paris neighbourhoods....

[sprite]

going to paris, 2 to 3 nights, with two friends my age. we all speak canadian french.

we're on a budget, and don't mind roughing it. we'll arrive via eurostar and will head out to another (to be decided) city after a couple of touristy days.

any suggested neighbourhoods?
ones to avoid?

[sprite]

don't hate us because we are going to paris...

[mei]

oh, had meant to pop in here again and forgot.

anyway, I mostly like the Abbesses area, downhill from Montmartre. no accomodation tips though, stayed in an Airbnb studio last time I was there

[sprite]

thx--i know the 'expert' isn't on as much these days.

[HalcyonDaze]

We stayed somewhere round the canal st Martin. Mainly for proximity to the station as we were only there a few nights.

[Phar Lap]

I stayed in the Latin quarter about 200 metres from the Saint-Michel fountain and loved it. It was close to stations and walkable to most areas.

[lolasf]

Sprite, do you ever read the stew? I had a thread there about a month back on exactly this subject and got some great advice. I'll try to PM you a link.

ETA: Or I'll try later if you remind me, the stew's down right now.

[viv]

Don't go through Gare Du Nord at night. I was told that before I went and ignored it. Then spent the whole time looking over my shoulder. It was full of men of various nationalities, just hanging about. Immigration and police officers were checking lots of them, but the whole thing was very inflamed and felt very unsafe.

I stayed near Sacre Coeur at Le Regent Hostel. It was ok, near Metro stops etc. Not sure If necessarily go back to the neighbourhood, as besides the Sacre Coeur, there wasn't much going on.

[weeg]

I stayed at the Timhotel Montmartre in October. Would highly recommend. Great value for money, and good restaurants and bars nearby. Plus, Sacre Coeur round the corner.

[sprite]

years ago i stayed somewhere that probably wasn't safest. i walked through one of those big underground crosswalks and had a bunch of young guys surround me. when i felt my bag shifting i knew they were trying to get into it. i told them off in french and they laughed--but they did move away from me. i suspect they were hoping to rob me without me knowing--if i'd shouted they would have been caught by anyone coming around the corner. relief.
(nothing worth stealing in the bag anyway--just my underwear.)

i'll have a look at the stew, and plot some of these out on a map this week.

[tzarine]

we have stayed all over: near odeon, magenta, jardin du luxembourg, near the tour eiffel
all safe

years ago i stayed near chateau d'eau & that was pretty iffy

[janeyd]

Just how tight is your budget?

are you ok with an aparthotel like Citadines at La Motte Piquet?

What about a small independent hotel like Hotel Pacific on Rue Fondary in the 15th

Or substantially cheaper like Etap / Formule 1 / B&B hotel chain / ibis budget type? Some options in this category:
- Ibis Budget hotel at Issy Les Moulineaux (10 mins south of the Eiffel Tower on the RER C train line that goes to Versailles)
- b&b hotel at Porte de Choisy (tecnically in Ivry sur Seine but just south of the 13th arrondissement)
- Formule 1 hotel Port de Chatillon

Or backpacker type?
Three ducks hostel in the 15th arrondissement (went through a massive renovation in 2014 that completely cleaned up its character)

All my suggestions are Rive Gauche (left bank / south of the seine) because i lived in the 15th for 8 years and these are where i recommended to family and friends.

[sprite]

the citadines looks good, it seems to be about 100E/night for 3 people. i think our plan is to find a place to self cater, so we can do b-fast and packed lunches, saving food money for cafes and good evening meals. we're not adverse to backpacker hostels if we can cook there and there are no fleas. we've seen a few atmospheric air bnb places that don't seem expensive, so will compare them against suggestions from here and the stew.

i'm thinking paris will be fairly empty, aside from tourists?

[janeyd]

Areas I'd avoid:
- to the right and above Gare du Nord (around La Chapelle / Barbes Rochochaurt)
- around the markets near porte de montreuil
- place de clichy / blanche / pigalle

[janeyd]

When are you travelling there? If august then yes, a lot of locals leave. But the expats know its actually a great time to enjoy paris without some of the usual crazy. You just have to be adaptable because some places (bakeries, restaurants and more) close to go on long summer vacations.

The reason i love the citadines at La Motte Piquet is you have the local market on your doorstep wednesdays and sundays, monoprix supermarket is downstairs, rue du commerce shops are downstairs, walking distance to champ de mars, ecole militaire, eiffel tower; "au dernier metro" restaurant...the list goes on

Ps - often cheaper to eat lunch out at restos / bistros / brasseries than dinner. At lunch there is usually a "Menu" option where the do a special price for Entree + Plat or Plat + Dessert

[sprite]

good point on meals!

i knew a couple of chinese guys who were on a business course and had to spend a few days in france. they were completely flummoxed by the 'menu' option. they didn't speak enough english to order at a carte, and they had no french speaker with them to help out. they were stuck eating far more food than they wanted.. i felt bad for them, but it was kind of funny later (they also laughed).

[tzarine]

yes to the menu option
& to monoprix!
one trip, tzarevich seemed to only eat from there

& the local markets, fab fruit & fromage