Terry, first a reply to Part 1 of your question. I love Paris. I have never experienced anything like what your relative did. I'm not saying your relative didn't actually experience what he said he did, but maybe he was the one that was rude or had an attitude and people reacted to that. In my experience, with life in general and not just traveling, people usually treat you the way you treat them. Of course there are idiots everywhere - even in Green Bay I'm sure! I would not let his experience deter you from visiting the most beautiful city in my opinion. I don't think that there is any animosity towards Americans in Paris, at least not by most people. Learning about their culture and how to speak a little French (please, thank you, etc.) goes a very long way.

Now, Part 2 - I think renting an apartment is a fantastic idea. We just did this over the holidays and it saved us a lot of money because we ate a lot of meals at "home." If your food budget is $50 - $60 USD per day for two people, I have to say that you will need to eat in A LOT! Also, many apartments have washers and some have dryers, so it is easier to pack lightly because it is easy to do laundry, As for where to stay, you will hear differing opinions. Rick Steves likes the Rue Cler area near the Eiffel Tower and many people on this board stay there. I stayed in a hotel there (7th arrondisment) my first trip. It is very nice, but it was too far from most sites for me. Last trip we rented an apartment in the Latin Quarter (5th). I like that area better because it is easy to walk to many sites and is more lively.

Please don't let your relative discourage you from going to Paris. It is such a wonderful place. Do read about it so you know what to expect, because the culture is different there. Isn't that why we all travel, to experience those different cultures?

In May we ignored the advice of many and rented an apartment away from the city center, up on Montmartre close to Place des Abbesses. Since we were on the hill we had a fantastic view over the city from our apartment (better than the view from Sacre Coeur, since you can't really see the Eiffel Tower or Arc de Triomphe from the Sacre Coeur steps). Because we were so close to the Metro we were only about 15 minutes maximum from any of the sights. We paid a bit over $200/night for our apartment, but when we go back to that apartment in February we'll be paying about $150 per night, so the time of year you'll be traveling will affect how easy it will be to get to your budget.

There are so many great areas. Last winter over christmas we stayed in aprtment rented through VRBO. The cost of the apartment in the Marais district for 7 nights was 550 euros. For that price you can expect a studio and maybe a one bedroom.

Our apartment in the Marais was 1 block away from the metro and walking distance to several sites and cool little restaurants that match your budget. I believe the listing number was #74503 on VRBO.

Spent 10 days in Paris last month (May 2009) and never encountered any problems with any locals. I have stayed in Paris before and have never had any problems.
Part #2: Get RS "Paris 2009" guide book if you don't already have it. It provided us with lots of good information to make our decision on as to where to stay. (Rue Cler again!)

Same as above. We spent 10 days in Paris last spring and were treated with kindness and courtsey 100%. My French is about 5 words, and they knew it, and no one was anything other than patient and kind. I think Paris, like NYC, or maybe just any large metro area gets a bad rap. My advice is if you want to find rude people, look for them and you'll find them. Wanna find nice people? Look for them instead. It's very easy, and the choice is entirely one's own.

Terry,

1 - I've just returned from my 5th trip to Paris (3 of those included time in Provence too) and have only run into 1 or 2 instances of rudeness on the part of the French. (And I think one of those was because the woman didn't understand ANY English so could not help me.) As you will see in many other posts on this Website, using a little French (I know VERY little) and being polite will carry you far! Perhaps your relative only spoke English to the people he met - that probably wasn't met with a friendly response.

2 - A hint for finding a quiet apartment (learned by hard experience!): look on a Paris map (try Google Earth) to see if the street your apartment is located on is a main artery, if it extends for several blocks, or if it's a shorter "side" street. The last usually will have less traffic and so should be quieter. Or if it's on a busy street, see if your apartment faces a courtyard rather than the main street. We recently stayed in a very nice 1-bedroom apartment near Rue Cler (thru Vacation in Paris). As others have said, the area is not centrally located but you can get pretty much anywhere by Metro or bus. I've also stayed in the Marais, but it can be noisy (depending on the location), especially at night when all the bars are busy. Also, anything above the 2nd (European) floor (3rd US floor) may be difficult to reach with heavy luggage if there's no elevator due to very narrow, winding staircases.

I LOVE PARIS (and I hope you will too!)

Terry,

I've been in Paris several times and was just there a few weeks ago. I've never encountered anyone that I would characterize as "rude", but as a previous post indicated there are times when it's difficult to communicate due to the "language barrier". I've found that Rick's advice works well - greet shop keepers when you enter and leave, and learn a few of the polite words.

I normally stay in the Rue Cler area, but can't provide any information on apartments as I normally stay in budget Hotels (2 or 3 star). The Ecole Militaire Metro stop is very convenient, so not hard to get anywhere in the city. It's also close to the Eiffel Tower.

There are lots of restaurants with "good food" but unfortunately like anywhere in Europe this can be expensive once the exchange rates are included. The Menus are usually posted outside, so it's easy to compare prices and find a spot that fits your budget.

Happy travels!

I want to thank all of you.Again,this site(and all of you)have provided me with priceless information.We will definitely be going to Paris.As far as the food and lodging budget,those are just rough approximates.Especially the food as we may eat out more some days then others.Please Keep the suggestions coming!!!!

We have been to Paris twice. Love it. Never found rude folks at all. We just smiled and tried to use as much of our high school French as we could muster, along with lots of bonjours and mercis, and we did fine.
Next time we go, we want to stay in an apartment. I have read good reviews about vacationinparis.com apt rentals.
Have a wonderful trip!

Terry, you have been given some wonderful advice, and your choice of an apt is a good idea.

We just came back a couple of weeks ago. We speak no French, but mastered the big, big smile, basic "Bojours, merci's and sil vous plaits", and found EVERYONE to be absolutely generous and helpful. I can't tell you the number of times we were helped by wonderful Parisians. One even left his shop to show us the way to a restaurant one night!

It makes no difference where you find your apt. If it is close to a Metro, you are close to everything. Ours was one block away from one line, and three blocks from another. We purposely picked an area outside of the core tourist area right below the Rue Clair, within walking distance of the Eiffel tower, on a quiet side street, but in a "non-tourist" area. Staying out of the core kept the price down, but we still had reasonable access. (Our 1 bedroom apt, at the top of the 15th Arr.,cost us $90EU/nite, and had a washer/dryer, and if you leaned out of the window, and Eiffel tower view!)

Do use Google maps to look at the street view. Make sure that it is NOT on a thru street, or major road. Also make sure that you really understand what floor it is on!

We use VRBO and Homelidays to find the apts we rent in Europe; and have had great results. It is important to find lots of good reviews/coments on the unit you pick; the more US positived comments, the better.

We used Tom's guide to Paris to pick some lo-cost, but awesome restaurants. he had some great ideas, and we would purposly travel on the Metro to try out various places that piqued our interest.