Hotel in Paris, Saint Germain des Pres

I have not stayed at the Millesime, but it is in a good area and appears to be an excellent choice.

You can easily walk to most of the popular sites of Paris from this location. The Arc de Triomphe would probably the farthest away; I would estimate 45 minutes on foot, but the Musee d'Orsay, les Tuileries, le Louvre, Notre Dame, le Jardin du Luxembourg are all just 15 to 20 minutes walking distance.

There are a number of tourist class restaurants nearby, particularly down rue de Buci and along blvd St Germain. If you want recommendations of exceptional dining locations, I have a number of favorites in this area, but please include your budget window in euros.

Thank you Tocard for your response. For lunch we had planned on simple meals. There is a couple on YouTube called Les Frenchies who have what seem to be reasonably priced and good recommendations. We would however also appreciate any other recommendations. For dinner we would like to do nicer restaurants. Is €100-200 for a nicer dinner a good budget for that area? We definitely could do that a few nights in Paris. Do you know of any reasonable breakfast options? I’m thinking coffee and pastries most mornings but would also like to sit down to a hot breakfast some mornings. I have no idea what my budget should be for a hot, good breakfast though.

I am familiar with Les Frenchies, they tend to recommend guide book favorites, but if you want something a little more focused and timely, check the restaurant suggestions from Paris by Mouth or David Lebovitz.

Very casual restaurants near you I might recommend are:

La Jacobine
Pastavino - restaurant is upstairs, I have only been for lunch.
Le Relais d'Entrecôte - on rue St Benoit

Or walk south on blvd Raspail for lunch at one of the old brasseries on blvd du Montparnassse, lunch, including wine, about 23€ (I always reserve but you may not need to):

la Coupole
le Select
la Rotonde

While in this area, I might mention the numerous crêperies on rue d'Odessa and rue du Montparnasse, menus at 15€.

Restaurants for dinner, around 45€ for 3 courses, I like (reservations mandatory):

la Cuisine de Philippe
didon
Aux Pre Cyril Lignac
Quinsou
Hebe (in the 5th)
Lilane (in the 5th)

For a splurge but will worth it, around 100€ (reserve early)

les Climats
Eclipes
l'Initiale (in the 5th)

Finally, breakfast. For the French, that would be a café/croissant or maybe a hot chocolate. A "good, hot breakfast" is not done, probably because they do not eat the evening meal much before 20h00 and eating again 8 or 9 hours later is not a priority. Hotels offer large breakfasts or I might recommend Breakfast in America in the 5th. For nearby café/croissant, try either Café de Flore or les Deux Maggots.

Note: if you go to les Deux Maggots, or are just walking past, take the time to walk in the door and look for les deux maggots which are two sculptures of china men, mounted near the ceiling on a vertical support.

My favorite bakery (boulangerie) is this area is just up rue de Rennes (81 rue de Rennes), on the east side at rue de Mezieres, la Maison Chevelier. Look for its black tile exterior. For one of the best baguettes in Paris, ask for la tradition, 1.30€

Sounds like a wonderful trip! How fun to see the holiday lights and decorations!

You will love this area!
A restaurant we love in the 6th is Semilla, it is a 2 minute walk from your hotel. We have been there on 2 different trips and the first time Alice Waters was eating there, so quite the recommendation! It was delicious and not too stuffy or dressy. It seems like it was in the $125-$150 range for a couple. You definitely need reservations.

Tocard, what fantastic recommendations! I am definitely taking notes!

hey hey erica
hotel looks great and the right place. we went to les deux magots restaurant, go inside and she the two chinese figurines plus the history, sat outside under canopy, fabulous street music across the street, champagne and eclair. was on a mission to find best eclair, this one was dry, didn't make my list and cost 20E ouch.
stop by cafe de flore, across les deux magot. greenery and flowers growing up the balcony and people watch with a glass of wine
frenchie-ftg.com 9 rue du nil 75002
click eng then menus, making classic sandwiches/hot dogs.
the barefoot contessa (ina garten) highlighted this restaurant and first place she stops when going to paris.
we had lunch at creperie little breizh 11 rye de gregoire de tours 75006, both sweet and savory. many creperies around, we always wanted to sit down and enjoy, restaurantguru.com
angelinas-paris.fr 226 rue de rivoli 75001
best hot chocolate, desserts and pastries in front showcase to die for, we sat and had late breakfast/brunch at the back tables. so elegantly designed, we waited in line or you can reserve
la cuisine de philippe 25 rue de servandoni 75006
on another mission for souffles, this is a hole in the wall, we got there at noon with reservation and they took us right in. OMG was so so good. i had passion fruit souffle and friend had grand marnier souffle, left bottle on table to pour more in. had a meat dish, didn't like it cuz i don't like mooing rare meat make a resrvarion and always look at days/times open, short hours
nossa churrasquiera restaurant. click locations, one in 75011 or 75005 wherever you're near.
this is a portuguese food and BBQ restaurant. heard the chicken is excellent, on my next trip list
le-train-bleu.com in gare de lyon train station 75012
have breakfast or dinner, even a bar/lounge area. it's fancy and pretty
lots of boulangeries every block, always looking for great butter croissants, baguettes to take back to apartment with cheese/meats and wine for our happy hour.
la cure gourmande 55 rue saint louis en ile 75004. a cute small candy/cookies/bisquit store on the island. bought a few things and put in their gorgeous french themed tin boxes.
lesouffle.fr 36 rue du mont thabor 75001, another souffle shop
eatwith.com in search bar type paris
different activities: lunch, dinner, tasting in local residents home, food tour/cooking glass
tripsavvy.com/ a guide to paris arrondissements: map and getting around
frenchmoments.eu/ arrondissements of paris
cedricsparis.com 2CV tours of paris
tootbus.com
there is a christmas light tour, right up your alley
2CVparistour.com if interested in a ride to different areas of the city (do go to montmarte and walk around place de tertre with all the painters and artists are
discoverwalks.com
free and private walking tours
withlocals.com/ paris
city highlight tour, the best of paris on a unique ride. booked on withlocals.com and loved our ride with julian. he is so knowledgable about paris, history of these areas he takes you through and such a gentleman & nice.
these are the things we did from my first to 4th visit to paris, my BFF's favorite city. she is french basque with family still in the area of saint jean pied de port and any/all european trips this is a MUST!!
tocard always gives great info about everything, must be his second home HAHA
have a great trip, your husband will love it, dress warm with gloves/boots. take your time, it will be busy but happy christmas time, see the markets, lights, galeries lafayette, big shopping mall. my long "novel" thanks
aloha

The church in SGdesP is really sweet, they will likely offer evening concerts. It's a simple walk to the Rodin Museum and the Orsay. You're pretty close to Montparnasse Tower, which no one likes but is a handy landmark and has a useful viewing setup on the upper floors. If you get stuck for clothes there's a Gap near SGdesP, and also lots of convenient outlets of Monoprix and Carrefours which are like fancy 7-11s and offer very good takeaway food and drink. St. Sulpice is another pretty church and it's on a little square with some dining options. On Rue des Cannettes there's L'Atelier Roulière for a pricey meal and Café de la Mairie for a simpler one. Last Christmas the Rue had a ceiling of white and gold balloon as part of a champagne marketing stunt. There's also a long poem The Drunken Boat by Rimbaud written on a wall nearby. And the Luxembourg Gardens aren't that far, see what the show is in the museum.

And don't forget to ask your hotel! So many people don't bother to do this, they'll not only have suggestions they can call for you and get you in.

Unbelievable suggestions everyone! Thank you so much. I’m saving these posts and actually writing these places down on paper. I’m a paper person and take a journal with suggestions that have been made. We are so looking forward to this trip.

hey hey erica
couple things to remember and do,
toureiffel.paris
if you are going, buy your tickets early. they are time stamped. decide going to top (summit) or second floor, day or night time. i printed tickets and put in my "paris" folder. tried to buy a glass of champagne at the bar, it never opened and it's not the cheapest.
we ended up buying bottle at liquor store, he sold us plastic glasses and we walked back to champs de mars park underneath to see the sparkling tower. was so much fun enjoying with others.
atlasobscura.com/ le mur des je t aime (i love you: the wall)
square jean rictus 75018 garden like setting
a memorial to love in many languages ) parispass.com/ visiting the i love you wall
moulin rogue 82 blvd de clichy 75018
do you go to show? we stopped at center of street to stand on platform for air to blow like in marlilyn monroe movie, an iconic attraction and yes touristy but we are tourists, go daytime. we did some window shopping and also stopped in gift shop. bought a clock with mirage of iconic paris attractions and red 2CV car.
look at the museums you want to visit and check if tickets needed and book ahead of time.
if worse comes to worse, tired and sore feet, hail a cab with green light, always have address of hotel with you. not that much and we used them, worth every minute
stopped at luxemboug gardens, walked around with the palace there, kids playing and sailing boats in water. had another bottle of champagne for us 4 ladies with appetizers and had a make do picnic at courtyard with rectangle shaped pool with fountain. celebrating just a fun day among us.
had one too many glasses of wine and ordered escargot (6) with garlic/butter and baguette. was so so good and my gang laughed at laughed. had the waiter feed me 2 LOL plus soaking up "juice" with bread
you may want to check churches that have a mass, time opening during holidays, notre dame still had scaffolding but many people around. we were there when was NUTS!! oct 2019. fashionista week, papparazzi & photographers everywhere, techno music parade, late president cheraq died, politicians and uppity ups with sirens, limousines, cops and their tanks/uzis/ guns every street corner, french people from all over waiting in long lines for viewing and his memorial. found a cafe to sit with wine and chacuterie to people watch, champs-elysees was so so crowded, watching street people doing anything to make money. go with the flow, make a zig when should have been a zag, not worth stressing. enjoy
aloha

I stayed in that area for a week in June. It is a wonderful area, you'll love it!

We stayed at the Madison Hotel on Saint Germain in June. It had just been remodeled and was beautiful. They also have a self service laundry you can use, which was a nice extra.
I second the recommendation for Le Jacobine restaurant.
Enjoy your trip.