<p>Thanks–did explore the option but it turned out that for our 5 day stay, on the dates we wanted, the quad hotel room was much better and we like the central location & not having the potential hassle of damage deposits, etc. Have heard many on fodors.com forums who have had great experiences renting apartments all over the place, but personally, we are fond of hotels, eating out, and maids. 
;)</p>
<p>One little tip…the Louvre is open to 10pm on Wed and Fri. We enjoyed eating at the restaurant at the museum (you can reserve online) and after a nice meal and a bit of wine strolling through the relatively empty museum at night. (Restaurant du Grand Louvre)</p>
<p>The central part of Paris is almost completely walkable wherever you want to go, especially if you start near the middle (although the Metro is fun in and of itself). Most of what you would want to see is in arrondissements 1-8, roughly a circle with a radius of less than a couple kilometers.</p>
<p>Im glad you are taking the kids, that will easily save you $45,000.</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/889229-45k-damage-caused-house-when-mom-goes-paris-leaving-son-18-town.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/889229-45k-damage-caused-house-when-mom-goes-paris-leaving-son-18-town.html</a></p>
<p>^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^LOL, good one.</p>
<p>We stayed a small hotel in the center of town and walked everywhere. It was a fabulous trip. I was so glad to walk everywhere. The architecture of the buildings was amazing plus all the attractions seemed to be close. The Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Sacre Coeur were all a walkable distance from our hotel. </p>
<p>I am so jealous. I would love to go back again.</p>
<p>Older hotel in the city. DEFINITELY. Enjoy. I can’t wait to go back.</p>
<p>musicamusica</p>
<p>I could not even make myself read that thread. The title was devastating enough.</p>
<p>Actually, SOME of the lodging is not double the price with the kids added than when it is was just the two of us. Anyway, we’re building memories. I’ve never had any concerns about leaving my kids in our home, but the issue has never come up so far. From what bits I read of the thread, it sounds quite dreadful!</p>
<p>We did do a LOT of walking when we were in Europe 15 years ago, and enjoyed it greatly! We may get adventurous and rent bikes this time, especially to bike along the river by Bacarach and around Rothenberg. It will be a nice change from walking and allow us to cover more ground.</p>
<p>Thanks for the tip on the Louvre. Last time, we accidentally went on a Wednesday or Friday, got in a the reduced price & had very few crowds. We had enough by the time the museum closed to have had a taste of the museum & explore the rest of Paris. Didn’t know they served food–we love dining at museums! Will check that out! Merci!</p>
<p>An oddity of Paris is the bad parts are more on the outskirts. But you’d be nuts not to stay in the center. When you see the light on the buildings, you’ll know why.</p>
<p>I also suggest staying in a central location. I don’t know your budget, but I stayed recently at Hotel Sorbonne in the 5th arr. It’s a lovely small hotel directly across the street from the Sorbonne that’s been renovated recently. The rooms are tiny, but each has an iMac in the room that doubles as the TV. It’s also pretty reasonably priced. You will definitely need 2 rooms for your family of 4. [Hotel</a> in Paris, Hotel Design Sorbonne in Saint Germain des Pres (official web site)](<a href=“http://www.hotelsorbonne.com/]Hotel”>http://www.hotelsorbonne.com/)</p>
<p>Thanks–we’re pretty happy with the hotel we chose. I did see the hotel you stayed in, but it is rather pricey for two rooms for 5 nights.</p>
<p>We are now looking into buying Paris museum passes. It seems like a very good idea, because just seeing the Louvre, Notre Dame, San Chappele & Versailles alone one time apiece will already reach 40 euros. We may also want to see a few other places on the pass & then won’t have to fumble for money and admissions and can hopefully get into shorter lines. It will also encourage us to perhaps spend more time in the Louvre than we might otherwise, seeing as how it’s right beside our hotel.</p>
<p>When are you going? We took our kids in June '07 and had a fabulous time.</p>
<p>Do buy the museum passes so you can avoid standing in line. They are available all over town at small stores, tabacs and magazine stands. Another great spot that a lot of people are not aware of is the church of St. Denis. The tombs of the kings and queens of France are there and it is fascinating and beautiful.</p>
<p>[Basilique</a> Saint-Denis : visite en images, L’Internaute Magazine](<a href=“http://www.linternaute.com/sortir/patrimoine/ile-de-france/seine-saint-denis/edifices-religieux/basilique-saint-denis/1.shtml]Basilique”>Basilique de Saint-Denis : histoire et visite de la nécropole des rois)</p>
<p>If you are so inclined a nice 40 minute train trip to the penultimate cathedral, Chartre, makes for a great afternoon. With a fabulous lunch at Le Moulin
[RESTAURANT</a> CHARTRES - LE MOULIN DE PONCEAU-](<a href=“Moulin de Ponceau”>http://www.moulindeponceau.fr/)</p>
<p>Sigh, can’t wait till October…</p>
<p>We’re going in less than two months and I can hardly wait! Things are getting grim around this town with the dour economy, and it will be good to clear my head and reconnect with the kids.</p>
<p>May should be lovely! For me, half the fun is planning the trip and this one in particular needs to be done “on the cheap”.I’ve been scrounging frequent flyer miles for just the occasion.No dinners at four star restaurants like Taillvant this time, but that is ok.Just give me that wonderful bread, cheese and wine and I am good to go. Do keep your eye open for good small bistros and restaurants! And report back!</p>
<p>OK–we do tend to like to find small little places and don’t do the multi-star places, since there are many of those at home. We are trying to strike a balance–not spend TOO much but make it happily memorable. So far, I think we’re on the right track.</p>
<p>Speaking of Michelin stars,we like to use the Michelin web site. It has a search function for area and lists opening days and phone numbers for all manner of restaurants. You can pull up the site at your hotel. Even the smaller bistros in Paris require reservations for dinner these days. It’s easy to use and you can map out your day and have all the latest info without dragging a guide book along. Avoid any eating establishment mentioned by
Rick Steves at any cost.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.viamichelin.fr/[/url]”>http://www.viamichelin.fr/</a></p>
<p>Just wonder why you recommend so strongly AGAINST places Rick Steves recommends. Do they get mobbed & overrun & overpriced or do you just disagree with his idea of good food? </p>
<p>We have sometimes gone to restaurants recommended by Zagat’s, that the concierge of the hotel recommended & were pleased. We often go to the nicer places for lunch & have more casual dinners. That way, we rarely need reservations & stretch our $$ more, especially for travel. Will have to keep the Michelin guide on-line in mind. Thanks for those thoughts!</p>
<p>We may have the kids help us figure out where to eat. I always find it fun to wander around & figure out what looks good to us that has a following but isn’t so mobbed that we don’t think we’ll get decent service. It has served us well so far.</p>
<p>As you say…mobbed and overrun. When we do stay at hotels, we use the concierge for tips and reservations—in fact I would argue that that’s the best reason for staying in a hotel! Ditto on eating nice lunchs as opposed to dinner. I can not afford dinner in a Michelined starred restaurant, but lunch can be a real value. When we did eat at Taillevant (at that time fours M stars) it was for lunch on their $75 per person prix fixe. When we checked out the dinner menu, I think it would have put us back at least $300 per person(WAY out of our league). That being said, that three hour lunch was like dining in heaven</p>
<p>looks like it’s 80 eu now! <a href=“http://www.taillevent.com/taillevent.php[/url]”>http://www.taillevent.com/taillevent.php</a></p>