My family of four is planning a trip to France this fall - October. I've got most of the critical elements planned - flights, hotels, etc. Except Paris -we'll be there for four days only. I have searched high and low and found two apartments which we are considering. One is in the Marais and the other is in the 7th.
The one in the Marais is about two blocks further from the Seine than the Hotel De Ville, along ave de la Brettonerrie. The one in the 7th is one street away from the park at the base of the Eiffel Tower, near ave de la Bourdonais/rue Moussuey.
As we've never been to Paris - we'll do the typical sightseeing stuff - Louvre, Orsay, Arc, Eiffel, Notre Dame, etc. We don't mind a lot of walking, and I can probably figure out the metro - plus there are always cabs. My only consideration is that October will most likely be cold, and could be rainy - so that may become a factor if we plan to walk the entire city.
I was trying to find something that didn't make me feel like I was home or in a large city, I wanted something that made me feel as if I was in France (if that makes any sense).
My dilema is this - when I google the streets around both, I get mixed feelings. The Marais seems crowded, but appears to have much to offer in line of shopping and eating. The pics almost made me feel as if the cruch of folks on the streets were all tourists, but that could just be me. When I google the one in the 7th, it looked like a lovely spot but not so 'French', plus I didn't see many pastry shops, restaurants, shopping, etc. In these pics, I did see many tourist buses, so that gave me pause.
Can anyone offer any personal opinions, suggestions - on which of these two you think would be a better choice for our first visit to Paris?
I would apprecaite any insight anyone would have.