Hello, Our first time to Paris and only have 3 full days (not counting travel days). We want to tour the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre Museum ( on separate days ) and the rest of the time, walk around the city. We will be arriving & departing at the Paris Gare du Nord train station. We want to use the metro system. Would someone please recommend where we should stay so we will have an easier time getting back and forth to the train station. And being able to use the metro system from the hotel to these 2 locations? Unless it’s impossible? Hotel price around 275 euros per night. Thank you very much for your help
Posted by
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, USA
16381 posts
You'll get lots of different suggestion both here and on your Trip Advisor thread.
I don't like the Gare du Nord area so I don't stay there. I am most comfortable in the Rue Cler area where I first stayed on a Rick Steves tour in 2014. It's walking distance to the Eiffel Tower, in fact that is my usual walk on my arrival day to Paris because it just makes me feel like "I'm there", lol.
Depending on when you are traveling, you may be able to find something with your price point in that area. My favorites are the Hotel Muguet on Rue Chevert and Hotel Relais Bosquet on Rue du Champ de Mars. I last stayed there in Sept/October.
https://hotel-paris-bosquet.com
Wherever you stay, make sure you book on the official hotel site. I just started typing in Relais Bosquet in my browser and got taken to a 3rd party site called Hotels.one which you should AVOID like the plague. They charge a very steep booking fee.
IF you book at the official hotel site sometimes they will throw in breakfast as well. Also check the hotels' FB page to see if they have any specials running.
I take a taxi to/from the train station to the airport. If you want to take the metro from/to Gare du Nord, this area does not work well for that as you've got some changes in Metro lines and that's a pain with luggage.
Posted by
Lynnwood, Washington
9868 posts
I think that any hotel near a metro station will make getting around somewhat easier. As Pam mentions, it is when you are traveling with your luggage that the Metro is not as useful.
I've stayed in the following hotels: Hotel Relais Bosquet, B Montmarte Hotel, and Hotel Le Regent. They were all fine hotels with Hotel Le Regent probably being a bit more centrally located as Sante Chapelle, Notre Dame, Musee d Orsay, and the Louvre are all fairly walkable from its location. Metro station just a few blocks away.
Posted by
Minnesota🌲
10868 posts
I really liked St. Germain (6th arr) as a location. I stayed here with two of my grandkids for 3 nights in April of this year and loved the area. It was so close to Notre Dame and the Louvre and it was only a block away from the Odeon Metro station, which will take you straight to Gare du Nord (about a 20 minute ride). Plus there were wonderful cafés, boulangeries, restaurants and patisseries in the neighborhood and it was very close to Luxembourg Gardens. I just thought it was such a wonderful location and I know my grandkids really enjoyed being there.
We stayed at the Hotel Left Bank, which is in a very old building in St. Germain, The hotel was very nice with a vintage vibe to it. Our room was quite large, very clean, with two single beds placed side by side, and another single in a more secluded area of the room. This was nice as it gave my grandson a bit of privacy. And it had A/C. The weather was as nice in Paris as it had been in London, but it did get a bit warm in the room, so it was great having that A/C option.
The breakfast was an additional cost, but when I booked the hotel, they were offering it for €5 pp, so we got breakfast both mornings, and it was quite good. There were not only breads and pastries, but creamy scrambled eggs, crisp sausage links, fruit, cereal, yogurt, and tomatoes and cucumbers. And as noted above, the location was outstanding.
Posted by
Atlanta
5552 posts
With regard to getting between the airport and hotel, suggest you "splurge" and use an official taxi. Fixed rate, no hassling with luggage while tired and jet lagged.
Think about staying in the very center of Paris on on Ile St. Louis. It's right in the heart of Paris and about as well located as possible. It's right behind Notre Dame and a metro stop is close by,
There are several hotels on the island. We've stayed at Hotel des Deux-Iles and will do so again. hey also have a sister hotel on the island.
If you stay on the island, we can tell you about a several places to eat.
Posted by
white plains, ny, usa
4198 posts
Like Pam I'm also a fan of Hotel Muguet . I just booked it ( again ) for two weeks this coming October
Posted by
239 posts
Daughter and I stayed in Rue Cler at the Cler Hotel in April: daughter stayed last year at Hotel Muguet also in Rue Cler and we would both recommend these hotels to friends. There are metro stops in walking distance but when wrangling luggage I take a taxi due to the logistics - there may or may not be a functioning elevator or escalator and while my luggage is not large or ridiculously heavy, I am at the point in life where I plan to avoid the possible challenge of shlepping myself and my things up and down stairs in a busy metro. A flight or 2 in hotel is ok, but not a busy metro.
Posted by
248 posts
Le Robinet d'Or is my recommendation for a hotel near the Gare du Nord station. It’s not super fancy but the hotel restaurant is great and I’ve had a good experience every time.