I Paris for 2 young girls

Find out how long they plan to stay, and what their budget is first. I wouldn't want to go without reservations, but they may not mind sleeping in the train station. (Been there, done that!)

I think hostels would be the first place to look, but do see what kind of budget they have before looking at hotels.

They will be there for 3 days and do not want to be in a hostel. Hopefully 150E per night or less.

My first question would be when is this trip? If it's next summer, then I would say forget Paris on a budget, because of the Olympics. If it's this fall or next spring, then I'd still say reservations are a must. If their budget is really tight, then hostels. Given the number of homeless sleeping on the streets of Paris, I think it would be very risky for 2 young women to be without a confirmed roof over their heads. And I assume these are young women, and not underage girls.

Look at Booking.com for hotels and filter for their budget. Select from amongst the highest rating, but check the location - that it isn't too far from the centre and is near a Metro stop.

And as noted on your Amsterdam thread, make sure they have a copy of Rick Steves Europe Through the Back Door, and that they read it! And that they peruse the Explore Europe and Travel Tips sections on this site.

This trip is in a week! They are the daughters of my friend and I just learned yesterday that they were planning to go without hotels! They are starting in London with a hotel but then a few days in Amsterdam and then Paris with no reservations. One is early 30's but the other is only 17. I am very concerned about them and think they may be thinking it is a jolly adventure - maybe it was in the 80's and 90's but I think not now! I have traveled extensively but would not go to Europe in the summer without a reservation - I did it in 1990 with 3 friends, but even then it was very difficult to find a decent place when you are already there, plus you waste valuable time searching.

Two things.

1. Have them get on Booking.com and book hotels for Paris and Amsterdam this week using their preferred 150 amount as a filter.

2. The 17yo is a minor so read this and see if she has a notarized consent letter:

What is a Child Travel Consent form?
A Child Travel Consent gives a minor child permission to travel without their parents or legal guardians. Use this form when your child needs to travel alone or with another adult, who is not their legal guardian (e.g., a grandparent, friend, or teacher).

A minor child is someone who hasn’t reached the legal age of majority, which varies by jurisdiction. Most jurisdictions consider a person a legal adult once they turn 18 years old, while others must be 19 or 21.

You can use the same travel consent letter for domestic and international flights. However, if your child’s travel itinerary involves multiple stops, consider creating a consent letter for each trip.

150€ / night is really the minimum these days for a hotel in Paris in August.
92% of the hotels referenced on booking.com in Paris at this maximum rate are no longer available in the next week

Without being paranoid, in my opinion, booking in advance or having at least a list of available hotels would be wiser for two young girls (including a minor) rather than wandering the streets of Paris at the mercy of proposals for accommodations from strangers

August is as good a time as any to go reservation free in Paris although my friends who live in Paris have told me that the city is heaving with tourists this summer. I would definitely book ahead of time even if only a couple of days before arrival. I see a number of good spots available next week in budget on booking.com. Maybe they can look at some and you can get opinions on what is available. Meanwhile, take a look at Hotel Apostrophe, Hotel de L'Esperance, Hotel Apollon Montparnasse, Hotel Excelsior Latin, and Hotel Mayet. I've stayed at or visited or have friends who stayed at all of these places and they should all be in budget. I have not been to the Hotel Excelsior Latin since it was renovated so I am hoping that post-renovation, it has remained a good budget find. The Apollon Montparnasse should definitely be in budget -- rooms are tiny.
Edit: All my suggestions have AC in their rooms. You may be able to find cheaper places without AC but . . .

Thank you all very much. I don't have kids of my own so I was not aware of the consent form - that is very helpful info. I know 30 may not seem young, but they seem naive and I know the 17 year old told me today she is nervous about going without hotel reservations.

I think they’d love the areas in the 9th and 10th and the western part of the 11th, An advantage of these areas is they’re young, vibrant areas, unlike St. Germain or the Marais, which is overrun with expensive hotels and retirees.

The other thing is that hotels tend to be less expensive in these areas.

I just talked to the 30 year old and she had the idea that it would be more free and fun to find a hotel on the fly, but I convinced her that with such a short time in each place (2-3 days) they should not waste time looking for a place to stay. and she agreed. She feels they can spend about $250 per night so that is better! I told her about RS - she has never heard of him - wow - and about the audioguides. I found her a few nice places in those arrondissements and she was very grateful. Thank you all for your great suggestions.

Good for you for trying to talk some sense into them.
Now we will all be worrying about them until you let us know otherwise.
Hope they’ve got money belts……

….

Aaahh - thank you for reminding me about money belts SJ - I will tell them! I can lend them some. I did give them converters!

Well, the 30 year old is not a girl but if she is going off to Paris in the summer 2023 without a reservation for even the arrival night, it could be the 17 year old is the wiser one of the two. I stay near Bastille when in Paris and I am old but I love that area. I just asked my 25-year-old daughter for a hotel suggestion (she has been to Paris every year since she turned 10, except for the past 2) she suggested Hotel Exquis by Elegencia on Rue Charonne in the 11th ( a 5-minute walk to stops two metro lines) and Hotel Joyce an Rue de la Bruyere in the 9th.
Edit: Just saw the new budget and that you talked some sense into the 30-year-old. They do not need to spend $250 per night unless they want to.

Thanks so much JHK - those are great recommendations for hotels!

“the Marais, which is overrun with expensive hotels and retirees.”
My 33 yo son would disagree. He loves the Marais. Fun, vibrant and full of people his age.

Thanks Susan - good to know. I was only in Paris once over 40 years ago with my parents, so I do not have much knowledge of it. I WAS able to help them with London, as we have been there several times. They will be in London, Paris & Amsterdam in 8 days - not long enough if you ask me, but they will surely be rushing rather than rambling! The 30 year old told me tonight she plans to see the Louvre, and she had no idea she needs to get tickets ahead of time - like I said, very naive about travel.

In the 30-year-old's defense, the ticket requirement began as party of pandemic-related strategies and has continued so it has not been around forever. Also, it is still possible there are a limited number of tickets for sale on the visit date during off-peak hours, whatever those are. You are lovely to be so helpful for their trip but you know what, it will work out fine as long as they have a decent place to stay. Mistakes are opportunities to learn. A 30-year-old is not a girl (she's young for sure compared to me but not a girl) and sometimes the best life lessons are learned while making mistakes.
Back to the notarized consent letter mentioned above, please make sure they get one. In 2015, when both my children were minors, I was taking them to meet up with their father at the end of a business trip and did not have the consent letter. I had asked my husband to get one before he left but that had not happened. The desk agent took their passports when we tried to check in and I had to track down my husband and get him to write a letter and email it and a copy of his passport to the agent and make himself available for a phone call. He was 13 hours ahead of us so it was quite a production. We had been asked for the consent a few times at Heathrow when traveling with nieces and nephews so we knew about the requirement but my husband thought it would not be a big deal for a mother to travel with her children but apparently not. So, yeah, get the notarized consent.

Macrimlaw, suggestion for the 30 yo… check out Reddit travel forums. Reddit is especially popular with her age group and she’ll find lots of good travel info there geared to millennials and younger.

You’re right, 8 days is definitely too little time for 3 world class cities. She does seem very naïve for her age. But at least she’s trying something new and different. She’s lucky to have you helping her.

Great suggestion Susan - thanks! She said she had just been too busy to plan the trip - it is a graduation present for her sister - and she was grateful for some suggestions.

I did give them converters!

Converters, or adaptors? Most electrical things can now use either 110 or 220 voltage so a converter isn't needed for those. But a plug adaptor definitely is.

I meant the plug adapters !