One can only wonder if FT newcomer (or possibly FT recycled user) johnlewis has ever stayed at either property. Or, for that matter, has ever been to Paris.
S/he certainly hasn't been to the HI St-G. The streets around the HI are full of lovely shops - I bought a set of Leonardo glasses at a housewares shop and had the shipped to the US on a recent trip. The rue de Cherche-Midi is chock full of antique shops, book shops, and charming tea houses. The shops around the Croix-Rouge are terrific (best slection of Camper shoes anywhere), along with designer couture and pret-a-porter shops such as Lacroix. It's a 5- or 10-minute walk to the Bon Marche food shop, one of the best in Paris.
HI Republique does have excellent access to a metro, which is a good thing because you would want to get away from from that area rather than stroll around it.
And by the way, the expression "2 steps" is a common idiomatic expression. Too bad that johnlewis did not (or elected to not) understand it.