Airbnb for first-timers in Pairs

What's inexpensive to you?

Great question! I should have clarified: $80/night or less (I know that's not a lot--I'm in grad school so we're on a budget).

There's a crackdown on AirBnB apartments and all the rest which are advertised on the internet. It would be prudent for first-time visitors to avoid them.
You can find budget hotels very easily:
http://www.hotel-saintandredesarts.fr/en/

http://hotelgardettepark.com/

/www.expedia.fr/Paris-Hotel-Acacia-Hotel.h16344343.Description-Hotel?rfrr=Redirect.From.www.expedia.com/Paris-Hotels-Acacia-Hotel.h16344343.Hotel-Information

For that price, you will definitely have to look in the outer neighborhoods (double digits). Consider a private room in someone's home, which is still legal, if I'm not mistaken, rather than a whole apartment. PM me if you'd like the link to the one I used, which is in the 9th, slightly above your budget but absolutely worth staying in if you can stretch your budget a bit by cooking a few meals. There is an excellent grocery store nearby

We almost always do private room in a home/apartment.

We stayed in this one and tried to book it again, but I think she is away when we are going to be there...

https://www.airbnb.ca/rooms/3329535

The room is so bright and cheerful - the funky bathroom is what did it for me. It was about a 10-15 min walk to the Eiffel Tower and the Cambronne metro stop is just across the road.

My sister, two nieces, and I have successfully used Airbnb in Amsterdam, London and Paris for a total of 5 times. Our recommendations include:
1. READ very carefully the reviews - cleanliness, beds vs sofas, size of apartment, location- We started measuring our rooms at home to compare to size identified in the ads.
2. Notice how frequently or not a cancellation is made. We ended up changing our London reservations Sept 2016 because the host indicated a pattern of last minute cancellations. After getting no response from the host the Airbnb folks helped us get a new reservation w/o a cancellation fee. Again, READ very carefully.
3. Ask the host if the rental is "legal". Twice, we have arrived at the apartments with notices telling us NOT to let those we meet in the halls, elevators etc. that we were renters .. but we were "friends" of the host who was out of town. The last time, we almost were tossed from the rental when the manager building came to our door and questioned us. This problem legal vs illegal rental has pushed us to the opinion we may not wish to use Airbnb in the future.
4. Does the location fit your needs? Use google view and maps to get an idea of the neighborhood - look at the restaurants or shops nearby, determine how far a bakery and metro stop are from the apartment.

5. Research is required and honestly determining the group needs - 2 beds vs pullout sofa - 1 bath - etc., and preferred location will help you select the best airbnb host for you .... no different than a hotel, or B&B ....

Good luck.

I recommend the inexpensive, budget Hotel Marignan at 13 rue du Sommerard. It's in one of my favorite neighborhoods, the Latin Quarter (5th arrondissement). It's very close to Nôtre Dame and the river.
I was there 10 days ago, although I didn't stay there (I did stay there a long time ago for 6 wks), and the owner took me on a tour and could not have been nicer.
They have a kitchen and free washer/dryer for guests.

Have you considered a Hostel? They have come a long way over the years. Some offer rooms for couples w/your own bathroom.

http://www.hostelworld.com

We stayed in a great (registered) Airbnb room in Paris, but it was closer to $110 a night. Let me know via private message if you want more details.

More hostel information

This one is in my neighborhood and is getting a lot of attention. I vouch for the safety of the neighborhood and its relative closeness via foot, bus and metro to tourist sights.

https://generatorhostels.com/destinations/paris

Do you really need to shop, cook, take hours to do laundry and clean up after yourselves? I can think of better ways to spend a vacation...hotels are really not so bad.

Most calendars are not accurate and do not reflect the legal limit of 120 days maximum that a resident apartment owner may legally rent his apartment.

Most people cannot afford to own, so they lease apartments, and sub-leasing apartments is expressly prohibited in the lease agreement between owner and tenant.

If the tenant is found to be sub-leasing illegally, you (the client) will be asked to vacate the apartment immediately.

It would be up to you (the client) to find someplace else to stay, with no help from anyone.

The crackdown is going on until all apartments listed on the internet have been visited. There will be no disclosure as to which arrondissements will be next.

Assuming that the budget is US$80 per night for two people, I think that you will have a very hard time finding a hotel room for two people in May and June at that rate. Certainly none of the ones suggested are under US$80 per night during the time period in question. The average price currently for an Airbnb apartment during the time in question is around US$135, which of course means that some are available for under US$135. I think that you should just do a search on Airbnb and see what you can find in your budget understanding that it will probably be in an outer arrondissement. How about this one? https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/7167279?checkin=05%2F29%2F2017&checkout=06%2F04%2F2017&guests=2&adults=2&children=0&infants=0&s=HGLleqz-

The law applicable to vacation rentals does not permit rentals with a term of less than a year unless the property being rented is the primary residence of the landlord and rented for less than 4 months per year or if the owner meets a lot of expensive requirements. IMO, you are more likely to find a legal rental on Airbnb. I wish we knew the odds of a rental being canceled at the last minute because of an investigation. There are things that you can look out for in the Airbnb listing that can indicate that the property is someone’s home if you are super concerned about that risk.

Thank you all so much for the feedback!

Just a head's up - I was back in contact with the one I mentioned, and seems she has a roommate now...so I don't think she is hosting much - maybe only if the roommate is away...

The Inexpensive and good quality AirBNB are booked up to a year in advance,We started our search in December for our May visit and could not find one in the 6th (Central location and where we want to be) that met our requirements so we landed up booking a hotel that comes with breakfast. You can also look on VRBO (aka Homeaway) for vacation rentals. I think at this point you need to decide which neighborhood you want to be in and find a Hotel. Think about how far you are willing to travel each day my metro, if the neighborhood has access to cafes and the experience you want. We like the 6th because we love walking by the river and being able to walk to Notre Dame and the Louvre, plus lots of good places to eat.

To piggy-back on Letizia's mention of neighborhoods (arrondissements), I like the 4th, 5th and 6th the best. They're the most central and fun imo. Look at a map of Paris, with arrondissements clearly defined. The closer to the river and Nôtre Dame, the more central it is.

I still recommend Hotel Marignan (above post)... 😊