Planning to take 14-year-old daughter to Paris for a week in February. What kind of weather can we expect? Also, please help with hotel!! All those arrondisements (not spelled right, I%26#39;m sure) have me confused. Would like to be near Metro and walking distance to some of the main sights. Looking to spend under $200 per night for room, if possible, but don%26#39;t want my daughter to accuse me of booking the %26quot;roach motel.%26quot; Place with staff (someone) who speaks English would be a plus, as it%26#39;s rather late in the game to brush up on my high school French. Any other tips would be greatly appreciated.
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Paris weather is a lot like New York or Philadelphia in the winter. Just more rainy and less snowy. One day will be gray, rainy, windy, the next clear and cool and bright blue skies.
Plan to wear a winter coat with layers underneath. A dark wool or leather coat if you don%26#39;t want to stand out. Leave the ski jacket or puffy down coat at home or you%26#39;ll look REALLY out of place. Doesn%26#39;t have to be your warmest coat (where are you from?). Remember that you will be carrying your coat around when you go into museums. A scarf and warm gloves are a must. Good walking shoes (sneakers will probably be too cold, leather shoes with good soles are better....have your daughter look at Skechers???).
Bring along the smallest umbrella you can find, as you will carry it everywhere while you are there. Rain comes off and on, but won%26#39;t bother you.
Dress in layers so you can peel them off as the day warms or when you step into a toasty cafe or museum.
This is a great time of year to go with a kid/teen. Crowds are very low. No waits anywhere. The only thing we had to wait for was the Eiffel Tower, and that was about 45 minutes. In the summer the wait can be HOURS. Ugh! You%26#39;re not cheek to cheek with other English speaking tourists, there are actually Parisians around. We went 2 years ago with our kids and LOVED it, even though it rained and snowed on us for most of the time. Delightful!
For where to stay, I would suggest looking at the Marais or St. Germain area. Look into Arr. 3-6 and I think you%26#39;ll be happy. Make sure you%26#39;re within easy walking distance to a Metro. You should be able to find plenty in your price range.
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You should have no problem finding a hotel in your budget.
I am starting to feel rather strange about the fact that I keep recommending Hotel Lindbergh, but I used to stay there before moving here and loved the area so much that we moved to the same block.
K+K Cayre on Raspail is larger, more formal and more expensive, but you may be able to get some special rates because Feb. is fairly slow (still winter midterm break, though, so not dead).
Both of these places are near St Germain.
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DrDebu gives good tips. I%26#39;d narrow it down further and start the hotel search in the 6th, near St. Germain des Pres/Odeon. If you%26#39;re on a side street, it should be quiet enough, but very close to all the action. In February, I%26#39;d imagine you can find some good deals.
I%26#39;d start looking through the most popular hotels on the Trip Advisor hotels list, see if they%26#39;re available for your dates and price range, then write back for more specific suggestions to narrow it down.
Good luck!
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BG -
Think of the arrondisements as zip codes - which is, in fact what they are - no big mystery - if you have a decent guidebook it will have a map of the arrs, and you%26#39;ll be able to see the basic layout of the city. THe reason follks keep harpng on the one digit areas is that they%26#39;re the ones in the heart of the city and generally closest to the Seine.
Actually, no matter where you are, you%26#39;ll be within a Parisian%26#39;s idea of walking distance - usually 3 or 4 blocks. With a teenager that%26#39;s a great distance because she%26#39;ll get a chance to window shop and read the cartes on the restaurants, etc. Bud just in case, remind her that there is no crying in baseball and no whining in Paris, and then pick the hotel that sounds right for you.
One I can suggest that has great Paris ambience is the Hotel Chopin, in one of the old %26quot;passages%26quot; - Jouffroy, I think, a covered walkway with small shops, in Montmartre. Ask for a room on the top floor at the back of the building and not only will it be quiet, but you%26#39;ll look out over the roofline of the neighbourhood - a classic old movie Paris view.
Before you ask if Montmartre is a %26quot;safe%26quot; neighbourhood, I%26#39;ve been travelling to Paris for 15 years by my self - husband is seldom available to go with me - and first of all - I%26#39;ve never felt unsafe anywhere in the city at any time, day or night. Montmartre is my favourite area in which to stay because of the old, small cafes with good affordable food, and the older more affordable hotels - they are being gentrified as we speak, but there are still enough of them around to make for an interesting walk.
The only problem for me is that the walk is downhill for the Metro and consequently uphill to get back home at the endof the day. I much prefer the opposite, but nobody asked me.
Have a wonderful trip - I%26#39;ve always enjoyed my mother-daughter trips to Paris and I%26#39;m sure you will, too.
Bon voyage.
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%26quot;As it%26#39;s rather late in the game to brush up on my high school French%26quot; Come on, three months is more than enough to %26quot;brush up%26quot;, learn the basics, especially greetings, courtesy, etc. sentences. You don%26#39;t have to study as if you were going to take a BA in French. Just simple, practical words and phrases, the ones that you can find in phrase books, plus the conjugation of the five main verbs, and Bob%26#39;s your uncle. Believe me, it%26#39;ll make a great difference during your Paris daily life.
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I am going to Paris in February. This trip I will be staying at the Westminster Hotel. A very lovely 4 star hotel with the Michelin starred Celadon restaurant. A lovely place. Great metro connections.
The concierge has arranged for the hotel to handle my airport transportation. They will also provicde a private scheduled appoinment for the Orangerie Museum so I can finally get to see the Monet water lilies.
I will send my dining reervations for the concierge to make them for me....
Enjoy your trip planning......
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Dear Bob Saccamano,
Thank you for the advice. Yes, of course, I plan to learn (or remember) the basics in French. I%26#39;m not a dummy. However, last year, before going to Rome, I spent five months practicing Pimsleur%26#39;s Italian I. While the Italian people seemed to appreciate my efforts, I was awfully glad that many spoke English. In the heat of the moment, i.e., trying to find the right bus, much of what I learned went right out of my head. As my daughter pointed out: %26quot;Mom, whenever you asked a question in Italian, they answered you in English!%26quot;
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