This was our Paris apartment, tucked away off a little street in the Marais not far from the Hotel de Ville Metro station. Katie aptly described it as looking like a Jo Malone box.
It was chic, comfortable, and convenient. It was just big enough for all of us. (Alyssa and Greg stayed in a hotel about 20 minutes away (walking). It would have been too small for the 6 of us to sleep and shower even though the couch makes into a bed.
The kitchen came in handy for breakfast and snacks. All the appliances were brand new. The whole apartment had just been completely renovated.
The bathroom was awesome. Great water pressure, big shower and a washer/dryer. The washer/dryer was really handy.
The master bedroom looked out over a courtyard.
The girls had the bedroom off the hall.
Renting the apartment was so much fun. It allowed us all to talk and share our day together. It saved us money on hotel rooms, eating out and gave us SPACE. We really enjoyed the experience.
It was close to the Metro, RER, Starbucks and McDonalds. Yay! There were bistros, cafes, bakerys and lots of shopping. (I don't do any shopping on vacation. I just can't justify the expense because of the exchange rate!).
Keeping it real:
-It was on the second floor and there was no elevator. This only was a problem when carrying the suitcases.
-The Wi-Fi barely worked. Only one person at a time could be on it and if a lot of the people in the building had their Wi-Fi on, you couldn't go on for longer than 5 minutes and then it would kick you off.
-No one to give you fresh towels everyday, take out the trash or make your bed.
-I had to do dishes and cook. Thank goodness there was a great little dishwasher.
Hot tips: Buy tickets and tours from the US using your US dollars. You will save so much money.
I bought Disneyland Paris tickets here from Expedia for $74.00 each. At the gate they were E69.00, that is $118.00!
I bought Paris Visite (paris Metro, RER and bus) passes here for $92.00 each for zones 1-6. We took the Metro everywhere we went and the RER to Versailles and Disneyland. We didn't have to stop for tickets and we could go anywhere we wanted. We would have spent a fortune buying single tickets for every trip. Make sure you get a Metro map from an information booth in one of the metros. It is easy to read and will help you to navigate throughout the city on the Metro.
Not very many places accept American Express - don't bother bringing it.
I didn't get the Museum Pass, but I saw a lot of people cutting the long lines because they had them. You can buy them here too.
Bought our tickets for Versailles at a little shop outside the train station, across the street and down a ways. It was the same price as the palace and saved us having to stand in a long line to buy tickets.
At Versailles, don't take the little train that covers the grounds, rent your own golf cart.
2 comments:
Your Paris apartment was so elegant!!!! And I totally agree with you on apartments...I love doing that. We've done that in Scotland and in London and we're doing that for 9 days in Tuscany/Florence. We can have breakfast and sometimes lunch or supper there, we can pack less because we can do laundry (and you know with kids that's so important!) and with the little ones having the extra space is just so much better! And my husband appreciates the money we save!
I can't wait to see even more of your trip!!!
Hugs,
Lana
I am loving reliving my trip through your posts. I have so many comments about this one.
-Love the apartment. So lovely.
-You are LUCKY you were only on a second floor of a walk up! I think I was on the third floor, pure torture. But, such is city life. :)
-Isn't the metro great?? I took the RER to get to Versailles as well. That was the only time I was a little confused but was able to get help from the friendly Parisians with my little french and their sometimes little English. (Surprisingly, on the train is on the only time I really encountered people who didn't speak much English.) I had downloaded the metro app for my iPhone and found it to be the easiest thing ever.
-I probably bought my ticket to Versailles at the same little shop. So glad I didn't have to wait in line. Wish I would have had a golf cart though bc I was EXHAUSTED walking through those gardens!
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