Staying in 10th arrondissement in Paris

I stayed in the 10th last year. It was a bit of a hike to the main attractions, and we ate at a few cafes here and there. We have been to Paris in the past so we decided to spend less on a room and splurge in the city a bit more. Depending on if you’ve been to Paris before, you might want to be more centralized. Ile St. Louis sounds like a fantastic spot. Enjoy your trip!

Hi,

I always stay in the 10th which does have its advantages. I'm there in the summer. It is a bus and Metro hub, the EuroStar and the RER B to CDG can be accessed from the 10th.

You don't see Americans in the 10th, I am used to the area with Gare du Nord and l'Est close by, very convenient. within walking distance, no need to take a taxi or the bus/Metro to the train stations.

Going anywhere from the 10th requires you to take the bus or the Metro unless you want to do the long walks. I've done both.

True, the 10th is not centrally located, which is one disadvantage, ...all depends on what you want.

Where in the 10th? It’s spread out. The major north-south boulevard, which was originally laid out by the Romans, runs through it. So part of it is central enough. Again, where in the 10th?What do you plan to see and do? Are you arriving or leaving from one of the two train stations? Do you have hotel points you can use in the 10th?

My husband and I spent six months in an apartment in the 10th, near that boulevard. It can be grubby and rough around the edges, whereas Ile Saint Louis is the most prime real estate you can find. With only two nights in Paris, stay on the island.

Definitely stay on Ile Saint Louis. Parts of the 10th have a cool neighborhood flair, but others are a bit rough still (though much improved over the years), and it is not ideal for a short visit like yours.

Echoing what Bets and Balso have said. For such a short trip — and certainly if it is your first trip to Paris — you will be much happier staying on the Ile St Louis.

We stayed in the 10th about 9 years ago, mainly because we wanted to be close the Gare de l'Est for when left town. Stayed near the Canal St Martin, which was a pleasant surprise. Lots of trendy restaurants in the area without being overpriced, plus great ethnic type places, like Vietnamese and Thai. Kinda reminded of the East Village in NYC 30 years ago as far as the vibe goes. Easy to get around on the Metro lines.

I completely disagree with kerouac. Ile St Louis is wonderful. It’s charming, no colder than anywhere else in Paris, not more expensive than many other areas of Paris, there are only tourists in the most western part of the island - the rest, the vast majority of the island is quiet and peaceful (and virtually none since Covid), it’s the most centrally located neighborhood in Paris, and it is surrounded by the Seine River with stunning views all around you.

There are only 3 hotels on the island at the moment, all nice ones. Hotel de Lutèce is wonderful and sometimes on Booking.com for lower rates. They also own Hotel des Deux Iles on the island.
Hotel St Louis en l’Iles is closed for renovation. Hotel du Jeu de Paume is also nice.

It’s a great neighborhood to stay in, anytime, but especially for a 1st or 2nd visit.

A few years ago I stayed at the Hotel Caron de Beaumarchais in the Marais which is a quick five minute walk (tops!) from Ile St Louis. It's a lovely, small hotel. Might be worth a look if you are wanting to be more central.

That hotel looks wonderful katherine. I love the Marais too.

"Has anyone stayed in the 10th?" Yes, I have.
"Can you provide details of your experience." I have stayed at Le Citizen right on Canal Saint Martin. I've also stayed at Hôtel L'Échiquier Opéra Paris - MGallery and a number of others. The 10th is a large arrondissement . The experience at Le Citizen was uber hipster and I stayed there because of my young adult daughter. We both loved the area, which was not tourist central and is near some of our favorite places to eat in Paris. We basically did nothing that trip but stroll around in the 9th, 10th and 11th, attend an event in the 19th, and hang out in bars and cafes. Hôtel L'Échiquier Opéra Paris - MGallery is a totally different experience. It's quite nice but the feel of the area right around the hotel is quite different from the area right by the canal. It's more of a a run of the mill neighborhood like a place where you would think a regular person who lives in Paris would live.

I don't like taking the metro so when I have stayed in the 10th, I had plans that took me mostly to places in the 9th, 10th, 11th, 18th and 19th and walked to those places or took a bus or a taxi. If I planned to go to the Louvre, the Orsay, or hang out in Saint Germain, I would stay elsewhere, like maybe on Ile St. Louis or the Latin Quarter or Le Marais or Saint Germain. Ultimately, it's all about what you plan to do, your budget, how much you mind or do not mind commuting, what kind of neighborhood you like to see when you walk out of your hotel, etc. Any neighborhood in the 10th will be livelier than Ile St Louis and that is not good or bad. It just is. Maybe if you said why you are considering changing and what you are looking, you would get some suggestions of good places to stay. I have a friend who rates neighborhoods based on how likely it is that you will see a person with a tattoo sleeve and a gauge earring -- the more likely you are to see such a person living in the 'hood, the more likely it is that she will stay there so I would not suggest Ile St. Louis to her but I would to my best friend.

Thanks to everyone for your replies! I should have provided more details about our stay two-day stay in Paris. Our purpose for this trip is to go to Christmas markets and explore the Alsace region. Since we've spent time in Paris on a previous trip, we plan to only stay two days, just long enough to regain our momentum from the overseas flight, explore our surroundings a bit, have a couple of nice meals, and catch the train (Gare Est) to Strasbourg. I had read on a different forum somewhere that the 10th was less touristy and had more of Parisian neighborhood feel and that is appealing. That, and the fact that Gare Est is nearby, made me rethink my decision about St. Louis. For now, I plan to stick with my original plan of staying at Hotel de Lutece on St. Louis for the two nights we'll be in Paris. On our next trip to/through Paris, I'll look deeper in to the 10th. FYI, the first time we were in Paris, we stayed at Hotel Duquesne, a small boutique hotel in the 7th. Loved it and loved the neighborhood! Would definitely stay there again but thought we'd stay on St. Louis for this brief stay.

Thanks again for all your helpful comments. RS forum is terrific!

Hi! This new info changes things, in my opinion... You might like the convenience of being close to Gare de l'Est. You just need to pay attention to the exact location of the hotel. The immediate area to the west of Gare de l'Est is not ideal, and north of the station even less so, but somewhere around Jacques Bonsergent metro station is worth considering if you find a hotel you like, or near Oberkampf/République in the neighboring 11th.
Ile Saint Louis is of course still very nice so you can stick with your latest decision without regrets, I wouldn't want to confuse you...

The 10th is fine. As other have said, it's probably 10 minutes further away from stuff than the i'le St Louis, but unless you're the sort of traveller who is continually returning to the hotel during the day that shouldn't be an issue.

I have stayed in both. For traveller one-upmanship points the i'le St Louis definitely wins, but dining near your hotel will be much more expensive

Les Fous de L'Ile is a good place with not too expensive food on Ile St Louis.

Café Med on ISL is very inexpensive. 3 courses: €15. We like eating there.
The Italian restaurant at the western end is inexpensive. The St Regis is not expensive. The restaurant across from Café Med is inexpensive. The crèpe place across from Café Med, with savory crèpes, is inexpensive. And there are others that aren’t expensive on the island.

You can also walk 5-10 min across the bridge to the 5th and find places along the river that aren’t expensive.