Last year I did a self catering trip to Paris for ten days, and rented a studio apartment through Housetrip.com which is a similar setup to AirB&B: apartment owners across the world list their apartments on the website and travellers can then search and select by country, town, date, and size of apartment. You can contact the owners through the listings to enquire about availability and then, once you've chosen the apartment you want, pay the full booking cost up front. Housetrip then hold the booking cost until you've picked up the keys and moved in and then, assuming you're happy with the place, forward the cost onto the owner 24 hours later. (If, however, you're NOT happy with it, then you contact Housetrip by mobile phone to cancel, and they arrange alternate accommodation for you...... I presume you'd then be texted the new address to go to, and if that's OK, the new place gets the money. My booking was fine though, so I've not had to deal with that part!!) After making the initial booking, you are provided the owners mobile/cell phone and, closer to the arrival dates, receive text/SMS message prompts from Housetrip to inform the owner of arrival time and to arrange key collection. This is usually at the property address.
Rue Sauffroy, Paris, copyrighted to Andrea McNeill
Cards available of image through Andreas Art in Zazzle
I selected a small studio apartment on Rue Sauffroy which is off Avenue de Clichy in the 18th arrondisement not far from the Sacre Coeur and Montmartre. This apartment was in a slightly run down building in an older part of Paris, with a rather rickety spiral staircase with uneven wooden stairs, up four floors (no lift!) I understand now why Parisians are so slender - they're walking up and down stairs all day!!! I chose this as it was close to the Batignolles area which I'm acquainted with from several previous visits to the area, and was within a 5 minute walk of an artisan baker, a tiny speciality coffee shop on the Avenue which roasts and grinds a variety of coffee bean in house, 2 butchers, a speciality cheese store and a covered market near the Brouant Metro that had a butchers, cheese stall, fish stall and fresh veg. All you need for hearty feeding!!! There were also half a dozen Marche Franprix type small supermarkets for the basics. There are several Metro stops within easy reach that can take you to any part of Paris, Brochant being the nearest on Line 13, plus two bus routes (the 74 and 54) that go to Hotel du Ville and past Gare du Nord respectively. I also discovered on Saturday morning a wonderful market in Boulevard des Batignolles (starting at Place de Clichy and going down towards Parc Monceau) that was an absolute joy just to walk through and look at! Packed with locals, too! Seemed to start shutting down around 1 p.m. and packed overflowing with a multitude of fabulous foods! The only "down side" to the apartment was a rather tired sofa bed, quirky plumbing which meant coffee grinds occasionally flooding the shower stand and temperamental public access wifi!
The cost of apartments in Paris tend to reflect the amount of floor space with the cheaper end of the market being comparative shoeboxes...... fold out the sofabed and that's the entire floor space taken up! The higher the price gets more square footage though, and although some can cost more or equal to hotel costs of however many stars you'd normally choose, the savings come with doing your own cooking. I found with the area I was in, I could eat very well on 10 - 15 Euros a meal (for something that would or could cost you 35 Euros or upwards a plate in a restaurant!!!) The particular challenge for me there was the kitchen area I had which consisted of two hot plates and a microwave!! Well, if Rachel Khoo can manage the challenge, I don’t see why I couldn’t attempt “two pot cooking”!!
Seafood stand in Saturday market in Boulevard des Batignolles
Watercolour sketch, copyrighted Andrea McNeill
The Avenue de Clichy area going towards the Peripherique comes across as rather rough around the edges, however, the food shopping certainly makes it an area worth investigating. Moving down towards the Batignolles part of Paris gets progressively more “up market”. The Parc Batignolles is particularly pretty and very popular with young families especially in early evening. Going from there down Rue des Batignolles provides several “vintage junk pseudo antique” stores, boutique shops and restaurants. Sadly, my favourite, Cinnamon, has closed and the replacement - Augustin - unfortunately is a restaurant where you’ll be brushing elbows with the guests at the next table while you’re eating and memorable for being not very memorable! Terrasse 17 next door is worth eating at though, as is Aubergine over the road with a very pretty mosaic by the entrance. The other end of Rue des Batignolles takes you back to the Boulevard - turn left to return back to Place de Clichy, turn right for Courcelles and Parc Monceau.
Pizza college on junction of Rue Sauffroy, Paris
The experience of a self contained apartment rental for a vacation was a new one for me, and definitely one I’d want to repeat. Housetrip provides a very easy to use facility and seems to be a well run and professional site that I’d have no problem using again myself and recommending to others. It provides a unique opportunity to discover local neighbourhoods contained within a larger city, and the ability to discover the smaller lesser known museums, attractions and shopping areas away from the standard publicized and sometimes overpriced tourist areas. It also means practising phrasebook style linguistics, but I found that done with a smile, Parisians welcomed my attempts at massacring their language! I would also advise, though, to do your research on particular neighbourhoods before making your booking in whichever city you’re visiting, just to be sure the area is as safe as you can get (specially if you’re a single female traveller). The only changes I would consider making to this particular trip would possibly find somewhere slightly more central, and with a bit more “leg space”.
Full details and imagery of the vacation can be seen through these links.
Excellent review Beanie!! I got a real sense of the place and the neighbourhood.
ReplyDelete