hostels vs cheap hotels

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hi, my boyfriend and I are planning for our big trip to europe. In some places (Paris, Prague)it is heaps cheaper to stay in 1 star hotels than in double rooms in hostels.( I found a hotel in Paris double room 180fr (26  euros ) for the room!
Does anybody know what the standard is? Are they a bit too dodgy?
Also for what cities would it definately cheaper to stay in a hostel than a cheapo hotel?

[Kim]

Hi Emily,

We stayed in our fair share of one star rooms as they were cheaper than doubles in hostels in some places.

We actually didn't have any terrible ones-I mean they are plain and nothing special, but definately useable. Often they have shared bathrooms and no TV, stuff like that, but they are a good deal.

Paris esp. has tons of cheap hotels. Make sure you find out the area on these though, you don't want to be too far out.

Kim

['Guest']

This is the hotel I found in Paris
www.123france.com/europe/france/paris/hotels/holibert.htm

but Im not sure where it is, how far out from the main things, could someone in the know take a look at the address and get back to me?

Also, my boyfriend is a jazz musician, weve heard that the best spot in Paris for jazz is the Latin Qtr, is this true and if so would we be better off staying there or is it easy to get to from other places?

[Kim]

From what I can tell, this hotel is located in the 10th arrondissement. (Paris is divided up into "arrondissements" or districts).

There's not much in the way of tourist sites in the 10th but with the metro being close, nothing is more than minutes away. The metro itself is a breeze to use.

If you want a map of the districts of Paris to give you a visual, this one is good:

www.parisnet.net/parismap.html

Also, check out this one to see what is in which district:

www.pariotel.com/welcome.htm

We stayed in the 1st district right by the Louvre and loved the area. I've found you a hotel in the 1st for around the same price-I'm thinking this one would work for you as well.

It's called:

Hotel Henri IV
25 place Dauphine
75001 Paris
Tel: [phone].

I looked for a website or email address but I don't think they have one. It's worth calling though-I've only heard positive things about this place-it's apparently the best value you can get. It has 22 rooms, none with private bath. It's family run and includes breakfast.

Kim

[snorkelman]

If you can get any type of hotel cheaper than a hostel - chose the hotel.  Usually such a hotel will be in a far off area, and will be run down.  If that is fine, then chose the hotel.  If you are there with your b/f, then you may not care about socializing (which is one of the benefits to hostels).

['Guest']

Kim said:

Hi Emily,

We stayed in our fair share of one star rooms as they were cheaper than doubles in hostels in some places.

We actually didn't have any terrible ones-I mean they are plain and nothing special, but definately useable. Often they have shared bathrooms and no TV, stuff like that, but they are a good deal.

Paris esp. has tons of cheap hotels. Make sure you find out the area on these though, you don't want to be too far out.

Kim

It deosn't really matter how far out you are because the metro is sooooooo goood. It'll take you maybe
5 more minutes to get into the center.