Welcome to Rue des Trois Portes! This charming and spacious (63m2) one-bedroom / two-bathrooms duplex apartment is located just one block from the Seine and just 300 steps to the cathedral of Nôtre Dame.
The apartment is one block from the oldest church in Paris, St. Julien des Pauvres, which marks the beginning of the busy pedestrian streets of the Latin Quarter. It is also one block from the Place Maubert, famous for its frequent open-air markets...
... and three blocks from the legendary intersection of the Boulevard St. Michel with the Boulevard St. Germain. Within easy walking distance of the Panthéon and the Mouffetard, the Île de la Cité, the Louvre, the île Saint Louis and the Marais, it is hard to imagine an apartment more centrally located in Paris.
Surprisingly, there is very little vehicular or pedestrian traffic on the street itself, which dates to 1202, making the apartment reasonably quiet. Located on the second and third floors (European, with elevator) of a traditional 17th-century building, the apartment is bright, looking south to the picturesque corner of the rue LaGrange and the rue Dante.
The primary entrance, on the third floor, leads into a hallway - both to a spacious closet and to an open living and dining area. The living room has a leather sofa that easily converts to a comfortable bed for two. A folk-art armoire from the Spanish Pyrenees looks like it might be out of North Africa. In this armoire is a CD player with an eclectic selection of jazz, classical and world music. In the same armoire, you will find some games and extra linens for the sofa-bed. Additional linens and a small dresser can be found in the entry hall closet. An antique glass bookcase offers a nice collection of guidebooks on Paris and France, as well an assortment of art books and a miscellany of English language novels. You can settle into the 1930’s Art-Deco club chair by the circular staircase to read them.
A handsome Balinese dining table seats six, with capacity to comfortably seat eight.
The American-style kitchen comes fully equipped, with a Miele dishwasher, a four-burner electric stovetop, microwave and regular ovens, coffee maker, electric tea kettle, toaster and all pots, pans, cutlery and dishes.
There is additional kitchen storage in an antique Chinese buffet. There is a utility closet next to the kitchen with a ladder, vacuum cleaner, extra folding chairs, iron and ironing board, etc.
From the living room you descend the circular staircase to the bedroom on the floor below (second floor European), which has its own separate entrance from the elevator lobby. This floor has a king-size platform bed with a fine, Japanese-style, futon mattress. An African folk mirror hangs above a chest with twenty-seven (!) drawers, offering lots of storage. There is also a downstairs closet in the entry hall by the bathroom.
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This recently renovated, tiled bathroom is larger than the one on the floor above, with a newly designed, spacious walk-in shower, generous cabinetry, large mirror, slate flooring as well as a washer and dryer - making it easy for you to do any necessary laundry during your stay. Additional linens may be found stored in this area for your convenience.
The third floor bathroom is located off the entry hall and includes a toilet, sink, large shower and an over-scaled black Baroque mirror.
Back in the bedroom, you can write postcards or plug in your laptop at a curious writing desk from the 1940’s, although high-speed wireless internet access (WiFi) is available throughout the apartment.
Opposite the bed is the flat-screen TV, which has channels in many languages, including CNN International, BBC News, TCM (movie channel) and other English-language stations. There is free long-distance telephone service to more than thirty countries.
NOTRE DAME AND THE LATIN QUARTER
Located equidistant to Nôtre Dame and the Place Maubert, the apartment is close to pharmacies, bakeries, dry cleaners, an excellent and friendly cheese shop (at the Place Maubert), wine shops, traditional and organic groceries, a copy shop, bookstores (including the famous English language bookstore, Shakespeare & Company), countless restaurants with all kinds of international cuisine and numerous art-house and first-run cinemas.
With three Métro stations, the RER train lines and many bus lines within close vicinity, the apartment is easily accessible to anywhere in the city and beyond. The RER train to both Orly and Charles De Gaulle Airports stops at the St. Michel metro station, just three blocks from the apartment. From this same station, you can catch the train to Versailles and many other destinations.
You can walk into the lively Latin Quarter, to the charming rue Mouffetard or to the islands in the Seine. Two blocks north of the apartment, you can catch a boat ride up and down the river. It is an easy walk across the Île Saint Louis into the Marais. Or you can take the river-level walk along the banks of the Seine west to the Louvre and the Musée d’Orsay. Pack up the picnic basket provided with the apartment and take a picnic to the Luxembourg Gardens or the Jardin des Plantes or head east along the Seine (before you get to the Jardin des Plantes, in front of the University) to watch the break-dancers, tango dancers and capoeira artists who are out enjoying themselves every warm evening of the year on the banks of the river. The neighborhood is beautiful and lively, with loads to visit and a whole lot of shopping to do!
TRANSPORTATION
Métro: Maubert Mutualité (Line #10), Saint Michel (#4, RER C), Cluny La Sorbonne (RER B, RER C, Line #10)
Bus lines: 84, 89, 63, 87, 86
Taxi: Place Maubert
AMENITIES
- Digicode, intercom entry system
- 2nd + 3rd floors, European (3rd + 4th floors American), each with its own entrance, with elevator
- Bright, southwest facing windows overlooking a small square on a short, quiet street that dates to 1202
- Second floor bedroom: king-size platform bed with a firm, futon-style mattress, large chest of drawers, closet, flat-screen TV, spacious writing/laptop desk, and full and recently renovated bath with spacious shower, sink and toilet, washer and dryer.
- Third floor living/dining/kitchen: High-end leather sofa that quickly, easily converts to a comfortable double bed; dining for six (expandable to eight), American kitchen, closet, armoire with CD player, buffet, bookcase, club chair, and a second full bath with shower, sink and toilet
- Plenty of bed linens, hand, bath and kitchen towels
- Hair dryer, iron, and ironing board
- Refrigerator with freezer
- 4-burner electric stovetop and oven
- Microwave oven
- A complete array of kitchenware (all cooking utensils, dinner and tableware, serving pieces)
- Electric coffee maker
- Electric tea kettle and tea pot
- Toaster
- Radio alarm clock
- Large picnic basket for outings
- CD player, with an assortment of CDs, including jazz, classical and world music
- Flat screen color TV with cable channels, including BBC World, TCM (English-language movie channel), CNN International and Aljazeera International
- Private telephone line with voice-mail message system
- Free long distance telephone service to more than 30 countries, including US and Canada
- Free WiFi internet access
- Books and guidebooks in English
- Manual with recommendations for local restaurants and instructions for equipment provided
- Electricity, heat, telephone and internet included
- Non-smoking
- No pets allowed
