Pavillon Villiers Etoile

The staff were fairly friendly at times, with some greeting us in the lobby and others barely acknowledging us. That was the one positive. I stay in hotels often and try to be accommodating, but this was the worst I’ve experienced, and it was disgusting. The sheets smelled horrible and had hair on them; the floor was dirty and smelly. The toilet barely flushed, and the sink and shower wouldn’t drain properly. The rooms were extremely tiny, with hardly enough space to open the bathroom door or put down luggage. The area felt very sketchy, and by the end of each day I dreaded going back. A hotel should be somewhere to unwind on vacation. WiFi didn’t work for me or the three others with me. The hall lights were off at night, so you had to walk to the middle of the dark hallway to switch them on. The lift only fits two people. There was also a sign saying the hotel wasn’t responsible if anything went missing from a room, which made me wonder who else had keys. I will not recommend this place.

There’s plenty of food nearby, and the neighborhood feels safe and cozy. Most of the main Paris sights are within an hour’s walk, and public transit is easy to reach. For the price, it’s a good option for a short visit. The room was clean and gave us a comfortable enough place to rest between day trips, but there wasn’t much to get excited about. We had one bed, which took up about three quarters of the room. On a warm day it gets extremely hot. The AC didn’t seem to work, though they gave us a fan. If you’ll spend most of the day exploring, it’s a pretty good deal.

The pictures on the website don’t match what I found. The hotel allows smoking in the courtyard, and my room faced it, so smoke filled the room. It was over 90 degrees in Paris, but I had to keep the window shut. There’s no AC, and the fan didn’t work. The bathroom smelled of urine from check-in, and the sink wouldn’t drain. The front desk just said, “I’m sorry.” The place is very dated, and the carpet was so filthy that clean white socks turned brown and black. The spiral staircase between floors is painted concrete and felt unsafe. The elevator is slow and only fits two people with one piece of luggage. I don’t know when the website photos were taken, but they aren’t a true representation.

There aren’t many amenities, but there are lots of good shops and places to eat nearby, and the metro is close for visiting the famous landmarks. The staff were really nice and helpful. They kept the room as clean as they could and provided a cell phone for calls during my stay. The hotel feels like a two-star place by US standards, but I really enjoyed my time there.