Paris

Ron, you are so lucky to be experiencing Paris for the first time! I went for the first time in September and had a blast. Most people here will tell you to stay central (4th, 5th, and 6th arrondisements) or on Rue Cler. Based on your description, I will not be one of those people. I stayed in the 9th, near Gare St. Lazare. The hotel name was Opera Deauville, and it is not far from Galeries Lafayette and Printemps. It is a bustling neighborhood during the day, and appropriately quiet at night. A ten minute walk north leads you to Boulevard Clichy in Montmarte. A ten minute walk south takes you to the Opera and Galeries Printemps and Lafayette. Cafes and bakeries are plentiful in the area and the desk staff are extremely helpful. Enjoy your trip.
Emily

Yep, I'm one of those people that prefers the 4th (Marais and Ile Saint Louis), 5th (Latin Quarter) and 6th (St. Germain) arrondissements, as close to the river as possible. That said, I love most all of Paris. Maybe getting a good map and seeing where all the sites are that you want to visit will help you decide.

The Rue Cler lovers are going to come out of the woodwork! And for a first-timer in Paris, a very central location can be good. But Paris has many wonderful neighborhoody places to stay, and I am now going to recommend the hotel where my husband and I stay every year - at least once, and sometimes, if we can get there, twice. Presenting for your consideration - l'Hotel Hameau, at 48 rue de Passy! http://www.hameaudepassy.com/ It's in the 16th arrondissement, which is generally recognized as rather upscale and chic, but is a tad lower down on the street where there is a truly "village Paris" feel of families and friends and local businesses. There are plenty of boutiques and shops and excellent people watching - the local school makes for particularly good people watching in the morning, as parents bring the kids to class - but the real beauty of the place is that you are off the beaten path for American tourists, yet you are an 11-minute walk from (drum roll) the Eiffel Tower! Seriously, this place is great, and the location is fab. It is smack dab between two Metro stops, and within walking distance of the #72 bus that whisks you past the Place de la Concorde, the Tuilleries and the Louvre on its way to l'Hotel de Ville and the rue de Rivoli. If you have sit outside while having coffee at le Passy (local cafe) you can see the top of the Eiffel Tower! Hotel itself - very friendly, very clean, very quiet. No street noise, b/c it's behind a wall and a gate, on a small courtyard. Wonderful!

I think, based on your description, the 4th, 5th, or 6th are EXACTLY the areas you would want to base yourself in. The Marais especially, with all it's medieval streets, is packed with cafe-strewn quiet corners: Place des Vosges, Place de Marche Ste. Catherine. And you could stroll to most of the major sites. The 9th and 8th are too big-city, heavy street-trafficked for me. IMO.

Of course no where is central enough for you to be able to walk to every site,, but, staying in the 4th, 5th and 6th are most central to walk to the most number of sites a first time visitor would want to see( Orsay, Louvre, Rodin, Notre Dame, St Chapelle, Cluny, Pantheon, Invalids Army Museum , Napoleons Tomb, Place Concorde,Orangerie, Tuilleries and Luxembourg Gardens). A few sites are walkable, but longish walks depending on where you stay(4th say as opposed to 6th) Eiffel Tower , Arc D'Triomphe and Champs Elysees.
They are all nice areas, and large areas, with quieter and busier areas within them also. I think staying closer to the river also is a good idea,, if you look at a "site" map you will notice many sites are situated along the river, and when one is new to a place its helpful to use a major landmark to orientate yourself,, I use the river itself, with ET on one "end" and Notre Dame on the other "end". But, there is no one perfect area.. theres nothing "wrong" with the 1st, 2nd, 3rd or 7th or 16th either. I have enjoyed the 1st and 8th, and 14th as well as the 4, 5, and 6th too.