What's the best way to see paris for $2? On a bike!…read more One of my Paris highlights were this bikes! Though they may look clunky and hideous, they are great way to get you anywhere. After a couple days of walking everywhere my legs were dying. As much as I wanted to see everything paris had to offer my legs were telling me NO! Good thing we decided to try these bikes out because they saved our legs and took us to places faster than our two feet ever would. The website makes renting these bikes simple enough. You register online and pay with card and create a PIN. An email is sent to you with user numbers, that you'll need to enter in the kiosk to get a bike and don't forget your pin. As long as you return the bike to a station within 30 minutes you're guaranteed a $2 paris excursion all on two wheels. Most of the station are available on most popular areas and around the corners in big intersections. You can always rent the bike from the kiosk if you don't have time to register online. When you return your bike make sure to see a green light appear on your stand. If not, you can go to the main kiosk and troubleshoot from there. My light went orange in one instance because I shoved it in the wrong angle and the kiosk released it, so I could retry sliding it in. It was fun biking around like a local because even the locals use them. It was super scary biking on crowded roads with cars, but compared to America, french drivers are totally aware of their surroundings. The insurance you have with these bikes are they are heavy and big enough to keep you stable and withstand a lot of beatings. The fenders on the bike also come in handy for those spontaneous mother nature drizzles.

Velib was super easy to use. I bought a 1-day use ONLINE for $1.70 euro or $2.12 USD. (The first 30…read moreminutes of each bike use is free and then you get billed 1 euro for every 30 additional minutes.) After buying online, it was super easy. All I had to do was enter in my account number, which was sent to me in my confirmation email, enter the PIN number I created online and then select the bike number I was going to use. Done! Most of the bikes are in good shape with quick release seat, bike light, bike lock etc but a few needed a quick tune-up. If you find yourself returning your bike to a full station, you can enter your PIN number into the machine and you get 15 minutes to find another nearby station. What is amazing is that there are over 20,000 "community" Velib bikes across 1,500 different stations that are located all over Paris! There is even a smartphone app that you can use to find out where the closest Velib station is at so you can return the bike and which station has available bikes to use. It was a great way for us to see Paris from a different perspective. Most of my friends that saw our Paris pictures said, "Wow, that's so cool that you rode bikes in Paris."

Booked a stay last minute when i got in as my original hotel stay didnt pan out…read more What an amazing hotel! Found this place searching on Expedia. Clean, spacious and located not far from central sites. Walking distance to everything. The bathroom was spacious with a deep bathtub which was great. Toilet and bathroom were separate which was nice. Staff was so friendly! One late night i had drinks and chatted it up with one of the front desk staff, friendly gentleman! It is a distance from CDG but that's standard.

Booked a room for three: (queen bed and a twin roll away) -…read moreSpacious, comfortable sized rooms for Paris - Comfortable bed and bedding. - Clean and modern - Filtered water provided for free in glass bottles (not for you to take out of the room but much appreciated) Bathroom: - Impressive with both a small shower and a pretty big bathtub with hand spray. - nice sized sink - dry rack for clothes and a close up mirror. - Toilet is separate from the shower/bath area. - L'occitane products was a nice surprise! Shampoo and body wash are big bottles (not takeaways) to conserve on plastic. Conditioner and lotions provided in small bottles. Refreshing face towelettes also provided. - A/C was great to beat the summer heat Staff was courteous. Hotel's small bar closes at 11 p.m. Didn't try their breakfast but there's a great looking bagel place around the corner and a Pret a Manger super close as well. Location: Hotel is in a central location for touring the main sites and access to the Metro and bus station. Champs-Élysées is a super close. Transportation: Sunday evening: Took the express RER B3 from CDG to Chatelet les Halles station. Then transferred to Metro-1 (toward La Defense) to the Charles de Gaulle - Etoile. Short walk to the hotel from there. We didn't have a lot of luggage so it was perfect. Because it was an express on the RER, it took only 40-45 minutes to our final stop and 11.40 Euros (or so) per ticket. If the train was not an express, it would take approximately 1.5 hours. Took a cab to the airport from the area for 50 Euros. There's also a decent bus option, apparently.

From the owner: La salle des Banlieues Bleues Le festival Banlieues bleues est un rendez-vous incontournable pour…read moreles passionnés de musique. Organisé chaque année sur tout le département de la Seine-Saint-Denis par le conseil Géneral et des villes du 93, ce festival réunit divers courants musicaux et des artistes venus de différents pays. C'est l'occasion pour chacun de découvrir ou de rédécouvrir des artistes. Ce sont plus de 350 musiciens, 70 groupes et 40 concerts qui se déroulent dans 17 villes (Blanc-Mesnil, Bobigny, Pantin, Drancy, La Courneuve, Saint-Ouen, Stains ...). Cet événement débute à partir du mois de mars et s'étale sur un mois. Banlieues Bleues s'installent dans les anciens établissements de l'Usine Noirot et Lefaux à partir du 3 mars 2006 tout spécialement rénovés à cet effet. Cet espace est la 3ème salle au monde à être conçue pour accueillir spécialement la musique improvisée après New York et Amsterdam. Entouré de baies vitrées donnant sur un jardin de cerisiers, cette salle à

From the owner: Des salons tout au long de l'année Idéalement situé et desservi à l'ouest de Paris, l'Espace…read moreChamperret possède une superficie totale de 10 000 m2. Cet espace d'expositions, construit en 1987, accueille de nombreux salons tout au long de l'année (une soixantaine), de l'emploi à la gastronomie en passant par les salons professionnels. L'Espace Champerret peut recevoir plus de 70 stands.

The restaurant in this hotel is amazing! The best wine on…read morethe planet. Delicious food is next level, and the desserts were bursting with texture and flavor. In the USA this experience would be very expensive but in France it is such a treat to enjoy a restaurant like this. I like the courtyard view, I like the tables that are round as opposed to traditional French tiny tables. Go here if you have the chance!

An absolutely beautiful little hotel! We stayed here for four nights while on our honeymoon, and it…read moreended up being one of the highlights of our whole trip to Europe. Right on the Boulevard Poissonnière, just a 30-second walk from the Grands Boulevards metro station, sits this quaint, unassuming hotel. Nestled between pubs and retail shops, the Hotel des Grands Boulevards is easy to miss if you aren't keeping an eye out! The lobby is small and to-the-point. A narrow counter, two employees, and a wall of old-fashioned tasseled hotel keys waiting to be used. The staff is extremely friendly and helpful. We were greeted by warm smiles and a "bonjour" every time we walked by. The room itself was beautiful. The hotel takes its design inspiration from the French Revolution and provincial life. Walls painted in deep, dramatic greens, a bed with a soft canopy, and accent furniture in rustic golds. All of it was rounded out with light modern touches. We couldn't have asked for a better place to spend our honeymoon in Paris!

The Best Western Hôtel Ronceray-Opéra is located in a prime area. I loved this hotel and the staff…read moreare amazing. Firstly, the staff at the front desk are very nice. Everyone working is very hospitable. The location can't be beat, making this a good hotel to start your trip. The rooms are spotless. I stayed in a small single room and it was perfect. The breakfast spread was also impressive, with plenty of options to kickstart my busy day. Unfortunately, I am taking a star off my review because I called twice confirming that I could have a fridge in my room. The hotel explained that they could place one in the room. When I got to my room, they said they do not put fridges in the room. I had to use their own fridge for my medication. I am also taking another star off because I emailed the hotel to confirm this and they never responded. I have never heard of a hotel just not responding to a guest. For these two reasons, I am giving the hotel three stars. Now, the hotel itself is great. The rooms are perfect. Most of all, the AC (air-conditioning) is cold and made my trip perfect. I just wish they would honor having fridges placed in the room and answer customer emails rather than ghosting me. I would stay here again though because the location and staff are very inviting.

Tiniest hotel room ever, but great location and free WiFi! We had a two twin bed room but the beds…read morewere pushed together. There was very little room to walk around the bed. There was a desk with a chair on one side. The windows were huge and opened like doors to a rooftop which I had to explore. The bathroom was modern. Very deep tub with handheld sprayer as well as rain shower head. They do not provide washcloths nor hair conditioner... interesting. We noted a plaque that stated that Rossini wrote the William Tell Overture while he lived here, which is very cool! Our first night in Paris we wanted to go out to a fancy French meal. The front desk concierge recommended Au Petite Riche which was within easy walking distance. Wow, great recommendation! The breakfast that was included was just ok. They have super fancy coffee machines that make lots of different hot drinks. The scrambled eggs were just ok and the bacon looked barely cooked. They also had fruit, yogurt, juices and cereals. The black grapes had seeds and crunching into them was not pleasant. Spitting seeds into a napkin is not the classiest thing either! I only ate a couple before I just gave up. The gates in front of the hotel were locked upon our return both nights out in Paris, but you just ring the buzzer and they let you in. Made us feel safe. Would stay here again.

Beautifully decorated hotel with an 18/19th century flair. At first glance in the lobby, the hotel…read moreis decorated tastefully with plush velvet seating and a tea room style salon area for breakfast. The room upstairs was a bit smaller than expected, which did dampen things at first. However the clean sheets, complimentary coffee and tea, strong water pressure, and the uber amazing heated towel rack really turned things around. The hotel even gave us a complimentary bottle of champagne and a WiFi hotspot to travel Paris with (since we stayed for a week). Location is off the Main Street, but still very close to the busy areas and near subway stops. If you don't speak French, the concierge can help you make reservations for restaurants or museums or other activities. Checkout was easy, and calling a cab via the concierge was a piece of cake. Overall, a lovely experience that I would highly recommend anyone else to try. I know I'll be coming back to this hotel soon.

La Maison Favart is an exceptional boutique hotel nestled in the heart of Paris in the 2nd…read moredistrict. it is across from the Opera Comique and it's beautiful courtyard. although the hotel is in a busy are near the Metro, it is on a quiet side street so it is quite peaceful The hotel is decorated beautifully with no detail missed. the lobby is gorgeous and is the breakfast room. our two bedrooms booked each had tall ceilings and were each uniquely decorated but still maintaining the style of the hotel i truly enjoyed our stay and highly recommend it

5 star hotel with the highest levels of service in the heart of the opera district of Paris, this…read moremodern gem sits in a bustling French neighborhood filled with history, food and shopping! Less than a 10 minute walk to the Galleries Lafayette, 5 minutes to the opera house and 15 minutes to the Louvre, they are also located next to the main Cartier store. The amenities are all top notch with stellar service from the team across all parts of the hotel from the desk staff to the concierge and spa staff. Room is equipped with everything and if you forgot something you can ask! We forgot an adapter and they are readily available.

Loved everything about this place from the moment we checked in, worth every point! The concierge…read moreis amazing, reception literally escorts you around the property with a tour and to your room with the concierge. The room has everything imaginable, and everything is top shelf. The spa is a great little getaway, it was such a great stay that our only grievance was just preference aka the spa jacuzzi wasn't hot enough

Had to pick a hotel on my long-awaited return trip to Paris. Obviously was gonna go with something…read morenicer in the Marriott collection, and the Renaissance Paris Republique Hotel was the cheapest option of the bunch that was in the Renaissance-level tier. When I booked this originally, I got an upgrade to a Bobo room with a king bed instead of the original Paris Style with a queen bed. Well, I'm not sure what the hell happened, but after checking in on the app, their system moved my reservation to an entire month later. Which could have posed a major problem since I knew the hotel was completely sold out. Thankfully, Ines at the front desk managed to salvage the situation and get us the same Bobo room, albeit only with a queen. Regardless, considering the hotel was sold out, I wasn't about to complain. Thanks to Ines for fixing everything! Aside from that, the room itself was fairly modern and fairly spacious for European standards. You can't take for granted how big a hotel room is in Europe, which is why I would only ever stay at an American-branded hotel. Don't get me wrong, the room was still small, but not cramped to the point that there wasn't room to maneuver around. Had a nice view of the courtyard from the bedroom as well as the bathroom. Curiously though, the bathroom had clear windows, so you would have needed to put the blinds down if you wanted privacy. Did appreciate the huge walk-in shower though! And the A/C works perfectly well. Staff here are extremely friendly! They obviously know a significant portion of their clientele only speak English, and everyone working the lobby area speak English very well. Wanted to also give a shoutout to Fabien at the concierge for helping me sort out how to get a Ile-de-France weekly train pass from the Paris Metro booth! Only issue is that I only had some of my housekeeping requests fulfilled, as I called a few times for some extra tissue boxes but they either took too long or were never sent up. As far as location, I liked it, but it really depends where you want to situate yourself. I personally like being next to a train station that has a lot of lines passing through it, and the Republique station that's literally right next to the hotel has five lines going through it. Plus for quick food options, there was a McDonald's, Burger King, and KFC all right next to each other. It is next to the Monument à la République. Le Marais is walkable from here. But if you want to be closer to the tourist attractions, probably not the best place for you. This is definitely more of a hipster location. Paris is a big city though, so I was fine with it. I did check out the gym to see what it looked like. Fairly small and nondescript. Didn't check out the spa though. Despite the hotel room mishap, I enjoyed my stay here. Very nice location and well-kept hotel.

We stayed at the Renaissance Paris République for three nights and had a comfortable overall…read moreexperience. Our room had adequate air conditioning, which was especially appreciated during the hot Paris weather. The queen bed was soft and comfortable, although the pillows were quite flat and could use an upgrade. The bathroom was a highlight, featuring a nice shower and bathtub that made it easy to relax after long days of sightseeing. The breakfast buffet offered a good selection of both hot and cold items, making it a great way to start each morning. We also ordered room service during our stay, which was convenient and enjoyable. One unusual experience was housekeeping arriving around 9:00 p.m. each evening. By then, we were already back in the room winding down for the night, so our room was never really serviced during our three-night stay. The concierge team was excellent, providing helpful recommendations and arranging transportation whenever we needed it. While the hotel itself was very nice, it's not within easy walking distance of many of Paris's major attractions, so expect to use rideshares, taxis, or the Metro to get around. Overall, we enjoyed our stay. The comfortable room, good breakfast, and attentive concierge made for a pleasant experience, though the housekeeping schedule and location kept it from being a perfect stay.