Hotel prices quoted in France 2010 book

In a few weeks it will be September, a VERY busy season for hotels( trade shows etc) .. without booking in advance most of the hotels in RS books may be full. They are often smaller hotels and book up well in advance. I think arriving with no reservations will be more of an issue then you think if you think you will using RS hotels. There will be rooms in hotels, but I foresee you walking quite a bit . Train stations sometimes have tourist desks that may help you get last minute rooms. I would consider a hotel in the 1, 4, 5 , and 6th arrondissmont as well as the ones RS lists in the 7th . Good luck with your plan,, if you want a few names of other hotels I can suggest a few, not in a RS book, but I have never stayed in a RS hotel and managed just fine.. what exactly is your budget ?

"Do these hundreds of hotels guarantee to you that they will maintain these prices to your readers the rest of the year?" No. The prices listed in any guide book will be either a projected estimate by the guidebook publisher, or the actual price listed when the researcher looked up or visited the hotel (I don't know exactly what method Europe Through the Backdoor uses). They can change at anytime for any reason, particularly during busy times of the year. But in all practicality, with the exception of high occupancy periods, the prices won't change that much throughout the year, if at all. The guidebooks will give you a general price range, but check the hotel websites for the most up-to-date information. BTW- Neither Rick Steves nor any of his employees (I think...) post answers in these forums. It's just members of the general public here.

After years of traveling and of using various guidebooks - not only RS - here's what I have consistently found: ** prices in any guidebook should only be used as a gross reference point. Certainly NOT a statement of fact. ** No one ever has to respect a price published in a guidebook. ** Prices fluctuate according to demand. Inclusion in a popular guidebook fuels demand. Showing up in a popular time fuels demand. September is a shoulder season and can be busy or not, depending on where you show up. ** HOW (the manner in which) you wave the guidebook may garner you goodwill and a fair price (or not...)

I don't think any price in any guidebook is guaranteed. And I doubt if a price in the Steves' books is UNLESS it specifically says so. If there is a reference in the hotel description to a specific price or mostly likely a discount for having the Steves's guidebook with you, our experience is that it will be honored.

If you will be finding rooms as you go, I would suggest finding a few other guidebooks to develop a list for each locale of possible hotels. This works well for me, and certainly, many of the RS Paris hotels book up early. I like "Lonely Planet" and "Lets Go" for hotels, the offer a wide range of prices and accomodation. Frommers can also be good. You need not buy other guides, just borrow from the library or browse at a bookstore, write down the pertinent details, then update the info off the web. This list can then be used to either phone ahead a day or two, or when you arrive to quickly find a room. Also do not overlook places you will find just passing by.

Larry, this does not answer your question, but the tone of your post seems to indicate you are expecting a response from Rick, or at least his organization. This is a bulletin board to which travellers contribute, not Rick or his staff. Answers will come from people like yourself who, hopefully, will have personal knowledge of the situations you describe. Hope this puts things in perspective.

Yes, I did assume my post would be answered by one of Rick Stevens' people, but your responses are certainly very helpful and greatly appreciated. Thank you so much! My concern starts with the first comment, from Pat in Victoria, that even September is normally a very busy period. This tells me I'd better get moving with at least some of the reservations, i.e. my first 7-8 days in Paris. I've visited Paris before, decades ago, and, wonderful as it is, want to concentrate on the rest of France this time. Not surprisingly, a book such as Steves', directing countless travelers to specific hotels, will result in those hotels being quickly filled up. The book serves a useful purpose to me by simply "suggesting" a general price range[INVALID]happily lower than I had dreaded. From my research (Steves and many Internet sites), my budget of under $100/80€ for single rooms appears realistic. When traveling in the US, I normally spend the day concentrating on my sightseeing, adjusting my itinerary as I go. At the end of the day I find someplace to stay[INVALID]sometimes after a scare or two, but seldom resulting in real disasters. I will try to find multi-day lodging in the middle of regions such as the Loire when I can, but there will be many times I'll just rely on the luck of the draw for lodging that evening. Years back, when traveling extensively in the German-speaking countries, I became fairly good at this. But, I am completely inexperienced with how this will work in present-day France. Comments, anyone? Thanks in advance!

By the way, I find this site doesn't accept the dash as valid punctuation. "[INVALID]" is not a comment on my language. :)

Larry, you may want to look into renting an apt in Paris. An apt gives you great value for your money when you know that you are going to stay in one place for 5 days or more. It also allows you to bring food into your room, something that is frowned upon in Paris hotels. And it is nice to be able to sprawl out in a big room after a hectic day touring. We use VRBO.com and Homelidays.com to find our apt. rentals in the EU. Many others use Homeaway.com. Last year our one bedroom apt in Paris cost us $90 EU a nite, was in the top of the 15th, had a view of the Eiffel tower (if you leaned out the window!), was 1 block from a metro station, and had lots of shops and restaurants nearby.

The suggestion of an apartment for Paris is a good one. In addition to the websites suggested by Steve, above, you might look at www.VacationInParis.com. They have studio apartments priced from $99 (not euros, as it is an American company and you pay in dollars, with a credit card, no FTF's.) I notice that the website lists losts of special deals for August, but none for September, which confirms what was suggested above[INVALID]-that September is a busy time in the French tourist industry, and you might want to do some advance booking. And don't worry about the "invalid" that shows up. It's not a comment on your thoughts or grammar; just a probelm with this website.