To preface this review, I've stayed in a number of places of differing standards around the world - hostels in the midst of NZ all the way up to the Mandarin Oriental in KL. I usually go for places that aren't too flash but are centrally located; I'm usually there to be a tourist, not stay indoors all the time.

In which case, the Aux Trois Portes Hotel fits this bill well. It's very handily located near Richadr Lenior station, and is a short 5 min walk to the Bastille, where there's quite a few cafes and restaurants. Around the corner of the hotel is a supermarket.

The room itself (107) isn't of the highest standard. The walls could do with some scrubbing and paint, the bathroom is small, the throwover on the bed is old, and the mini-bar is jammed quite close-up to the edge of the bed. There's no showerhead holder as well which is a bit of a hassle. The stairs leading up to the room, which is on the first floor, is quite steep and there's no elevator so folks who aren't too mobile may find it a struggle.

However, when you're bang in the middle of Paris on a decent street I'm not expecting a lot, and for the price I paid I would be pleasantly surprised if it was any better. I've also stayed in worse. All in all if there wasn't one incident (which I'll come to in a sec) I would give this 2.5 out of 5. Nothing amazing, nothing surprising, what should be expected.

What I didn't expect is scratching myself silly 2 days after staying there. I've had bedbugs before (in a hostel in NZ) so know what they are and what they look like. I thought at first it was mosquitos, so ignored it for two nights. I was leaving on the 3rd day, and by that time I was fairly certain of what it was. I hate kicking a fuss so only mentioned it quietly to the desk clerk downstairs. His response?

"Ok" *scribbles down the room number*

I went out for a walk and the more I thought about it, the more I was a bit gobsmacked by his response. I wasn't fishing for discounts or anything, but for the health and safety of future guests you'd expect him to enquire more about it to find out if it was true (and if it was, do something about it). Seriously? This is how you treat guests and the health of the rooms?

On that basis, I'd give this 1 out of 5.

We stayed at this hotel for 3 nights at the end of November , I would not recommend this hotel to anyone, I understand that we wanted a budget hotel and thats what we got yes its cheap compared to other hotels but at 55 euros a night I would expect the very basic that we didnt get, first of all it was dirty im not talking a bit of dust here im talking rock hard curtains where they are so dirty, disgusting net curtains that were grey,I ran my finger along the window sill and it was black with dirt, there was scum in all the tiles in the bathroom and the bathroom had a false ceiling but you could see the other one which had paint peiling i couldnt enjoy a shower as i was worried loads of brown mouldy paint would fall onto me! the toilet seat had to be moved over everytime you sat down as it was broken, you also burnt yourself everytime you touched the shower pipes accidently in the shower. The bedroom was filthy, the walls were brown with dirt ( you could see how they should look as something had been moved off the wall and the original colour was left with the holes). the floor had "bits" all over it. the TV only had french channels ( which wasnt a major problem for us as we always stayed out). The room was so dark and dingy that I even felt at times like i was in a prison it was just awful. To make matters worse the rooms opposite 104 and 105 the people were chain smoking in them and the smoke actually came under our door and made our room smell there were also NO smoke alarms anywhere which worried me. We saw the cleaners everyday but I never saw them clean. The stairs were dark and quite dangerous to walk up at night as you could only light up the landing once you were upstairs. I wish I could finish moaning there but theres more! the walls were so thin that I could here next door going to the toilet and yes that sounds gross but its true, we were also woken every morning by the TV next door at 6am very loud. I cant speak for other rooms but we were in room 107 and we heard every person coming home walking up the stairs as we were right by them. The only good thing I can honestly say about this hotel was the location, it was almost perfect! this hotel is supposed to be a two star and I cant see how it got that rating as we have stayed in other two star hotels which were so much nicer/cleaner. this hotel needs a complete makeover it could be a lovely homely qaint little place, the room could be a bit bigger as I could'nt walk round the bed properly. The staff smiled when they had to smile but thats all, they would sit behind the desk and smoke ( which is fine if you dont mind that) and I always felt that everytime we went out/came back we were disturbing them watching tv as we had to leave the key at reception. Please dont stay here if you have children if your a couple looking for just a bed and you just want cheap, nothing else then this hotel is for you, if you want a romantic getaway you will be dissapointed oh and I almost forgot the walls in the bedroom had mould growing and a big crack on the wall. It also advertises a resturant which was never open but trust me if you saw it you wouldnt want to eat there.

Pros:
- Less than a ten minute walk to the Bastille, which has the Opera as well as lots of great bars and restaurants.
- Almost right opposite Richard Lenoir metro station, which is also only 5 stops from the Gare du Nord Eurostar station.
- Supermarkets nearby (G20 and Monop') if you don't want to eat out every night (it can get very expensive in Paris!)
- Friendly staff
- Safe for valuables in hotel room
- Tidy room (if a little worn).
- Almost half the price of other hotels in the area.

Cons:
- No elevator (we were on the third floor).
- No airconditioning. It got up to 30 degrees during our stay and the room was very hot, but if you open the window you get lots of traffic noise.
- You have to leave your key at reception each time you leave. Just a minor inconvenience but something I haven't seen done in a hotel in years.

We booked the Hotel Aux Trois Portes as part of a package deal with Eurostar tickets, and the hotel worked out to be only about 80 euros a night for a double room. Considering the 3-star hotel just down the street was 160 euros a night, this is definitely a bargain rate. However you have to be prepared to give up some of the luxuries.
Overall I would recommend this for active budget conscious travellers who are planning to spend most of their time out exploring Paris so don't mind something cheap and cheerful so they can save their money for going out.

I had a 24 layover in Paris en route to Africa so I picked a modest, i.e. cheap, place in the city instead. Pros: it's very close to the Metro, well located in the city, the room (incl sheets and towels) was clean, the front desk staff were friendly, helpful and spoke English and the Continental breakfast was quite nice (7 Euros). Cons: the rooms are small (should be expected for this category) and could use some paint, the bathroom is even smaller and the toilet is oddly positioned, the stairway to the rooms is narrow and difficult if you've got bags, the tv had no English channels and most important to me, there is no internet available anywhere in the hotel, in spite of the fact that the hotels.com listing indicated it did. The closest i'net place is 4 blocks away. However, the park which runs along Blvd Richard Lenoir is a wi-fi hotspot, so I was able to do my online work from a park bench on a beautiful sunny day. However if it's evening or raining you may have to walk 4 blocks for internet. It's not great, but it's clean and convenient and for $64/nt I can't complain too much.