but as mentioned you'll ideally want to take the Metro if you're seeing all the sights, it's quick and regular, we got 'Mobilis' day travelcards each day from the ticket machines (which take UK cards fine) that give unlimited travel in zones 1-2 all day, for about 7 Euros.
Beware the hawkers trying to sell you tat at tourist sites, especially the African guys in groups who don't take no for an answer! -don't make eye contact/talk to them and keep walking like you've got a roll of carpet under each arm... and keep your wallet hidden!
I spend a bit of time in Paris and recently wrote a quick itinerary for a friend that was taking his partner there - a bit shorter, 36 hours or so, but I have copied the email I sent him below. Possibly useful.
Hello Mate -
Quick pointers
Eurostar - 45 mins is pretty strict our end, in Paris they don't seem to care so much.
St Pancras - once you go through security it's pretty average. The station is much better.
Gare Du Nord - the whole place is a sh*t hole.
If you're keen to explore, i'd do most of it on foot using Uber where needed. A good route...
Le Louvre (early), walk down straight from there through the gardens to Place de la Concorde and then up Champs Elysses (famous shopping road) up to Arc De Triomph (cross under road and can go up the tower). From there head South down to Gardens de trocadero and cross over to the Eiffel Tower (book in advance ideally, secuirty is tight and it's usually busy). From the Tower walk down the river or on the roads/backroads towards Musee D'Orsay - it has a cool little cafe behind the clock for a quick coffee. Then continue east towards Notre Dame Cathedral. From Notre Dame Cathedral it's quite a cool trip to The Pantheon - loads of tombs and a cool building.
That's pretty much a solid day (13 kilometers) of walking/sightseeing and taking little detours down cool side streets. You can easily make this take 2 days by throwing in some lunches and meandering between stops.
Route on Google Maps - https://goo.gl/maps/7CGijLDuRq52
If you have time after Pantheon or the next day head in to La Marais which is the Gay/Latin quarter and has loads of cool independent/boutique shops. It's usually quite lively in the evenings too.
Make sure to buy the museum pass, it jumps queues to a lot of museums and is free entry. You pass quite a few museums on the route above that are cool to pop your head in to - even if just for a quick loo stop. You get a map with the tix.
http://en.parismuseumpass.com/
They have Boris bikes (Velib) everywhere, you register at the terminals you get the bikes from. Easy to use if you want to and there a cycle lanes everywhere - a lot friendlier for the cyclist than London.
On one the bridges over the river when you walk from Eiffel to Orsay they sell padlocks where couples buy one and clip it to the bridge with their initials on. Literally tens of thousands of padlocks on there. Nice thing for the girls to do, although I do question the structural integrity of the bridges with all that weight of padlocks and broken hearts.
Nobody who tells you they're blind is, nobody who says they are deaf is, and the petitions to save people with your email address is a scam. The boys on the bridge hiding balls under cups will take your money. You can't win. Trust me, you can't win.
This video needs to be watched on FULL volume before you go and gives you a nice 8 minute tour of some of the route above - https://vimeo.com/34039780
Oh, and not sure if it is still the case but historically Le Louvre is closed on Tuesdays. It really put the downer on my surprise valentines day trip to Le Louvre in 2006.
Hello Mate -
Quick pointers
Eurostar - 45 mins is pretty strict our end, in Paris they don't seem to care so much.
St Pancras - once you go through security it's pretty average. The station is much better.
Gare Du Nord - the whole place is a sh*t hole.
If you're keen to explore, i'd do most of it on foot using Uber where needed. A good route...
Le Louvre (early), walk down straight from there through the gardens to Place de la Concorde and then up Champs Elysses (famous shopping road) up to Arc De Triomph (cross under road and can go up the tower). From there head South down to Gardens de trocadero and cross over to the Eiffel Tower (book in advance ideally, secuirty is tight and it's usually busy). From the Tower walk down the river or on the roads/backroads towards Musee D'Orsay - it has a cool little cafe behind the clock for a quick coffee. Then continue east towards Notre Dame Cathedral. From Notre Dame Cathedral it's quite a cool trip to The Pantheon - loads of tombs and a cool building.
That's pretty much a solid day (13 kilometers) of walking/sightseeing and taking little detours down cool side streets. You can easily make this take 2 days by throwing in some lunches and meandering between stops.
Route on Google Maps - https://goo.gl/maps/7CGijLDuRq52
If you have time after Pantheon or the next day head in to La Marais which is the Gay/Latin quarter and has loads of cool independent/boutique shops. It's usually quite lively in the evenings too.
Make sure to buy the museum pass, it jumps queues to a lot of museums and is free entry. You pass quite a few museums on the route above that are cool to pop your head in to - even if just for a quick loo stop. You get a map with the tix.
http://en.parismuseumpass.com/
They have Boris bikes (Velib) everywhere, you register at the terminals you get the bikes from. Easy to use if you want to and there a cycle lanes everywhere - a lot friendlier for the cyclist than London.
On one the bridges over the river when you walk from Eiffel to Orsay they sell padlocks where couples buy one and clip it to the bridge with their initials on. Literally tens of thousands of padlocks on there. Nice thing for the girls to do, although I do question the structural integrity of the bridges with all that weight of padlocks and broken hearts.
Nobody who tells you they're blind is, nobody who says they are deaf is, and the petitions to save people with your email address is a scam. The boys on the bridge hiding balls under cups will take your money. You can't win. Trust me, you can't win.
This video needs to be watched on FULL volume before you go and gives you a nice 8 minute tour of some of the route above - https://vimeo.com/34039780
Oh, and not sure if it is still the case but historically Le Louvre is closed on Tuesdays. It really put the downer on my surprise valentines day trip to Le Louvre in 2006.
Edited by FrankAbagnale on Friday 24th February 11:30
The queues to go up the Eiffel Tower were massive, so either pre book or do as we did, and go up the bigger Montparnasse Tower, no queues, a nice café at the top and cracking views...of the Eiffel Tower.
We used the Hop On/Hop off bus tour to get about and takes in all the major attractions, one thing that surprised me was how many 'shopping' places closed on Sunday.
We used the Hop On/Hop off bus tour to get about and takes in all the major attractions, one thing that surprised me was how many 'shopping' places closed on Sunday.
We stayed at the Hotel Londres de Eiffel which as per the name is close to the tower and lots of nice restaurants. It's a boutique hotel run by a family so very homely. As with a lot of Parisian hotels the rooms are cosy but if you're out all day that's not really a concern. I think we paid £140 ish.
smifffymoto said:
Ibis,Campanile,budget hotels but usually clean and hassle free.
We went between Xmas and New Year a couple of years ago and stayed in a IBIS Budget at Issy les Moulineaux (where the Eurosport HQ is). Cost us less than £100 for 3 nights. Room was clean, tidy and more than adequate for the little time we spent in the hotel. Tram stop right next door to go to La Defense or the other way to the Metro Station which was on the line for the Eiffel Tower. We walked from the hotel to the Metro Station, which took about 15 minutes (we had our daughter in a pushchair) and bought lunch to take with us from the bakery on the way. Hotel door to Eiffel Tower was less than 25 minutes including the walk from the hotel to the Metro Station. Going the other way on the Metro took you to Versailles, which we did one day and was about 25 minutes on the train.I would recommend the Golden Hotel at your price point. I stayed there a couple of years ago and really enjoyed the stay.
The rooms (and indeed the hotel) were quite small, but nicely decorated, comfortable and the staff helpful.
It was a 15 minute walk from Gare Du Nord and had 2 metro stations very close by, so was very easy to get around.
We didn't opt for the hotel breakfast, but there were a couple of decent cafes to grab a coffee in the morning nearby. There were also a few lively looking restaurants nearby, though we didn't actually eat in the area.
The rooms (and indeed the hotel) were quite small, but nicely decorated, comfortable and the staff helpful.
It was a 15 minute walk from Gare Du Nord and had 2 metro stations very close by, so was very easy to get around.
We didn't opt for the hotel breakfast, but there were a couple of decent cafes to grab a coffee in the morning nearby. There were also a few lively looking restaurants nearby, though we didn't actually eat in the area.
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