Surprising Accomodation Prices in Paris
During our adventure this summer we plan to spend a few nights in Paris on our way from the Hague to southern France. Since my husband can’t get enough time off work to do the whole trip (government jobs in Texas aren’t yet hip to the Nomad thing) he will fly to Paris and meet us there for the 2nd half of the trip.
I decided to investigate all types of accomodations. Traveling as a family of 5 non-millionaires makes finding accomodations a bit difficult. Many hotels in Paris are small, privately run facilities and many rooms sleep only 2 or 3 max requiring us to get 2 rooms and, of course, doubling our price. Unless we were to choose a hotel with no air conditioning (a chance I’m not willing to take in July), the cost came to well over $300.00 per night on the low end.
I then went to hostels. At a hostel we might be able to sleep our whole family in one room. However, we might be there with many other people as well. We would likely share a bathroom and I was not sure about where our luggage would remain if we went out for the day. I assume we would be able to lock it up somewhere. I found hostels as cheap as $30.00 per person. Multiplied by 5 –
$150.00. Better price but we’re risking a lot of noise and no privacy. I wasn’t sure how I felt about being in a room with others with my children.
Next stop – apartments. Surely this would be the most expensive I assumed. Wrong! I was able to find fully furnished apartments in the center of Paris sleeping 4 for around $165.00 per night. With an apartment we would have access to a kitchen and thereby save some money on food as well. Even better, many of the apartments boast wifi service. Yes, we would be short 1 bed but it might be worth taking the chance of a couch or chair that would accomodate my 5 year old by putting cushions on the floor.
Finally, I resorted to camping. Turns out you can camp in the Bois de Boulogne and even get a little cottage for about 80 per night with air conditioning and a kitchen. The downside – you’re a bit out of the city but there is a bus service. I sent a reservation request for one of these cabins several days ago but have not heard back.
I think we will probably go with the apartment because of the proximity to major points of interest, the existence of a kitchen, wifi, and price. I would never have expected this to be comparably priced to a hostel! You learn something new every day.
