mcgahat

Review of August 2011 stay at Holiday Inn Opera Grands Boulevards Hotel Paris France.

Arrival: We chose to take the Roissy Bus from Charles de Gaulle airport as it goes directly to the Opera area which is not too far away from the hotel. The cost is 10 Euros and you can buy tickets at the bus stop at the airport. The bus was pretty full for our trip and there is limited space for luggage so we stood with our luggage as the racks were full. Once at Opera bus stop you can walk (about 15 minutes), take the metro (2 stops from Opera to Grands Boulevards) or Taxi. We elected to walk as it was a pretty easy walk and a nice day.

Check In: We arrived early and our room was not ready. I was suspicious that this was a property that did not allow early check in but a couple of days earlier when we were in the lobby in the morning they did allow another couple to check in early so I think they were really full the day we arrived. We have Priority Club Platinum status and there was no upgrade or status recognition at all. Looking at the rooms available I do not think they had anything to upgrade us to.

The Room: The rooms are new and you can still smell the glue and paint in some areas. That means they are in pretty good shape and the furnishings are newer/nicer etc. The room we had was small but that is pretty typical for the city and although small it was comfortable. Lots of TV channels in various languages, coffee and tea, laptop sized safe, plenty of convenient power plugs, nice LCD style TV and comfortable bedding are the things we liked most. We had a room overlooking an alley which was fine for us as I didn’t think there would be much of a view and would think the street view might get noisy at night. Internet is WIFI only and the cost is 6 Euros for 24 hours or 3 Euros for one hour and the speed was pretty good. You can either purchase online (with credit card) when you connect and it will generate a login for you or you can purchase login codes from the front desk and charge to your room. The bathroom is decent size with shower only with good pressure. The shower stall did leak but I have yet to stay at a hotel in Europe where the shower didn’t leak and leave a puddle of water on the floor. The room has air conditioning and it works very well during the day but at night it appears they cut the AC power back to save energy so on a hot night it can get very hot in the room, luckily the windows open up completely. We were on the second floor and the hotel appears to have about ten floors so I am not sure they are done with all the rooms as I did not see anyone going to the upper floors and the hotel really didn’t seem too busy.

Restaurant: The only restaurant at the hotel serves breakfast only. Our rate had breakfast included and while it was not a huge spread it did have all that I would think you would need and comparing the prices for just coffee, juice and pastry at the cafes nearby it is good value in my mind. I think the posted rate for breakfast is 15 Euros per person but I did not confirm. The food was good and although it seemed like they did not have very much out they replaced it quickly if it was empty. The only bad experience was one morning it was extremely hot in the breakfast room and cold items were very warm and the packets of butter was completely melted, not fun and couldn’t stay long as it was just too hot. This was only the case on one morning though so maybe it was just a temporary air conditioning problem.

Location: We really liked this location. First, you have the Grands Boulevards metro stop (line 8 and 9) right at your front door and exit one from the metro will take you to the front of the hotel. Second, the area is lively with a lot of nice restaurants, cafes and bars in the area. If you must, the Hard Rock café is just a few doors down from the hotel as well. I do not know Paris very well but I do know we had no problem getting around with this location as our starting point.

Departure: We were prepared to take a taxi as we really didn’t want to take the bus back to the airport and we often take public transport on arrival and taxi on departure but the front desk mentioned that they could schedule a private transfer for 55 Euros and it was actually a van. We took them up on it and the next morning after a very smooth check out the transport arrived right on time. It was a quick ride to the airport (25 minutes I think?) as there was no traffic really and the ride was clean and comfortable. I am sure it was more than a taxi and to there is actually a taxi stand right across from the hotel but this was fine and no guessing on the meter.

Conclusion: The hotel is fine now but still a bit rough around the edges as they get the rooms finished etc. I would have liked to have seen some Priority Club recognition as there was nothing and even the final bill did not show the Priority Club number but my points did post accurately four days after departure. The price is very good on this property so it is good value currently as long as you are not looking for a four or five star experience. All staff encountered were extremely helpful and spoke English well enough for me considering we know only two words of French.

nub2travel

Thanks for the great review. I am looking forward to our Sept 9th check in.

mcgahat

Hope you enjoy your stay. This hotel will probably get mixed reviews but as long as people realize it is a clean hotel at a good price (for Paris) then expectations will be set. We paid 135 Euro with breakfast and other hotels would have been much more than that. I did see one concerning thing as I was posting my review on TripAdvisor as the most recent review mentioned a theft. It was a one time poster so who know the real store but always good to keep an eye out.

PWMFlyer19

Great job, good organization. Thefts are always an issue in big European cities (Rome, Madrid, etc) and Paris is no different. Just be smart.

Thanks again.

TheBeerHunter

Great review!

tafawke

I just got home after three nights (on points) from the HI Opera Grand Blvds. I would agree with most of the comments made. My room was on the sixth floor and workman were apparent (most obviously using the lift which would be delayed when they were moving things for up to ten minutes at a time - which was a bit of a pain when the other lift was out of service).

The hotel staff were excellent, Honorine at the desk couldn't have been more helpful. She was pleasant and attentive beyond expectations.

Big problem was the internet - the server went down after the first night I was there and it never came back up - this was really annoying as I was using Skype etc to make contact back home. I was also out of pocket as I had paid for a full day and only had access for a couple of hours before going to bed and then I wasn't able to access again.

I strongly advise against using the tours advertised in the hotel - they have nothing to do with the hotel but were extremely unprofessional and I would not recommend them. I booked a tour departing from the hotel at 1.30pm which was confirmed by the hotel in the morning at my request. Then, at 12.45pm they called and cancelled the booking. I did an night Illuminations tour which was good but the next night they contacted me to say that my credit card had been refused and they wanted a different card - I had them try it again, and it worked.. I am waiting to check my statement to make sure there is only the one charge and for only the one tour. Planet City - avoid at all costs.

Back to the hotel - I believe it is going to be an excellent member of the chain once it is all finished and sorted. I was happy with my stay even though there were a few hiccups but nothing to distract from my overall impression with the hotel.

stackm

Wow, what an excellent review. For those on a budget, I found redeeming points to be one of the better values in the IHG system. 15,000 a night buys you a nice, clean, new, very well located hotel in Central Paris.

You can stay five nights at this hotel (5 * 15,000) points for less than the cost of two nights at the Intercontinental Paris (2 * 40,000). In my opinion it's a steal at that rate.

lsed

Here's my tip:
Book the room with the extra sofa bed. The rate is the same as the standard but almost twice the size.
Toilet has a bathtub instead which is tiny but that's the only downside.
Also my room faced the back so not sure if there are rooms that face the main road (for the ones with extra sofa bed)

I used points which was a good deal. However you can't book on points for the room with sofa bed. At least not for my night. But if you email the hotel they will change the room type for free (as a Plat member)

The rooms are tiny, can't imagine if I was in the standard room!

PWMFlyer19

Just in case anybody is using this thread, the hotel has gone up to 25,000 pts per night and is no longer 15,000.

Cheers.

Shareholder

Glad I booked months ago at the 15K rate for my stay next month. Seems like a solid 3-star property well located. Thanks for the review and photos.

Shareholder

Having just completed my stay at this property pretty much concur with the remarks of others. It is a clean, well-located tourist hotel in an interesting district of Paris (one of the Jewish quarters as well as a theatrical centre). Lotsk of bistros in the immediate neighbourhood at all price levels. More interesting ones up Montmartre and the side streets north of the hotel rather than along Haussman and Poissonnieres. The Grands Boulevard metro (lines 8 and 9) station is right in front of the hotel so very convenient (line 8 takes you to the south bank Invalides station an easy walk to the D'Orsay museum, or Place de la Concorde; 9 takes you to the Trocadero/Eiffel Tower area). Station used to be called Montmatre before being renamed Grands Boulevards. It is a short walk at Opera to either Metro line to get to/from the hotel and the RATP Roussybus from CDG.

Not sure if I will be charged for trashing the room as I pulled the towel holder slightly from the wall when bracing myself getting out of the shower/bath! Also, if you notice the TV audio is too low at maximum, just use the button on the side (top one) to increase the default level, then use the remote. (It helps that I have a similar model Phillips TV at home.)

There is a CarrefourCite shop just up on Montmartre if you want to bring in some juices or water (beer and wine are in the basement). Rack rates show as Euro280 which is outrageous. Award rates have also risen, so while it was a value proposition for me, I'd have to reconsider based on what else was available in the city on another trip.

shand32783

We'll be arriving in August from Venice on the overnight train into Paris and we're thinking of stating at the above hotel. Most likely a 3 night stay

I understand I may still be able to book rooms at the 15,000 point a night level for a few more days.

Is this good use of my points or is there another property that I should be thinking of for the 15,000 pt level.

The 15,000 pt level is still available through calling in right?

We will be traveling by foot and would prefer something close to a subway / bus line.

Thanks!

nicolas75

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/inter...ght=Boulevards

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/inter...aris-open.html

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/17736920-post30.html

shand32783

I thought I read somewhere that the old rate was 15,000 a night and that they will extend that offer until March 18???

I waiting to hear a definite yes on that...

But also was wondering if there was a better one at 15,000 I should be asking for. But this particular property seems to get good reviews, so I'd be happy with that.

Anyone confirm I can call and ask for the 15,000 point rate?

nicolas75

HI Gare de l'Est was (is) at 15,000 points a night.

Not quite sure about Grands Boulevards.

The best way to know is to call the PC line