Safe Parisian accommodations for single woman

Erica,

I've stayed several times at Hotel Champs du Mar, which is in the Rue Cler area. It's safe, very conveniently located (in the 7th Arr) and is only a couple blocks from the Eiffel Tower, Napoleons' Tomb and (my fav) Rodin's Museum. It's quite near a metro stop and is in the middle of a family area. There are lots of parents walking their little kids to school in the morning and then home again, purchasing baguettes at the corner bakery. Tasty bistro across the street. It's a market street, full of fresh fish shops, boulangeries, flower stores, etc. Extremely picturesque. Very reasonably priced, too.

Hotel du College de France is in a great area, Latin (5th) Quarter which I prefer to 7th ( area around Eiffel Tower) as it is filled with little cafes etc so you aren't walking deserted or very quiet streets( which creep me out a bit when I am alone, safe or not, I prefer to not feel I am totall alone) .
I looked at rates for March and saw 87 euros for a single, which is pretty good I think as this is a well rated hotel( read reader reveiws on tripadvisor.com, or just google " reviews Hotel du College de France" .

Erica....Champ de Mars might already be full for March but otherwise Grand Leveque is another good choice. Their website shows availabilites for most days. It's a wonderful neighborhood for a single woman--my daughter was 19 when she first stayed there. Good luck in your planning!

Also, I have stayed at Hotel Des Mines, which is about a five minute walk to busy area of Latin Quarter, but is on main street so you won't feel like you are walking down dark little side streets.
Rooms are small, tiny, but, very clean, very nice staff who speak english, bathrooms modern with lots of hot water and good glass door showers, but, SMALL. They are quoting rates of 80 euros for March.
Do some searching on websites, these places are both good choices.
At your age I would gravitate towards Latin Quarter as it is lively and fun( not in a bad rowdy way at all) and you can walk to Notre Dame, the Seine, St Chapelle, even the Louvre.

Thanks, ladies, for all the suggestions. They all sound wonderful and oh-so-convenient. I know these prices (80ish euros/night) are very reasonable for Paris, but still a little more than I would ideally like to spend. Do you think there's any chance of finding something cheaper that's still centrally located and safe? I would prefer to spend no more than 60 euros. I know it's a lot to ask and maybe not even doable...the charm of a place isn't a big deal to me, but I do need to know I'm safe and won't get bedbugs...Any ideas of where to look? Or have any of you stayed at any of the Forumule 1 hotels and taken the Metro in?

Erica -- you might want to check out the Hotel de la Porte Doree. It's not in central Paris, it's a few stops beyond the Marais, but I just looked at the website and it shows single rooms at 63 euros.
I stayed there a few years ago and loved it! It's clean, attractive, and the owners are really nice.
The metro stop is across the street and it's a Parisian neighhborhood -- not too touristy and felt really safe to me.

http://troi.cc.rochester.edu/~tdip/tomsguidetoparis.htm

Hi Erica,
Above is the Tom's Guide to Paris link. At the bottom of Tom's home page is this note:- "contact me".
In Rome, there are a number of convents which offer rooms to travelers who want safe, quiet, considerate and inexpensive accomodations. Maybe there is some similar convent in Paris (I don't know). However, Tom may know - why not ask him in an email message ...
bon chance! ... p.

Erica, you are on a tight budget, this I understand, but really I would try and up my budget a bit for Paris, it would be worth it and you can econmise in other ways. Under 60 euros is not a hotel in a central area, it is at best a hostel. Have you checked for hostels, I am sure they have a few in Paris. Why not google hostels Paris, then check reviews on them to find the cleanest most central.

USE google, you will be surprised at what you find.

Also, go on tripadvisor.com Paris Forums ( google for link) this is a great board for accomadation recommendations, reader hotel reviews and other help.

Look I just googled hostels in Paris and got Perfect Hostel, which looks to be in a somewhat decent area and very cheap 25 to 30 euros for private facilities, cheaper for share.
I would now google "reviews of Perfect Hostel Paris" and see what comes up.

For 60 Euro, you can stay in a single room at Hotel Kensington in the 7th, on Avenue de la Bourdonnais, near the Ecole Militaire metro stop - www.hotel-kensington.com - very safe area, short walk to the Eiffel Tower.

I stayed there for one night in July after my RS Paris and Provence tour, not fancy, but it had an ensuite shower and an elevator to the room. Breakfast is another 6 Euro, but I didn't bother with it and walked over to Rue Cler and its fantastic pastries.

I stayed at Perfect Hostel/Hotel in December - great hotel! Had a private room for €40. It's in Montmartre just below Sacre Coeur, about a 5 minute walk from the Metro. Great neighborhood, lots of bakeries and restaurants around. Never felt unsafe. It's called a hostel, but they only have private rooms, so it's really a small budget hotel. Everyone at the hotel was very friendly and spoke English. Highly recommended.
www.paris-hostel.biz

I have also heard good things about Hotel Marignan in the Latin Quarter, 10 min. walk from Notre Dame and Jardin du Luxembourg. Singles from €47/night.
http://www.hotel-marignan.com/

Thanks everyone for all the replies! I've got some good leads now and will look into these. I appreciate the personal recommendations. It's hard to tell sometimes from reviews of places if they're safe or not.

Jennifer, Hotel Perfect sounds good, and gets good reviews. I did see some reviews questioning the safety of the area. What did you think? (I'm fairly city smart as I lived in Chicago for 4 years, but would still like to be in a decent area of Paris). Also, did you have problems accessing the communal bathrooms at all, or were they pretty open? (I'll be there in March, so I'm not thinking it will be too crowded, but who knows.)

Yes the Perfect Hotel sounds perfect...and i think you'll enjoy your brief time in Paris if you're in the Montmarte area where life continues into the evening. It's a village within the city with easy metro access to anything you want to see.
I guess the only thing to "fear" would be the guys who sell souvenirs on the steps to Sacré Couer.

The area didn't feel any less safe than Eiffel Tower area, Cite, Latin Quarter, etc. My girlfriend and I (24 yrs. old) wandered around until about 11 p.m. and never felt unsafe. If you want to wander down to Moulin Rouge area, you'll see a lot of sex shops, etc. but we still never felt uncomfortable. The toilet and shower were down the hall, but there are only about 4 rooms on each floor, and we never had to wait to use either, even in the morning. And there's a great bakery about a 2 min. walk north, and grocery store practically across the street.

Unfortunately, I contacted Perfect Hostel and they are all booked for that period. I will have to look into a Plan B. It sounded great. That's probably why it's booked...

Bummer! Another one I've heard great things about is the MIJE hostel in the Marais - €47/single. Great area - lots of beautiful buildings and a short walk to Cite and Ile St. Louis. They have 3 different buildings all within a few minutes of each other. Lots of great restaurants and shopping in that area as well. Very safe. Good luck!

http://www.mije.com/intro.html

I'll be spending a few nights again at Hotel du Commerce in the 5th. It is a handy location for walking to Notre Dame, etc. The single room I have reserved is 49 Eu and may come with some stair-climbing. There is a common area where food can be warmed up and eaten. I've stayed there several times and find it to be quite good in that price range. It is clean and some rooms share bath, some rooms are ensuite.

Last year we stayed at the Hotel Royal Phare. It is around the corner from Rue Cler and and ecole militare is in front. The other direction is the Eiffel tower only a few blocks away. It was clean and about 74?€. There were several single women staying there and I don't think there is any safety problem. The website now shows a 3 night package for 61-73€.
I did not do their breakfast. There are plenty of places around the corner to eat.

http://www.hotel-royalphare-paris.com/index.html

try www.mije.com as other people have suggested....they are not "hostel" in the traditionel sense...and in good locations.....Other people of assorted ages have suggested this site

Yes, it's a chain hotel, but try www.ibishotel.com - they have rates in March that start at 39 to 49 Euros a night and a number of locations around the city. I stayed at the Ibis Chateau Landon last summer which was very clean, very large (by Paris standards), safe and convenient. While the rooms are pretty cookie-cutter (think Quality Inn or Hampton Inn style rooms in America) and don't have the quaint Paris charm of an older hotel, you get a deadbolt, 24 hour front desk, elevator and peace of mind. As a bonus, my particular room at Ibis Chateau Landon gave me an awesome view of Sacre Coeur and a really convenient location to train and metro service to all parts of Paris.

Anyone have experience booking at the MIJE hostels?

I know they only allow booking 45 days out from your stay. Just curious the likelihood of contacting them exactly 45 days out and then finding out that they don't have room for you, with a bunch of groups, etc. We are considering a few nights in Paris in late May (before French open).

I also recommend Hotel Laveque...great location, and 67E/night

you could try Hotel Kensington in the rue cler area. I always stay there altho it may not be less than $60 for a sgle. the website is not a good pic of the hotel but it is very safe and close to metro and eiffel tower. you can always private e mail me if you are still unsure. I am married lady who loves Paris and goes there alot. other than that you could stay at Hotel etap at Charles de gaulle airport and shuttle in for the day.

Michael,

In 2005 I had no trouble booking a room at one of the MIJE hostels for the first week of June.

Erica,

IMO, you can't beat the MIJE hostels for location and "atmosphere." They are renovated 17th-century private mansions. Many school groups stay there so safety is not an issue.

I tried to book MIJE for last September. They don't accept reservations until 45 days in advance via online registration. I forgot about it and tried to book a month out and they were booked already. Maybe try waiting to book it with another hotel as a back-up?

I stayed at the Hotel Paris France, near the Bastille area and felt very safe. My room as about 70 euros/night for a single with ensuite bathroom and shower. Loved it. Very kind staff.