Louvre & Tuileries
Hôtel Brighton
4-star hotel · Atout France classification of 30 May 2022
- Metro 1 Tuileries · 2 min walk
- Metro 7, 14 Pyramides · 6 min walk
- 218 rue de Rivoli, 75001 Paris · 62 rooms
- Bar
- Family rooms
- Accessible rooms
- Pets allowed
Our guides
Where to stay in Paris for the first time
Where to stay in Paris for a first visit: thirteen areas ranked by the round trip to the Louvre, Notre-Dame and the Eiffel Tower. Checked October 2026.
A first visit to Paris comes down to three trips: the Louvre, Notre-Dame and the Eiffel Tower. Montmartre is the usual addition. The neighbourhood that minimises those trips is the one to book, and the others are second-stay choices. This page ranks our thirteen areas by that criterion, using the Île-de-France Mobilités timetable.
The round trip that decides it
For each area, we took the median journey time, walking included, from one reference point to the Louvre pyramid, Notre-Dame and the Eiffel Tower. The times are medians of four departures between 10:00 and 10:15 on Tuesday 13 October 2026, theoretical and without disruption. We then added the three. The lowest sum is the area that sits closest to the three sights taken together.
Photo: Uoaei1, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
| Area | Arrondissements | Louvre | Eiffel Tower | Notre-Dame | Sum of the three | First visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saint-Germain-des-Prés | 6th 7th | 13 min | 30 min | 12 min | 55 min | Recommended |
| Opéra / Grands Boulevards | 2nd 9th | 12 min | 26 min | 17 min | 55 min | Recommended |
| Louvre / Tuileries | 1st | 12 min | 30 min | 16 min | 58 min | Recommended |
| Eiffel Tower | 7th 15th | 21 min | 14 min | 26 min | 61 min | Possible |
| Champs-Élysées / Golden Triangle | 8th | 20 min | 19 min | 27 min | 66 min | Possible |
| Montparnasse | 14th 15th | 23 min | 23 min | 21 min | 67 min | Recommended |
| Latin Quarter | 5th | 24 min | 31 min | 12 min | 67 min | Recommended |
| Bastille / Oberkampf | 11th | 17 min | 37 min | 19 min | 73 min | Possible |
| Le Marais | 3rd 4th | 17 min | 38 min | 19 min | 74 min | Recommended |
| Bercy / Gare de Lyon | 12th | 19 min | 36 min | 19 min | 74 min | Possible |
| Pigalle / SoPi | 9th | 20 min | 34 min | 26 min | 80 min | Possible |
| Montmartre | 18th | 23 min | 36 min | 28 min | 87 min | Possible |
| Canal Saint-Martin | 10th | 26 min | 41 min | 25 min | 92 min | Possible |
Saint-Germain-des-Prés and the Opéra come out first, both at 55 minutes, then the Louvre / Tuileries district at 58. From Saint-Germain the Eiffel Tower now takes 30 minutes, on foot to Musée d’Orsay and then RER C, because line 4 does not stop at Saint-Michel. The Eiffel Tower and Champs-Élysées areas follow, because they are close to the tower and far from Notre-Dame. Montparnasse and the Latin Quarter come next, both at 67 minutes: Montparnasse puts the Louvre and the tower at 23 minutes each, the Latin Quarter puts Notre-Dame at 12 minutes on foot and the Louvre at 24 on foot. The Marais, Bastille, Bercy and Pigalle sit at 73 to 80 minutes, and Montmartre and the Canal Saint-Martin close the list at 87 and 92. A low sum does not make an area more pleasant: it only measures proximity to the three sights.
Why six areas are recommended
The data marks six areas as recommended for a first visit: Louvre / Tuileries, Opéra / Grands Boulevards, Le Marais, Saint-Germain-des-Prés, the Latin Quarter and Montparnasse. The other seven are possible, and La Défense is not advised. The table gives the reasoning area by area; the verdicts are deductions from the sources, not measurements.
Photo: Sumit Surai, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
| Area | What the data says |
|---|---|
| Louvre / Tuileries | Louvre, Tuileries, Palais-Royal and Vendôme on foot; lines 1, 7 and 14 and the Châtelet hub |
| Opéra / Grands Boulevards | Palais Garnier, department stores and passages on foot; the Louvre is two stops away on line 7 |
| Le Marais | Museums and Sunday-opening shops on the spot; Louvre and Notre-Dame under 20 minutes from place des Vosges |
| Saint-Germain-des-Prés | Louvre and Orsay along the Seine on foot, Notre-Dame to the east; line 4 runs direct to Châtelet and Gare du Nord |
| Latin Quarter | Notre-Dame 12 minutes on foot from place de la Sorbonne and the Louvre 24 on foot, or 19 from rue Mouffetard on line 7; the Eiffel Tower is 31 minutes away by the RER C; line 4 does not stop at Saint-Michel until 19 December 2026 |
| Montparnasse | Four metro lines at the Gare Montparnasse: the Eiffel Tower in 23 minutes on line 6, Notre-Dame in 21 on line 4 and the Louvre in 23 with a change; the observatory of the Tour Montparnasse has been closed since 31 March 2026 |
| Eiffel Tower | View of the tower and the Champ-de-Mars, but out to the west: metro or RER C for the Louvre and Notre-Dame |
| Champs-Élysées / Golden Triangle | Line 1 runs direct to Concorde, the Louvre, Hôtel de Ville and Bastille and the Arc de Triomphe is on site; offices and luxury shops, and 4,610 residents in the quartier in 1999, the fewest of the 8th (an old figure) |
| Canal Saint-Martin | No major monument; République (lines 3, 5, 9 and 11; line 8 does not stop there until April 2027) and Gare du Nord reach the centre, so our sheet keeps it for a second stay |
| Bastille / Oberkampf | Outside the historic centre, but line 1 links Bastille to the Louvre and the Champs-Élysées with no change |
| Montmartre | Sacré-Cœur and place du Tertre, but to the north: metro for the Louvre, Notre-Dame and the tower |
| Pigalle / SoPi | Well linked by lines 2, 7, 12 and 13 but peripheral to the Louvre and the tower; Sacré-Cœur on foot |
| Bercy / Gare de Lyon | Line 14 express to Châtelet, Pyramides and Madeleine, line 1 direct from Gare de Lyon; far from the sights on foot |
The Marais is recommended despite its sum of 74 minutes, because only the Eiffel Tower is far from it: the Louvre is 17 minutes away and Notre-Dame 19. For the evening, the Grands Boulevards around the Opéra hold a dense group of protected theatres and music halls; the Marais has LGBT+ bars around rue Sainte-Croix-de-la-Bretonnerie and rue Vieille-du-Temple, and our sheet describes the Île Saint-Louis as calm in the evening; the big cafés of Saint-Germain stay open late, but no source describes a bar scene beyond them, and none does for the Louvre / Tuileries district either.
One fixed point: the Louvre
The Louvre is open 9:00 to 18:00 on Monday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, and 9:00 to 21:00 on Wednesday and Friday; it is closed on Tuesday. A ticket costs €22 for France and the European Economic Area and €32 outside it, according to the museum’s site (checked 4 October 2026), which warns against tickets from street sellers because entry can be refused. Plan the Louvre on a day that matches those hours, then fit the other two sights around it.
Photo: Ali Sabbagh, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Practical points for 2026
- Airport trains. Line 14 runs direct to Orly and the RER B direct to Roissy; from the Opéra, the RoissyBus no longer exists, and line 9517 has replaced it since 1 March 2026. CDG Express is planned for 28 March 2027.
- Closures. Saint-Michel station is shut on line 4 until 19 December 2026 (closed since 14 September), and trains on line 8 do not stop at République from 22 July 2026 to April 2027, according to paris.fr on 4 October 2026. Check the line before choosing a hotel that depends on it.
- Pickpockets. The UK Foreign Office names the metro, the RER and the big stations; the Japanese foreign ministry names the Eiffel Tower, the Trocadéro, the Louvre, the Tuileries and the Champs-Élysées, as well as the metro and RER. The UK says they sometimes work in groups: one distracts, one steals. It also reports several serious assaults on the RER B (Roissy, Orly, Gare du Nord) and the RER D (Stade de France).
Four-star hotels in the recommended areas
The hotels listed below are from our database: two 4★ hotels in each of the six recommended areas (those of the Marais, the Latin Quarter and Montparnasse appear without a page on this site). For the full set, with 5★ and smaller-budget hotels, see the home page. If you travel with children, read where to stay in Paris with family; for a smaller budget, places to stay on a budget.
Our selection
Some links are affiliate links: if you book through them, we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. How we are paid
-
-
Louvre & Tuileries
Drawing Hotel
4-star hotel · Atout France classification of 22 April 2026
- Metro 1, 7 Palais Royal - Musée du Louvre · 3 min walk
- Metro 7, 14 Pyramides · 3 min walk
- 17 rue de Richelieu, 75001 Paris · 48 rooms
- Bar
- Terrace
- Garden or patio
- Accessible rooms
-
Opéra & Grands Boulevards
La Maison Favart
4-star hotel · Atout France classification of 1 July 2022
- Metro 8, 9 Richelieu-Drouot · 2 min walk
- Metro 3 Quatre Septembre · 2 min walk
- 5 rue de Marivaux, 75002 Paris · 39 rooms
- Spa
- Fitness room
- Family rooms
-
Opéra & Grands Boulevards
Hôtel Panache
4-star hotel · Atout France classification of 11 August 2022
- Metro 8, 9 Grands Boulevards · 4 min walk
- Metro 7 Le Peletier · 4 min walk
- 1 rue Geoffroy-Marie, 75009 Paris · 40 rooms
- Restaurant
- Bar
- Family rooms
- Pets allowed
-
Saint-Germain-des-Prés
Hôtel du Quai Voltaire
4-star hotel · Atout France classification of 16 May 2025
- Metro RER C Musée d'Orsay · 6 min walk
- Metro 1, 7 Palais Royal - Musée du Louvre · 9 min walk
- 19 quai Voltaire, 75007 Paris · 30 rooms
- Restaurant
- Air conditioning
-
Saint-Germain-des-Prés
Hôtel Récamier
4-star hotel · Atout France classification of 8 November 2022
- Metro 4 Saint-Sulpice · 5 min walk
- Metro 10 Mabillon · 5 min walk
- 3 bis place Saint-Sulpice, 75006 Paris · 24 rooms
- Bar
- Family rooms
- Accessible rooms
-
Le Marais
Hôtel Jules & Jim
4-star hotel · Atout France classification of 29 January 2026
- Metro 3, 11 Arts et Métiers · 3 min walk
- Metro 11 Rambuteau · 6 min walk
- 11 rue des Gravilliers, 75003 Paris · 23 rooms
- Fitness room
- Bar
- Terrace
- Garden or patio
- Air conditioning
- Accessible rooms
-
Le Marais
Hôtel du Petit Moulin
4-star hotel · Atout France classification of 23 May 2022
- Metro 8 Saint-Sébastien - Froissart · 6 min walk
- Metro 8 Filles du Calvaire · 6 min walk
- 29-31 rue de Poitou, 75003 Paris · 17 rooms
- Bar
- Air conditioning
- Accessible rooms
- Pets allowed
-
Latin Quarter
Hôtel Pilgrim
4-star hotel · Atout France classification of 24 November 2023
- Metro 10 Cardinal Lemoine · 5 min walk
- Metro 10 Maubert-Mutualité · 6 min walk
- 11 rue de Poissy, 75005 Paris · 53 rooms
- Spa
- Pool
- Fitness room
- Bar
- Terrace
- Air conditioning
- Family rooms
- Accessible rooms
- Pets allowed
-
Latin Quarter
Hôtel Les Dames du Panthéon
4-star hotel · Atout France classification of 29 November 2023
- Metro RER B Luxembourg · 6 min walk
- Metro 10 Cardinal Lemoine · 8 min walk
- 19 place du Panthéon, 75005 Paris · 35 rooms
- Bar
- Air conditioning
- Family rooms
- Pets allowed
-
Montparnasse
Pullman Paris Montparnasse
4-star hotel · Atout France classification of 17 August 2023
- Metro 13 Gaîté · 3 min walk
- Metro 4, 6, 12, 13, Transilien N Montparnasse-Bienvenüe · 5 min walk
- 19 rue du Commandant-René-Mouchotte, 75014 Paris · 957 rooms
- Fitness room
- Restaurant
- Bar
- Terrace
- Air conditioning
- Family rooms
- Accessible rooms
- Pets allowed
- Parking
-
Montparnasse
Mercure Paris Centre Gare Montparnasse
4-star hotel · Atout France classification of 7 November 2025
- Metro 13 Gaîté · 2 min walk
- Metro 6 Edgar Quinet · 4 min walk
- 20 rue de la Gaîté, 75014 Paris · 188 rooms
- Restaurant
- Bar
- Air conditioning
- Accessible rooms
- Parking
