Le Placide Saint Germain des Pres

We arrived soaked after walking from the metro in pouring rain. The staff brought us towels right away and lent us umbrellas for heading out again. They were great throughout our stay. The hotel is right across from Le Bon Marché, near lots of shops, restaurants, and the metro. The neighborhood is really cute and felt very safe. Our room was clean, comfortable, and a good size. I had a terrace room. The weather wasn't great, so I didn't spend much time outside, but the terrace was still a nice addition. I had a fantastic stay at Hôtel Le Placide and will absolutely return next time I'm in Paris.

The staff were very kind and often checked whether we needed anything. Since it was raining, the hotel had large umbrellas for guests to use. Breakfast service was especially good, and they offered turndown service if you weren't back before dinner. We stayed in the Triple suite, which was spacious by Paris hotel standards and had plenty of room for our luggage. The bathroom was especially roomy, and its windows open for ventilation. The tub shower could use a grab bar for getting in and out safely. Being short, I found it difficult to manage. The supplied Nuxe toiletries were so heavily perfumed, like pomade, that my husband and daughter, who are sensitive to smells that cause migraines, couldn't use them. We got organic toiletries from the nearby Pharmacies and Franprix instead. The hotel is in a nice neighborhood, close to the Grand Epicerie and Bon Marche. There are plenty of shops, cafes, and restaurants nearby, including Franprix for snacks, water, and sundries, and the metro stations are only 2-3 minutes away. The hotel is dated, and replacing the brown carpet with a hard floor might be better for allergy sufferers. The beds were comfortable enough, and the air conditioning was good, a blessing on hot, humid days. There are generous wardrobes, a desk, and a few chairs. A small table for eating meals would have been useful. We'd definitely stay again. One tip: booking directly with the hotel worked out much cheaper than using Expedia or Booking, and they had deals that included the breakfast buffet and the option to hire a car for airport pickup and drop-off. That was convenient and reasonably priced.

Our stay was short, but we left with a lasting impression of Paris and of the people at Hotel Le Placide. The hotel's location, comfort, and cleanliness were all great, and the staff's warmth and professionalism stood out. After checking out in the morning, we came back that evening for our luggage and discovered our Eurostar to London and every later departure had been cancelled. We watched possible ways home disappear from the screen and started to panic. Benjamin sat with us and patiently helped search for any route still available. Even though we were no longer guests, he offered seats and water and treated us with real care. Benjamin, we're glad to say we eventually made it home safely. Thank you so much to Benjamin and all the staff. When we return to Paris, we'll come straight back.

We trusted the hotel to handle our laundry, and the service provider charged us 250eu for work that had cost 35eu at our previous hotel. They did reduce the bill by 45eu, but kept their relationship with a vendor we found outrageously expensive. I've rewritten this review after the hotel shamefully accused me of lying. As we were leaving, we dropped off a bag and were handed a detailed form listing items in French, or perhaps in the laundry service's own terms, that didn't easily match common US clothing names. The clerk was surprised the form wasn't in our room and let us quickly write a list on its blank back so he could translate it. We were in a hurry, trusted him, and assumed Paris prices would be only a little higher than at a well-appointed German hotel. We asked for washing, but got items pressed, folded, and heavily packaged. That was unnecessary waste, especially for T-shirts, underwear, and socks. Why press those? A pair of socks cost 5eu, for example. We were told the laundry would take 24 hours. It took three days, and the items arrived just before checkout. The clerk was as shocked as we were by the cost and said the service had clearly applied the most expensive options and packaging unnecessarily. They had two extra days to warn us about the huge bill. Instead, they blamed us. Yes, it was our mistake to trust them and expect a price comparable to other hotels, but they should have gone back to the vendor and at least cut the bill in half. The whole experience felt like they and their provider took advantage of guests.