Hôtel de Seine - Paris 6 Saint Germain Des Prés — Hotel in Paris

We stayed at the Hôtel de Seine several years ago and had a very good experience. We were planning to return this May as the first part of a trip to France, so several months ago we booked a room for three nights. We also made plans to travel to other places in France. For ALL our reservations, including air and train travel, we made sure they were fully refundable. We knew there might be possible problems with a Covid surge, which we both have had, and that each of us had other health issues, including cancer, which might mean we would have to cancel the trip. As it turned out, one of us did have a serious new health issue earlier this month and it forced us to cancel our trip. We contacted all the locations we had booked and received full refunds from all of them, minus any cancellation fees. When we wrote to Hôtel de Seine, however, we were told that we had booked a "non-refundable" room and they would not refund our €1,171.28 reservation. We wrote back saying that we never intended to book a non-refundable room, that all our other reservations on the trip were fully refundable. We wrote that we had made an honest mistake and hoped they would understand. We also mentioned that at the time we booked their website was confusing about rooms being refundable or non-refundable and that we never would have made a non-refundable reservation. The hotel wrote back and offered to credit us through the end of this year. We wrote back saying that we would not be able to come this year but asked that the credit be extended through 2024. We also said that if we were not able to come next year we would forego the reservation and they could keep the €1,171.28. We explained that one of us had received a new cancer diagnosis and hoped they would understand. The hotel did not respond to this letter so we wrote again several days later. They finally responded by saying only, "we are sorry but it won't be possible." They did not give any reason why or offer any other comment or possible arrangement. They just said "Sorry, no."

We were amazed. We had previously stayed with Hôtel de Seine and had an excellent stay. We acknowledged that we had made a mistake but thought that they would at least understand their confusing website about cancellations (which we see they have now changed) and accept a reasonable request to merely extend the credit for our reservation through next year. Clearly, unless the management at Hôtel de Seine changes its mind and offers our room credit through next year, we will never stay with them again. In addition, we will let as many other people as possible know about what we feel is their unreasonable and selfish "decision" regarding our booking. One would think a professional hotel, one which is clearly doing very good business at this time, would show compassion and understanding for customers, particularly those that have stayed with them in the past. Why would they want to lose future business with us? We might have come back again several times, giving them additional business, so they would end up losing business and money in the long run. We are truly disappointed with this hotel and hope they will change their...

For Americans traveling to Paris … we honestly could not have found a better hotel. This was our first time to Paris and it can be overwhelming knowing where to stay, and even more so wondering if the district itself is safe.

We found this hotel on an independent travel blog and it’s perfect.

Here’s a few high points to know:

Location & Culture

This hotel has more cafes and restaurants within 5 minutes walking than you could visit in a week’s time.

Street culture all around this place is classic Paris. Cafes, boutiques, etc. And there’s musicians playing a night. It’s amazing. And super safe in feel.

You’re about a 10 minute Uber to the Louvre. 15 minutes to Eiffel Tower. About 45 minute Uber if you’re coming straight from the airport.

Hotel

In a phrase I’d classify this hotel as “classic French.” Wood floors in lobby, classic French decor; totally perfect for the Paris feel.

Rooms are on the small side - but that’s Paris in general. In fact, that’s Europe in general when compared to the US. Been to Europe many times and it’s always this way. If you’ve ever been to New York, it’s somewhat like that. Efficient. Rooms are classic though.

You can request a (2) single beds or a full bed - we went with 2 single beds because it sleeps easier than being cramped in a small full bed. So glad we did that. Not a lot of space to put your bags; but again, that’s Europe.

People travel light here because there’s so much walking. I’d suggest you do do the same; everywhere I’ve been in Europe I’ve discovered it’s best to pack light for trains, walking, and hotel space.

Service at Hotel de Seine was nothing short of consistently stellar. The staff speaks fluent English. They are so ready to answer questions and help you with anything.

In fact, we were arriving a bit early and they had our room ready - and we didn’t even request that! We asked if we could store bags and see the city for the day until check in time but they said “we knew you were arriving early and your room is ready!”

I’m telling you, I’d stay here again just for how we were treated and the knowledge they give you on getting around town; and for the safety and cleanliness of the district.

Paris has a reputation for rudeness, but we found just the opposite, thankfully! Everyone here has been very kind.

I’d strongly suggest requesting a room on the first or second floor!!!

Reason being - this hotel as maybe the smallest elevator I’ve ever, ever seen in my lifetime! Basically enough for you to stand in with one suitcase.

The spiral staircase is so neat and it’s not small. It’s wide enough to walk up easily. And if you stay on the first floor you can just walk right up quickly and not deal with the elevator.

There is a breakfast cafe that’s part of the hotel. It’s just like something out of a Hemingway novel. Amazing food, moderately priced. Seems like breakfast is a really big deal with any hotel or BnB we researched. The “breakfast room” may be the perfect place to hang out ever. Quiet. Subtle. Warm in feel.

Hope...

Our first stay at Hotel De Seine and we were delighted. We are fans of the Saint-Germain/6th arrondissement for its perfect Paris location, central to everything we love - The Louvre, Notre Dame, Jardin des Tuileries, and more. The Hotel De Seine is perfectly situated just minutes walks from each of these, with excellent access to Metro stations (We preferred Odeon). Be sure to get a Navigo card to ride Metro anywhere you want to go - and you can load it every day using your smart phone! We did it each morning from our hotel room. As an added treat, we were steps away from the lively Rue de Buci and spent many of our eight nights jumping from convivial cafe to cafe. (A nod to our go-to, Cafe Jade.) Hotel De Seine is close to the Rue de Buci market and there is a pharmacy located across the street from the front door. Our room at Hotel De Seine was one of the Deluxe rooms and it did not disappoint. It was a 6th floor room with a "courtyard" view of neighboring Paris rooftops and a peek-a-boo of the Eiffel Tower tip which would glitter/wink at us each night. (We were not expecting any view - so this was fine with us.) The King bed was very comfortable, especially after walking the miles we did each day (Louvre, Montmartre, Disneyland, with a day trip to Berlin, Germany). Our heads hit the soft pillows and we were gone. The flat-screen TV did not get used much. But when we did watch, the pictures and channel selections were good. The room was quiet, perhaps owing to the fact that we were there in late April/early May, the summer crowds had not yet descended on Paris. The very small lift will be memorable for you: basically two people, or one person plus luggage. It never bothered us. It was part of the hotel's charm. Speaking of charm, the hotel staff is what makes the Hotel De Seine shine. Our encounters at the front desk were most pleasurable, from the greeting to our bittersweet goodbye. Special thanks to Pasqua, who is one of the hotel's best conversationalists, along with Robin, with whom we spent many an evening talking about our days in and around Paris. The people are as pleasant as the hotel. There is a very comfortable sitting/reading room off the main lobby which we used to just take a break between one stop and the next, equipped with healthy WiFi for sending texts and pictures to friends and family. PS: The WiFi in the rooms was equally good. Breakfast was served each day, although we did not partake because we mostly had other plans - but starting around 5am you could smell the pastries in the oven. Next time we'll surely leave time for that. And, yes, there will be a next time. We found our Paris hotel. Thank you, everyone, at Hotel De Seine for a memorable eight...