Paris Areas to Stay

If you want to be central search for accommodation in the single-digit arrondissements. If this is your first trip to Paris, a hotel might be more suitable than an apartment. Having people at the front desk to help and advise you about the Metro, buses, the nearest pharmacy, the best place in the neighbourhood for couscous, etc. is a great boon.

How many in your party and what is your budget per night for lodging?

Especially for a first time visitor, I think the 4th, 5th & 6th arrondisments are the most central. The closer to the river you can be the better the location. I just stayed in a great apartment in the 12th, near Gare de Lyon. It was walkable to some things and close to good transportation options. How many people are you traveling with and what is your budget?

Edit - I just noticed your question about a hotel vs. apartment. I've been to Paris 4 times. The first time I was in a hotel. The rest of my visits have been in apartments. I think you can see what my preference is. Especially for a visit as long as yours.

There are 4 of us, 2 couples. I was looking at 2 bedroom apartments, and splitting the price it was less than we would pay for a hotel room. We want something nice, but not extravagant. Looking to pay no more than $300. US dollars per night for a apartment (split between 2 couples only $150. a night total). Hotel ? No more than $200. night.

I recommend planning your trip with Rick Steves' Paris guidebook, 2015 edition available now. His hotel listings are focused on a few central neighborhoods, including the Marais, near Luxembourg Garden, and around Rue Cler near the Champ de Mars. Even if you stay in an apartment, the book includes more neighborhood walking, shopping, and dining suggestions for those areas.

Here are the web sites I've used to look for apartments in Paris:

http://www.parisbestlodge.com/
http://www.vacationinparis.com/

Keep in mind an apartment may likely only have one bathroom.. so that's still four adults trying to get ready in one washroom. There are of course 2 bd and 2 bathroom apartments.. but perhaps more expensive.

I concur with 4th, 5th and 6th as recommendations.

I also would choose to stay in a hotel for first visit.. not only for ease.. but I would rather have some privacy.

There are hotels that are clean, central and in your budget range.. but rooms will be SMALL , which is really the norm for Paris anyways.

I also suggest you act faster then slower in reserving places,, as September is very HIGH season for hotels and apartments.. due to trade show and business travel overlapping with tourist season.
I would book a hotel with a good cancellation policy and then continue to shop around.. apartments usually have difficult cancellation policies so be sure when you book one you are happy with it and the reviews are good.

September is the most popular month in Paris and the month where it is hardest to book hotel rooms. We had thought we might go then again and all of the apartments we prefer are long booked up. So if you want to travel in September, now is the time to get the apartment sewed up. We have stayed all over Paris and for a first trip I would try to be fairly near the river in the 4th 5th or 6th -- but if you find something wonderful elsewhere, the great public transport makes anywhere doable. Paris is safe. That is just not much of an issue. Some areas are more charming than others, but violent crime is not an issue for tourists.

I usually use vrbo.com and homeaway.com for apartment rentals. This year I used Airbnb for the first time. I've only rented one bedroom apartments in Paris, so I can't give any personal recommendation.

Just a word of caution using VRBO/Homeaway. I would recommend that you contact them directly to ask about the property before making a reservation. A couple weeks ago I found a listing for a nice apt. in Paris on VRBO/Homeaway and sent a query asking about the dates. I rec'd and exchanged a few nice emails with the owner - after doing foreign exchange with the money for the full amount, VRBO pulled the listing and told me that it was a scam and property did not exist!!
Fortunately my financial institution was able to get the money back before it was fully processed.
So it appears VRBO/Homeaway was "hacked" by the scammer? Looks like they are not able to verify all of their listings?
I was very lucky in the end, but still had some expenses to protect myself.
Just wanted you all to have this warning.

These 4 neighborhoods would meet your "best central locations to stay that are safe and in the heart of everything":
Luxembourg Garden neighborhood (but avoiding what Rick calls "the Latin Quarter tourist ghetto" which is over in the 5th district)
Ile St. Louis neighborhood
Marais neighborhood
Rue Cler neighborhood

My personal experience has been that these are good neighborhoods--of course everything depends on the specific property, within a neighborhood, that you choose. And if you want to be safe, you have to stay alert to your surroundings, esp. at night or on the Metro.

Rick also recommends what he calls the "Montmartre" neighborhood, but you specified central location and Montmartre is not central.

Others here will differ and have their own opinions and favorite neighborhoods--but you specified "best central location that is safe and in the heart of everything." And the first four listed above are that.

While we did research accommodations listed in Rick's guidebook for Paris, and do credit him with promoting European B&Bs, we ended up tracking down our own lodgings using the website: http://www.bed-and-breakfast-in-paris.com

It has a good variety of accommodation types and pricing was reasonable for us. Try not to let the 90's era site design put you off. It has some great listings. We will be using them again.

As for location, we stayed in the Marais, within a block of the Centre Pompidou, less than a 10 minute walk to Notre Dame and about 15 to the Louvre.

"...VRBO pulled the listing and told me that it was a scam and property did not exist!!"

This sort of thing, along with the need with a private listing to be so cautious, is a great reason to use a well known, well reviewed agency if you want an apartment, in particular on a first visit. I would personally like the idea of doing a B & B too for the cultural value and built-in help with directions and sightseeing tips, but again, lots of strong reviews will be the key.
Also, for a first visit, using a hotel lets you not spend time meeting an apartment owner/rep, and dealing with the things that can come up with a rental. There are lots of good hotel choices in these areas in the 80-150 euro and up range.

6th district hands down. Use the St. Michel metro. Everyone we know says the same thing.