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Post by bjd on Oct 28, 2010 17:03:48 GMT
Sorry - I can't help about the hotel. It was really too long ago. I think that if I were to stay in a hotel in Paris, I would go to the El Dorado in the 17th. I like the area, and I like their website. And the price is quite reasonable.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 28, 2010 17:44:40 GMT
Sometimes I think it is a shame that there are strict rules for hotels now. I have an unforgettable memory of a hotel where I stayed upon arriving to live in Paris. It was called the Hôtel du Petit Louvre on rue Saint Honoré (don't bother looking -- I think there are still one or two hotels in Paris with that name, but not on rue Saint Honoré). I recall the price of the room as being something like 24 francs a night (that would be 3.66€). It was on the last floor and then there was a short ladder to get to the room. The door was not a normal door, but a square door like you might find in a barn or something, about one meter by one meter. But the room itself was lovely and I stayed there for a week while looking for a place to live. I can't even imagine the reaction of anybody who would be shown to just a room these days (don't forget that the first time you are climbing that ladder while carrying a suitcase!).
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Post by bjd on Oct 28, 2010 18:20:20 GMT
While I was a student in France, my mother came to visit and we went to Paris. I found a "cheapish" hotel in the Rue du Bac (5th arrondissement). It was May and the weather was crappy. It rained all the time. One day we came back from walking around and found basins had been strategically placed around the room to catch water that was coming through the ceiling.
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Post by hwinpp on Oct 28, 2010 18:23:36 GMT
1x1m? Did you crawl in?
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Post by Deleted on Oct 28, 2010 18:27:42 GMT
Yes, of course. That was the only way to get in or out.
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Post by tod2 on Oct 28, 2010 18:58:03 GMT
Oh my giddy aunt! Kerouac you have just described the room of rooms in a Paris hotel I'm sure nothing beats checking into a room with it's own exclusive LADDER!
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Post by lagatta on Oct 28, 2010 22:33:26 GMT
I dream of returning to Paris daily. Now kerouac has added that little touch of nightmare so appropriate for the Halloween/Day of the Dead season.
Jazz, I think you'd probably want to stay at one of your hotels as bookends if you are travelling somewhere else in France, but landing in Paris.
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Post by tod2 on Oct 29, 2010 17:50:42 GMT
lagatta - Next time you want a decent budget hotel room in Paris, call me. I have stayed at most of the places listed by Jazz and it's not that I found anything wrong with them, it's just that I found something better and less than half the price. Leaves more euros for a nice dinner doesn't it?
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Post by lagatta on Oct 29, 2010 19:00:02 GMT
tod, can you provide any info? PM me if there is any reason you don't want to share this with the world, provided this is legit.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 29, 2010 19:53:13 GMT
Tod2, from what I know of Lagatta, there is not a snowball's chance in hell that you will ever interest her in the Ibis La Défense.
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Post by lagatta on Oct 29, 2010 23:03:16 GMT
Not really, but sweetie and I stayed quite happily at the Accor Porte de St-Ouen while attending an event in northeastern Paris. We'd have preferred the Ibis La Villette, but it was fully booked. We weren't there at all during the day, and, well, we made our own charm... I wouldn't really want to stay at La Défense, unless I were attending an event at Nanterre, a university campus not far away.
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Post by tod2 on Oct 30, 2010 12:10:51 GMT
Lagatta - I wanted to intrigue you but as Kerouac says, you wouldn't be interested in The Ibis La Defense for around 44euros a night - just recently stayed there for the third time. I LOVE La Defense! The view of the Eiffel Tower is stunning without cutting the Arche de Triomph out of the picture. That metro line is amazing as it takes you Champs Elysees and all attractions like Louvre, Notre Dame, Marais, Botanic Gardens etc. You can get the same rate at the Ibis in Clichy.
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Post by lagatta on Oct 30, 2010 13:21:56 GMT
I don't like La Défense at all. I've been there for businessy reasons; it looks like most other modern business centre developments anywhere in the world, and I sure wouldn't cross the pond to go there. As I said, I'd stay there if I were just going to Nanterre to work at a university conference. I don't like western Paris very much. Hate les Champs. I would prefer to stay at the Ibis Clichy, by a long shot. It is in the 17th arrondissement, not in the suburban town of Clichy just north of Paris. Imagine the one in the 18th is a bit pricier? There is also an Ibis at La Villette.
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Post by Jazz on Oct 30, 2010 14:52:12 GMT
I didn’t mention the Ibis chain because I thought it was a given re: inexpensive Paris hotels. We each have individual tastes and I prefer smaller, one of a kind hotels. Defininitely within the 20 arrondissements. The metro is excellent, but I remember going to Neuilly one day and it took a while. A trip to La Défense one day would interest me, to see it once, but I wouldn’t base myself there.
The Eldorado would probably be my first choice (from 37€). One day I was in the area and had lunch in their interior courtyard and totally enjoyed the ambience. Then, they were kind enough to show me a few of their rooms. They appealed to me and the quartier is great. I think you have to book well in advance to get in. Lagatta, I think your ‘bookend’ idea is the only way that I will be staying in any hotel. I like it, not only for visiting the rest of France, but it would be a great thing to do if I arrived a couple of days early for my apartment. The reason that I always seem to get stuck with high airfare (usually 1,100CDN- 775€) is that I book the apartment, then have to match the flight to the apt. dates. Also, was traveling in high season, June, July and September.
The Ibis prices are good though, Ibis-Clichy, from 54€, Ibis –Montmartre, from 70€ and Ibis-La Villette, from 50€. The one at la Villette caught my eye when I was walking in the area one evening. I loved that it was on the canal. However, I just looked through the reviews at TA (for LaV) and they were not all that great, which surprised me.
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Post by lagatta on Oct 30, 2010 15:16:54 GMT
I'm very surprised about that, Jazz. I know several people who have stayed there while attending or working at events at La Grande Halle de la Villette, and were very happy with the accomodation. Of course Ibis hotels don't have the charm of small, older hotels such as the Eldorado (which is also in a very nice neighbourhood) but they can be a lifesaver for people who need accessibility or have other special needs. What is TA? Oh, I see, Trip Advisor. Often the comments there are very strange - too glowing or too critical.
I'd definitely choose La Villette of those three; it is closer to where most of my friends live. I'm wondering if there are any deals cheaper than 50€?
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Post by bjd on Oct 30, 2010 15:45:52 GMT
There is also an Ibis on Blvd Richard Lenoir, up near République.
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Post by Jazz on Oct 30, 2010 15:54:24 GMT
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Post by tod2 on Oct 30, 2010 15:57:46 GMT
Actually I made a mistake when I said La Defense - The Ibis is at ESPLANADE La Defense. The hotel faces the Seine and the tallish buildings across the metro line. There is great renovating going on and when finished will be very lovely. I like the vineyard in front of Bassin Takis and have watched it develope over the last three years. Grapes on the vines this year! I stayed at the Hotel Eldorada last year. We had the room on the lst landing in the annex - across the courtyard. A very romatic bohemian place to stay and looks very pretty in the evening - but not very convenient for getting around quickly. We used the bus all the time we stayed there as it dropped us off at the top of Rue des Dames. Only a short walk down to the hotel. We move hotels at least twice when we come to Paris over a three week period. This year we stayed at 4 places including this romatic hideaway: www.hoteldelajatte.com/index.html
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Post by lola on Oct 30, 2010 16:21:13 GMT
Nice, tod. I like that "Chambre Cozy" at the Hotel de la Jatte.
What I really want is K's ladder room, with prices only slightly adjusted for inflation. The proprietor would of course provide a rope to haul your luggage up, or one could pack one's own. Did it have a window?
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Post by lola on Oct 30, 2010 16:22:40 GMT
For the special Ibis rates, I think you have to book a couple of weeks in advance, and pay up front.
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Post by tod2 on Oct 30, 2010 17:28:51 GMT
Lola - Oh for sure! You have to go to "Happy 20" on their internet site and book/pay upfront. Nothing can be changed, but who cares for those bargain prices ....we paid 39euros the first time we booked! Believe me Lola, and I think Kerouac will agree, you don't want a ladder up to a little doorway!! Remember....he mentioned suitcases? What goes in must come out ;D
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Post by Deleted on Oct 30, 2010 17:37:48 GMT
There are 48 Ibis hotels within the Paris city limits!
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Post by Jazz on Oct 30, 2010 17:49:00 GMT
Hotel de la Jatte is lovely, tod, but the Chambres Cozy ‘best rates’ are 98-160E/night.
Lola, Kerouac’s room does sound intriguing...thank god he is only 152.4 cm (5 feet tall) ;D It sounds like it was the maid's room in earlier times. Good question, did it have a window? ( just teasing, I have heard rumors that K2 is 6', 4")
Re: the Ibis chain: Of course there are many within central Paris. Its just personal taste. There are many smaller and unique hotels that are as inexpensive. If you need a swimming pool, best to book with Ibis.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 30, 2010 18:13:27 GMT
I don't want to particularly plug the Ibis chain, but it is good to know that while about half of the Ibis places are cookie cutter buildings with identical rooms (like the concept of Holiday Inn, for example), many of them are old traditional hotels that have been retro-fitted to the Ibis standards, so quite a few of them are quite quirky and interesting. One of my favorite ones was the Ibis in Blois (nothing to do with Paris, I know).
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Post by lola on Oct 30, 2010 22:36:31 GMT
We still need to know whether there was a window, so we can form mental image of the ideal ladder-accessed Parisian room.
( I also need to know whether it was possible to walk upright. One envisions hotel maids strapping on knee pads before grasping handle of hot soapy water bucket between teeth, starting up ladder.)
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Post by Deleted on Oct 30, 2010 22:44:43 GMT
Yes, there was a window looking out over the grey zinc roofs of Paris. People would probably kill for such a room in this century, if hotel regulations permitted such a thing.
Only the entrance and door to the room were unusual -- the room itself was quite nice. However, it should not be forgotten that in those days, a bathroom was rare at such rates. So the ladder would have been required in the middle of the night if I had not had a sturdy young bladder.
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Post by lagatta on Oct 31, 2010 1:19:59 GMT
I never thought the room would have had its own toilet, but I'd have hoisted up a pot to pee in as a matter of course. I always make sure I have something like that when there is just WC à l'étage.
Nowadays such a room could have been a mezzanine sleeping area in a suite. I'd love that room, but even as a young thing I was far too clumsy to carry a suitcase up a ladder without falling and hurting myself. And I've already had that big suitcase, going to study in Italy, not just a backpack.
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Post by Jazz on Oct 31, 2010 2:13:56 GMT
Your room would be perfect for me, especially the view of the rooftops. The size, fine. The ladder...mmm. I would be up and down endlessly to pee (losing many pounds) This leads me to something that I have read about, but don’t have a source. …That up until the late 60’s, most of the hotel rooms in Paris did not have private bathrooms? And, the reason that many of the rooms in the older hotels today have such tiny bathrooms is that they sliced into the original, rather small rooms to create a bathroom to satisfy the demands of tourists. Is it true that this awareness came so late? In 2001, I stayed in a hotel in the 8th arr. with the smallest bathroom ever. Not only was it tiny, but it was impossible to open the door (only half way at most) without bumping into the bed. Thank god, I was slim at that time. (only later did I become what my gay friend kindly describes as 'zaftig'.)
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Post by lagatta on Oct 31, 2010 3:01:07 GMT
In a romantic but small flat I stayed in when studying in Perugia - one could say it was nothing more than a studio, but oddly it had a full working kitchen with a door apart from the main room for sleep, eating and study - there was a tiny bath that was certainly an add-on, as the building was hundreds of years old. It was beautifully tiled, but the shower was right above the loo. Everything got wet. This was not a terrible problem in a relatively hot and dry climate, but a leak set in and there was seepage from the poorly installed WC onto the floor of the main room - it was a bloody mess.
I had a magnificent view onto trees, an ancient tower, and faraway hills.
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Post by tod2 on Oct 31, 2010 7:09:55 GMT
Modern chain but old building is quite right about more than just the Ibis hotels. I have stayed at the Holiday Inn in the 9th, housed in an old building & elevator still the tiny little cage type that squeezed in one person and maybe a small suitcase. Rooms were large and newly decorated though. The same went for the Best Western in the 7th - The garret-like room was quaint to the extent my husbands head had to poke through the ceiling (seemed to lift with ease) when standing in the bath for a shower I wish I had taken a photo! By the by...there was no swimming pool at Ibis Esplanade - well not that I knew of.
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