Month in Paris - Where to stay

The three neighborhoods you list are VERY central but can be a bit noisy and crowded for my taste. We try to stay in the area between/around the Passy and La Muette metro stations in the 16th. It is a really nice area that is residential and upscale. Good restaurants/cafes and shops. Easy walk to the Bois de Boulogne. It's quiet but with both of those metro stations in close proximity you can be anywhere in the city in a flash.

With a month I would not stay in tourist central i.e. the Marais, Latin Quarter or St. Germain. I'd pick Montmartre near Lamarck Caulaincourt or the 11th or the 14th east of Gare Montparnasse or our favorite the 17th in Batignolles which has nothing of interest to tourists at all. Of these 4, Montmartre is the most touristy but it is also charming and steep. Note that September is probably the worst season for housing in Paris; hotels are full and at their most expensive and apartments are snapped up far in advance, so you need to nail something down soon.

It all depends a lot on you and what you want to do for the month and the specific location of your apartment (street it's on and what floor it's on). I stayed in an apartment for a month in the Marais area and I was glad to be in that location. Yes, it was a very busy and active neighborhood but my apartment was on a top floor and even with windows wide open I was never bothered by street noise. Of course the trade off was having to walk up 5 flights of stairs once or twice a day. I enjoyed being able to walk to so many areas - in fact during the whole month I only used one carnet (10) of metro tickets. Because I love to walk around and through neighborhoods I did not want to have to take the metro everywhere I wanted to go. I loved being close to the river and the islands and walked around the Notre Dame and Ile St Louis neighborhoods and along the Seine several evenings a week, something I couldn't do if I was in a neighborhood further out from the center. It's always going to be a trade off so it will depend a lot on your particular interests, whether or not you have any mobility issues, how peaceful you want your stay to be, etc.

We have stayed in this apartment just north of Place des Vosges in 2007 (1 week); 2009 (1 month); 2010 (1 month); 2015 (~3 months) and 2016 (~3 months). The website describes the apartment pretty accurately and the reviews are right on.

The apartment is very convenient to metro and bus stops, bakery, grocery store, organic store, the Bastille market on Thursdays and Sundays, restaurants, etc.

This apartment has a registration number (#7510300766797) shown on their website.

As said above it all depends on what you want. If you want be smack in the middle of the parts of Paris that are most visited by and recommended to US-based tourists, then go for the neighborhoods that you mention. It will be fine. I did that once and enjoyed how close I was to a lot of places but overall thought that it was a waste of money for a month-long trip and I started to feel like I heard too much English around me. After I bumped into 3 people I knew from the US, I knew my next stay would be elsewhere. I paid around three times more than I had paid when I stayed in the 15th and did not feel like I got three times the value. If you are staying for a short period of time, being in a spot where you can walk to Notre Dame, the Louvre, etc. in 15 minutes makes a lot of sense but I don't think that you need that for a month stay. I have stayed in the 15th near La Motte Picquet Grenelle metro station. I find that neighborhood to be quiet and relatively well connected because of the number of train lines that converge at that station and also with a real Paris feel. In addition, I like the area east of Blvd Beaumarchais/Blvd du Temple, north of Blvd Diderot, south of Avenue de la Republique, and west of Blvd Voltaire. Also, parts of the 9th near Saint George metro station. These areas to me are in the sweet spot of easy access to sites, not at the higher price points of Saint Germain etc., and have nice areas with the cafes, restaurants, etc.

That apartment JustTravel posted looks very good, in a less crowded part of the Marais, pretty big, and on the second floor so you don't have to climb five flights like Nancy did (I couldn't). Plus, Chexbres will be glad to see, it has that all-important 13-digit registration number which makes it legal.

That said, I'd join others in suggesting a less central, less touristed area. I haven't spent much time around the Place des Nations, in the 11th or 12th, but I've walked through the area and thought it would be good for a long stay. I agree that a "real" neighborhood would be a better choice than one especially close to the sights you and other tourists will be seeing, since you'll have so much time. You should get a better price in such an area too. The 14th or 15th might be other areas to consider. Friends of mine spent time in the 17th near Parc Monceau, an under-appreciated favorite.

A general idea might be to focus on two-digit arrondissements and use the Google Earth "street view" to eyeball specific streets and neighborhoods.

This all depends on if you see the 13-digit registration number on the website.
If you do not see it, it is an illegal apartment. That's all you need to know.

I would suggest the 15th or 12th arrondissements, which will be cheaper, and might be larger.

I would suggest the Roi de Sicile, which is a legal apart'hotel, right in the Marais.
www.booking.com/hotel/fr/le-roi-de-sicile.en-gb.html

We stayed on the north side of the 15th for our first night in Paris (then airbnb's after that near the Marais). I really liked the 15th. Much less 'touristy' than the Latin Q. or the Marais, but still close enough to walk to the Eiffel Tower, and very convenient to the Metro, markets, and restaurants.

You must look for the 13-digit registration number before you book anything.
You have the time to do that, since you will be arriving in September.

You might find that you will be bored in the same neighborhood during the month you plan to be there. It might be possible to move for 2 weeks, and explore new territories.

How many people are going with you - and most importantly, what is your budget in euros?

There will only be two of us. I am a photographer so I will be spending a lot of time on street photography. We also plan to take a few days each in Provence and the mountains while there.

Our budget is around 200 Euros per day.

We stayed in the 14th Arr this September and loved the neighbourhood around the metro stop Denfert - Rochereau. We rented an apartment near Rue Daguerre - a pedestrian market street with lots of restaurants and food related shops. The neighbourhood is not touristy, which we loved. Lots of opportunities for strolls through quiet streets, parks and near-by cemeteries. We were a 5 minute walk to the metro station, so access to the rest of Paris was a breeze.

To all who have successfully stayed at great apartments in Paris, did you diligently select only those with the 13-digit number? We are looking at VRBO for a 10-day stay in Paris at the tail end of June and I'm beginning to find that units that claim that number are pretty scarce. The apartments that don't have it seem to have excellent reviews without any hint of trouble. Just how risky would it be? Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

There are certain AirBnB apartment rentals which do have a 13-digit registration number.
There is a minefield of searching for apartment rentals which do not have the registration number.
Only about 150 apartments have signed up.
The numbers cannot be faked, due to the property owner's financial information and the space on the online form.
"Great" isn't necessarily a good adjective...What exactly are you looking for?

A dryer can be handy, but not the "all-in-one" kind of washer/dryer.

If you have the time - many don't - to do your research, I'd go for an AirBnB apartment.

The "legal apartment" designation is similar to that of other cities around the world, intended to try to protect (or create) an inventory of "affordable" apartments and reduce the impact on those by AirBnB. It only applies to apartments rented for more than 120 days a year, thus the potential for a very small number of them to be listed. There will be a lot of potential rentals which would not be covered by the law, and would therefore not have a number. Any penalties which may result apply to the owner, not the renter, so I would not make the lack of a legal apartment number a disqualifying criterion. FWIW

"It only applies to apartments rented for more than 120 days a year, thus the potential for a very small number of them to be listed. There will be a lot of potential rentals which would not be covered by the law, and would therefore not have a number."

The above indicates a grave misunderstanding of the law. ALL apartments except those designated as commercial (with a different registration system) are required to be registered if they are short term tourist rentals. The short term rental opportunity is only available to apt. owners who declare the rental property as their primary residence. The property may only be rented for a composite total of 120 days a year.

Those that do not fit the above qualifications are illegal and may be jerked from the market at any time

Thank you for the clarification. The item I read did not make that clear. Is Paris doing anything to improve the response. Also, what happens if a tenant is found to be occupying a unit which has not been registered? Are they evicted? Are agencies representing apartments liable for renting "illegal" apartments?

Interesting questions. I don't know that any tenants are put on the street but apts are jerked from the market and their owners face heavy fines that almost always require the sale of the apartment in order to pay the fine. Serious stuff. No, the agencies renting the apartments bear no responsibility in the renting of an illegal apartment so obviously they have no interest in making sure their rentals are legal . . . not their problem. Paris is working hard, but faces a daunting challenge because of the vast number of illegal apartments to follow. As you know, Paris is a huge short term rental market.

Thank you all for your input. This is getting pretty interesting. I googled Airbnb to try to find a registered apartment in the area that I'm interested in (5th and 6th) and an article dated December 2017 pops up describing how the mayor's office is cracking down on unregistered apartments and has asked Airbnb, Homeaway/VRBO and two other agencies to delete 1000 Paris apartments from their listings because of noncompliance with registering with the city. Apparently Mayor Hidalgo's office is threatening legal action if the agencies don't delete the 1000 apartments.

I suspect that the legal wranglings between the city of Paris and these agencies will begin to escalate with each side claiming their rights. As a vacationer, I just don't want to get caught without a place to stay should the pressure on the apartment owners become so great that they abruptly pull out of the market before we arrive this summer. On the Airbnb website I had the same problem with finding listings that provided the 13-digit registration number. It seems that noncompliance is pervasive yet I haven't read any horror stories on this forum or others about an owner cancelling a reservation on Airbnb or Homeaway/VRBO. I did notice that Homeaway/VRBO does offer alternative lodgings should there be a cancellation, which is reassuring but worrisome at the same time! I think I'm going to continue the search for that illusive apartment that is legally registered with the city. Thanks again all.

Nothing happens to the renter.
The property owner bears the fine.
You won't be "yanked out into the street".

I'd look for the 13-digit registration number, or for an apart'hotel.