My girlfriends and I are thinking about going on a weeklong shopping trip to Paris. What neighborhood do we want to stay in? We want to be fairly close to all the shopping....suggestions?
I don't know how much you want to spend, but I found a great cheap option in one of the best areas of Paris: L'Hotel du Commerce. It's in the 5th arrondissement, right off Blvd St. Germain (tons of super high end shops, Paul & Joe, lots of great shopping). Plus, it's close to two Metro stops. You might want to check out Hotel La Villette as well (in approximately the same area of Paris). You can also search for "hotels du charme Paris" and a bunch of boutique hotels should pop up.
I stayed in a tiny boutique hotel in the Latin Quarter. Some rooms in the hotel have views of Notre Dame. Anyway, I loved it. It was extremely charming; the staff was excellent; and they have amazing croissants, bread and fresh squeezed OJ in the mornings.
It can be hard to get a reservation because a lot of travelers consider if their little secret, its pretty inexpensive, and doesn't have many rooms. You may want to check it out though:
If you don't like that, I would go to the fodors.com message boards and look for recommendations. The people on that site are well traveled and obsessed with Paris.
Hey bluediamond, you may want to look into renting a flat or apartment if you are staying for a week. They can be cheaper than a hotel, plus you will have a little kitchenette to cook and keep food and beverages if you want. I did this when I went to Paris last spring, and I loved it. The website I used was www.paristudios.com and I would definitely recommend them. The flat we had was small, but clean and a great location. We were in the Latin Quarter in the 5th arrondissement which is a great central location with access to two good metro stops. Hope this helps!
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I stayed in a tiny boutique hotel in the Latin Quarter. Some rooms in the hotel have views of Notre Dame. Anyway, I loved it. It was extremely charming; the staff was excellent; and they have amazing croissants, bread and fresh squeezed OJ in the mornings.
It can be hard to get a reservation because a lot of travelers consider if their little secret, its pretty inexpensive, and doesn't have many rooms. You may want to check it out though:
If you don't like that, I would go to the fodors.com message boards and look for recommendations. The people on that site are well traveled and obsessed with Paris.
1st and 2nd arrondissements are the best shopping areas. Near the Champs Elysees,Arc de Triumph, Louvre. Au Printemps and Galleries Lafayette are two great malls along with a million boutiques and Rue St Honore (Chanel, Dior, LV)This area is also a safer are than others in the city. Expensive, but if you check out the travel websites, you can look for a good deal.