Recommended Apartments in the 6th Arrondissement of Paris (Saint-Germain and the Luxembourg Gardens)

A 20-square-meter studio on Rue de Rennes, in a handsome building with an elevator, with a contemporary design and wooden floors. The kitchenette has a microwave, a fridge and a coffee machine, and the bathroom is much bigger than usual in Paris. The location is hard to beat: the Saint-Sulpice station on line 4 is two hundred meters away and takes you straight to Saint-Michel and Châtelet, the Saint-Sulpice church is around the corner, and the Luxembourg Gardens are a five-minute walk away. Sophie, the host, really is attentive. Note that the windows let in little natural light, and that in winter it takes a while to heat the place. I recommend it for a couple who wants a perfect location and doesn’t need a view.

An apartment in a historic building with parquet floors and its own private entrance, on the edge of Saint-Germain that faces the river. The Île de la Cité is right across from the door, and the bridges of the Seine start right there. The equipment is more thoughtful than average in this category: a Nespresso machine, quality toiletries, a TV, and the team sends detailed check-in instructions in advance, which saves the usual confusion of apartments with no reception. Note that this area is one of the busiest in Paris during the day, with tourists, restaurants and cafés on every corner. I recommend it for anyone who wants to be in the middle of the action, not for those looking for neighborhood quiet.

The apartment is on Rue Gît-le-Cœur, a tiny street running off the Seine quays. Literature lovers will know that number 9 was home in the 1950s to the Beat Hotel, where Allen Ginsberg (1926-1997), William S. Burroughs (1914-1997) and Gregory Corso (1930-2001) lived. Today it’s a street that stays quiet at night despite the location. Some of the units have a kitchen with a dishwasher and an oven. Notre-Dame is five hundred meters away, the Louvre eight hundred, and the Saint-Michel Notre-Dame station is two hundred meters away, with a direct RER to the airport and to Versailles. Note that the air conditioning here is fairly weak, and in an August heat wave you’ll feel it. I recommend it for anyone coming in spring or fall who wants to be in the heart of everything.

A renovated, air-conditioned 32-square-meter apartment with a separate bedroom, a living room with a sofa bed and a fully equipped kitchen with a microwave and a coffee machine. It sits on a quiet street a few steps from the Luxembourg Gardens, with restaurants, bakeries and shops all around. Air conditioning is not a given here, and anyone who has been to Paris in August knows how much of a difference it makes. The host hands over the keys in person and not in a lockbox, which is always reassuring. Note that the size is real: for a couple it’s a perfect apartment, and for four it’s already tight despite the sofa bed. I recommend it for a couple or parents with one child, and no more.

Two hundred and four apartments on seven floors on the Quai des Grands Augustins, right on the bank of the Seine and across from the Pont Neuf. There are studios for two and one-bedroom apartments for four, all with a separate, equipped kitchen with a dishwasher, air conditioning, blackout curtains and soundproofing. Some units look out over the river. The building has a 24-hour gym and a staffed reception. The Louvre is an eight-minute walk away and Notre-Dame nine, and Saint-Germain-des-Prés starts just across the road. Note that breakfast costs 19 euros per person and isn’t included. I recommend asking for a unit with a view of the Seine, and yes, it’s worth the extra.

A designer apartment in the heart of Saint-Germain, from the chain that also runs the apartments I recommended in the 1st and 2nd arrondissements. Their standard is consistent: a fully equipped kitchen, a Nespresso machine, hotel-quality sheets and towels, and interior design by a local designer, not out of a catalog. The apartment is bright and comfortably fits six. All around you is everything Saint-Germain is known for: the historic cafés like the Café de Flore and Les Deux Magots, the bookshops and the boutiques. Note that there’s no reception desk: you get in with a digital code through the app, and quiet rules apply after ten in the evening. I recommend it for a group of adults who prefer independence to service.

A residence at 78 Rue d’Assas, with several units of different sizes. They have a kitchen with an oven, a microwave and a coffee machine, soundproofed windows, and some have a sitting area or a balcony. The location is quiet and truly residential: the Luxembourg Gardens are a seven-minute walk away, the Notre-Dame-des-Champs station 350 meters and the Port-Royal RER station 550 meters. And here are two warnings I have to give you: there’s no elevator in the building, and check-in is only possible from four thirty in the afternoon. On top of that, the size of the units varies a lot. I recommend confirming the exact size and capacity with the host before you book.

A residence of 17 units on Rue Monsieur-le-Prince, in a renovated 18th-century building. There are studios, suites and a duplex with three bedrooms, all air-conditioned, with a full kitchen, a washing machine and a Nespresso machine whose capsules are restocked daily. The reception is staffed around the clock, cleaning is daily, and breakfast is delivered to your door. The building has a spa with an indoor pool, a hammam and a sauna. The Luxembourg Gardens are a five-minute walk away, Notre-Dame ten, and the Latin Quarter starts across the street. And here’s the critical detail for families: access to the pool and hammam costs extra and is allowed only from age 16. I recommend checking the spa’s opening hours in advance, because they’re limited.