Family accommodations in London & Paris

Would you consider an apartment in London? The Lonodn School of Economics rents spare dorm rooms and apartments to tourists. Check their website http://www.lsetopfloor.co.uk/ You get an apartment with ensiute, kitchen and access to the student "lounge" (read tv and game room), and laundry room. They have multiple locations in central London. If that doesn't work check out Citadines. We used them many years ago when we took our kids with us. They also have multiple locations (we stayed at the High Holborn one)
http://www.citadines.com/uk/london/holborn_covent_garden.html

Thank you so much for taking the time to share your ideas. I will pursue them.

We stayed at the Cartref House in London (http://www.cartrefhouse.co.uk/) and loved it. Family owned and operated bed and breakfast (the family lives downstairs). There's no elevator, so depending on the needs of your family it won't work. But the breakfast was very good and changed a little every morning and the Sharon and Derek were very friendly, treating us like family and offering advice for our day's sightseeing adventures. In Paris we stayed at the Grand Hotel Leveque, which is a great location, but we didn't get much in the way of customer service. It was clean and a good location, though.

If you are looking for a single room/space, then apartment almost certainly is the only way to go. Options open up if you want a quad (4)/ double (2) combo or two triples, although those can be somewhat challenging also. www.4inEurope.com is a website that recommends quad rooms for families in London, Paris and other cities. It's aimed at small independent hotels and B&B's, with some apartments listed and it lists the bed configuration for each. My only advice is to stay near a tube or metro stop!

We have rented apartments in Europe a couple of times and had wonderful experiences. It is especially good for families - it just gives everyone room to spread out, a place to cook light meals/breakfasts and brew coffee i nthe morning. We are going to do so again in Paris next spring. The web site vrbo.com is a good one or vacationinparis.com is another.

Check the airbnb website. Enjoy.

Many apartments may only have one washroom, check that out carefully,, one washroom and six women,, recipe for stress in my book!! I would consider getting two apartments,, one for 2 people and one for the other 4, some places offer mulitple apartments in same building. Or consider getting 2 or 3 hotel rooms, togetherness is nice, but having some apart time can be nicer.

I have used http://www.homelidays.co.uk/ 5 or 6 times now and have had wonderful experiences overall. They rent apt. all over Europe. I have stayed in Spain, France and UK with apt. rented from them. Just be sure to read the descriptions. What they say is what you get. Do NOT assume. If it is not listed, it probably is not there. For example: If linens and towels are not listed, then there are none. Feel free to email the owners. Questions asked before you book is much better.

VacationInParis offers apartments of all sizes, all over Paris. The company is very reputable and very easy to deal with (they accept credit cards, charge in dollars, and do not require a big security deposit). There is no one-week minimum; they charge by the night. A 2-bdr. 2-bath (agreeing with Pat on this) "sleeps 6" apartment might be just the ticket for your group. Or a 3-bdr. if you prefer. Apartments of that size run from $215 a night on up. www.vacationinparis.com

We have rented apartments in Both Paris and London and have used VRBO both times and had a great time. Both Places had 2 bathrooms, a real plus with the 5 of us. Have a great time..

Try Coach House Rentals. They have nice apartments throughout London, for reasonable prices. These are not corporate apartments, but real people's houses. The owners rent while they are away.
We used them this September and were very pleased.

We stayed at the Fox Apartments in London 2 years ago - 4 of us stayed in the place, with several relatives popping in and out and staying over. It was a HUGE, beautiful loft-style apartment. Easily you could sleep 6 (at one point, we had 9, I think, with kids) - it had a full kitchen and 2 baths, plus it was 2 stories so you had privacy. It's by the Excel, which isn't central, but we like this part of London as my husband's sister lives nearby and the DLR is literally next door. The waterfront and real people aren't far. Plus with the DLR, its easy to get to Canary Wharf or Greenwich, and central London is 30 mins. It's definitely an apartment/loft though, so you have to coordinate with their staff and they're not really available onsite. If you want concierge and charm, this isn't the place. If you want a nice place for you all to share, consider it. As to B&B's, we've also stayed at Hotel Buckingham in Russell Square. We had 2 separate rooms. We thought it was really pleasant, but I think the cheap rooms are really tiny. The area is great though. In Paris, look at Hotel de la Bretonnerie. It's the Marais. We had 2 junior suites, which were huge by Paris standards. Each jr. suite really a 2 bedroom -- had a queen size bed, HUGE bathroom, and a second room with a "daybed" that was prefect for sleeping in, or you could use it as a couch. The second room was the same, just different furniture / style. We loved the Marais, this place was surprisingly quiet, and the people at this hotel were really nice. We didn't get their breakfast as we preferred to eat in the cafes and people watch (plus it was way overpriced), but the hotel prices were reasonable and the place is loaded with charm.