Your Own Food, the Great Monuments and Memorable Photographs in Paris

When travelling to Paris, Indian families often ask three things. What will the food be like? How close will the great monuments be? And where will the photographs be taken that you will remember for years? The answer to all three comes down to a single decision: where you stay.

Food: out, and at home too

Vegetarian travellers do not go hungry in Paris. The city has Indian and South Asian restaurants, and these days most good restaurants have vegetarian dishes on the menu. Our concierge can suggest addresses near your apartment and book a table in advance.

But the real comfort lies in your own kitchen. Every one of our apartments has a fully equipped kitchen: morning tea made your way, simple food for the children, or something light after a long day. In the 2nd arrondissement, on a market street such as rue Montorgueil, you will find fresh vegetables, fruit, cheese and bread.

Monuments: those within walking distance

ACT 3 chooses its addresses across Paris, one by one. The advantage of staying in the heart of the city is that many of the great monuments are within walking distance. Take, for example, three neighbourhoods in the centre:

• · The 2nd arrondissement: the Opéra Garnier, the Palais-Royal gardens, and a little further on, the Louvre.
• · The Upper Marais: the Musée Picasso, the Musée Carnavalet, which tells the history of Paris, and lanes lined with old mansions.
• · Saint-Germain-des-Prés: the Luxembourg garden, the church of Saint-Sulpice, and the banks of the Seine.

The Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe are further from these neighbourhoods, but easily reached by metro. Go out to see them, and come back in the evening to a lively neighbourhood.

Photographs: light and place

The most beautiful photographs of Paris are often taken early in the morning, when the crowds are thin and the light is soft. A few places in the centre of the city:

• · The striped columns of Buren in the courtyard of the Palais-Royal.
• · The Galerie Vivienne, a nineteenth-century covered passage with a glass roof and a mosaic floor.
• · The façade of the Opéra Garnier, in the evening light.
• · The green chairs and the fountain of the Luxembourg garden.

And for the Eiffel Tower, the Trocadéro, from where the whole tower fits into a single frame.

Where to stay, so that everything is close

In a hotel room, a family is squeezed together. In an apartment, everyone has a place of their own: two to four bedrooms, a large living room in which to sit together, and in many apartments as many bathrooms as bedrooms. All the apartments are air-conditioned.

Every stay includes a personal welcome, premium linen, a dedicated concierge seven days a week, and a team available at any time. Whether it is an airport transfer or a last-minute need: the city becomes our concierge.

See the apartments by neighbourhood on the neighbourhoods page, or the whole collection. If you are coming with your family, read our guide for families too.

The ACT 3 Team