Where to Stay in Paris? The Best Neighborhoods and Hotels

What does a hotel in Paris cost?

If you suspect that Paris is not a cheap destination, you’re right.

With over 2.4 million residents packed into about 100 square kilometers, space is at a premium. You’ll notice that in both the prices and the room sizes.

A hotel room in Paris costs an average of 250 euros per night.

And that’s essentially true for all hotels in the central neighborhoods of Paris. On top of that, there’s also a tourism tax of 1 to 15 euros per night per person.

If you want to pay significantly less for a night’s stay, you’ll have to make serious compromises on location and hotel quality.

Finding good value for money among Paris hotels is a real challenge. But not impossible — we’ve done the searching so you don’t have to.

The Best Neighborhoods to Stay in Paris

The whole arrondissement system in Paris can get pretty confusing. So here’s the short version:

These are the 5 areas in Paris we recommend for your stay:

• Notre Dame & Saint-Michel: Perfect for first-time visitors, historic center – Hotel Louison
• Montmartre: If you like it hip, multicultural, and full of energy – Aparthotel Adagio
• Canal Saint-Martin: If you want to stay among locals – Le Général Hôtel
• Marais: If you want a little bit of everything – Solly Hôtel Paris
• Clichy: If you’re watching your budget – Grand Hôtel Clichy Paris

The neighborhoods on a map at a glance

On this map, we’ve clearly marked our neighborhood recommendations for where to stay in Paris alongside the key Paris attractions.

Staying in Notre Dame & Saint-Michel

For your first visit to Paris, Notre Dame and Saint-Michel are ideal — you can reach all the major highlights quickly from here.

The Seine flows right through Paris, and in the middle of the Seine lies the small island of Île de la Cité. This is where Paris was born 2,500 years ago. The island and its southern bank are the very original Paris. Pretty cool, right?

And right here you’ll find two overlapping districts: Saint-Michel and Notre Dame.

Saint-Michel sits on the southern bank of the island. You’ll find affordable hotels there alongside plenty of surprisingly inexpensive restaurants and cocktail bars. From Saint-Michel, you can reach a lot on foot.

The Notre Dame area sits right on the island itself. This is also where the famous Notre-Dame Cathedral, Sainte-Chapelle, the Panthéon, and the Sorbonne are located.

You can tell: these neighborhoods are absolutely packed with historic landmarks.

And if you want to explore the rest of Paris from here, you can hop on Metro Line 4 to head north or south, or take a stroll along the Seine riverbank all the way to the Louvre.

Advantages of staying in Notre Dame and Saint-Michel:

• Very central, lots of character
• Many attractions are within walking distance
• Affordable restaurants
• Rooms between 200 and 300 euros

Disadvantages of staying in Notre Dame and Saint-Michel:

• Very touristy area
• The often older buildings can have very thin walls (keep an eye on reviews for this)

Our hotel recommendations for Notre Dame & Saint-Michel

Staying in Montmartre

We recommend a hotel in Montmartre if you like it multicultural, colorful, and full of variety — there’s always something going on here.

Montmartre is the highest-elevated neighborhood in Paris and an incredibly exciting mix of lively streets and quiet corners.

The area is best known as an artists’ and nightlife district.

In the past, van Gogh and Dalí roamed these streets. Today you’ll find performers, street musicians, and sketch artists — and you can drink really good wine and enjoy great food at every turn.

On top of that, the Sacré-Cœur Basilica, the Dalí Museum, and the Musée de Montmartre are all right here waiting for you.

For night owls: on the Boulevard de Clichy you’ll find several bars and clubs alongside the Moulin Rouge. So if you’re in the mood to party in Paris, this is your spot.

Advantages of staying in Montmartre:

• Great atmosphere day and night
• Lots of restaurants, cafés, and bars
• Wide selection of hotels between 200 and 300 euros
• Seriously good views of the city from many spots
• Great for going out and partying

Disadvantages of staying in Montmartre:

• Lots of hills and cobblestone streets
• The city center is no longer within walking distance
• Loud on Boulevard de Clichy on weekend nights

Our hotel recommendations for Montmartre

Staying at Canal Saint-Martin

If you’d rather stay away from the tourist crowds but still want to be relatively central, Canal Saint-Martin is the perfect spot for you.

The Canal Saint-Martin is the heart of this area. On a nice day, you can sit along the canal bank with a bottle of wine, a baguette, and some camembert alongside the Parisians and just soak up the afternoon.

And Rue Oberkampf is perfect for bar-hopping in true Parisian style late in the evening. Super authentic.

You won’t find any souvenir shops here. No restaurants with pictures on the menu, either. But honestly, that’s the whole point.

The density of hotels in this neighborhood is nowhere near as high as in other parts of the city — you’re simply more among locals, right in the middle of their everyday lives.

Don’t come looking for large hotels here. Most places to stay are tucked into ordinary residential buildings. But that’s exactly what we think makes it so special.

Place de la République is easily reachable on foot. That’s where five metro lines converge, so you can get anywhere in the city quickly.

Advantages of staying at the canal:

• Among locals
• Super authentic, romantic neighborhood
• Great atmosphere by the water in summer
• Cool cafés, bars, and restaurants
• You can put your French to the test, hehe

Disadvantages of staying at the canal:

• The city center and major highlights are no longer within walking distance

Our hotel recommendations for Canal Saint-Martin

Staying in Marais

Do you love a village feel, greenery, and romance? Then a hotel in the Marais is the right call.

Marais is a Parisian neighborhood with countless faces — something both tourists and locals themselves appreciate.

With its many alleyways, small boutiques, and great markets, it almost feels like a village. We especially love the Marché des Enfants Rouges — a genuine local favorite.

But there’s more than just shopping here. You can also stroll in true Parisian style through lovely green spaces, historic streets, and past the famous Centre Georges Pompidou — the largest French collection of modern and contemporary art.

And romance is never in short supply. On many streets you’ll find small restaurants perfect for a cozy French dinner. Or pick one of the rooftop bars and sip a glass of wine under the open sky.

For sightseeing beyond the neighborhood, the Seine and Notre-Dame are easily reachable on foot. The metro will also get you from A to B in no time.

Advantages of staying in Marais:

• Diverse, authentic neighborhood
• Lots of attractions
• Great restaurants and cafés
• Excellent shopping area
• Also great for families, as it’s a bit quieter
• Good transport connections and much within walking distance

Disadvantages of staying in Marais:

• Hotels tend to be on the pricier side

Our hotel recommendations for Marais

Staying in Clichy

If you want budget-friendly Paris accommodation and don’t mind a 15-minute metro ride to the most important Paris attractions, then Clichy is worth a serious look.

Clichy is a quiet, pleasant area just outside of Paris but still excellently connected to the Paris metro network.

Some Paris suburbs don’t have the greatest reputation. Clichy isn’t one of them — don’t worry.

It’s a residential area with lots of families who live in Paris with children and prefer a quieter environment. With supermarkets and bakeries nearby, you have plenty of options for affordable shopping.

The big advantage: you can find solid hotels here for under 180 euros per night. That’s nearly impossible in central Paris.

Since metro stations aren’t as densely spaced as they are in the city proper, pay close attention to how far your hotel is from the nearest stop.

All of our hotel recommendations for Clichy are located close to a metro station.

Advantages of staying in Clichy:

• Quiet residential area
• Few tourists
• Among locals

Disadvantages of staying in Clichy:

• City center not reachable on foot
• Few restaurants
• Only a few metro stations
• It’s not Paris

Our hotel recommendations for Clichy

Frequently Asked Questions About Staying in Paris