ugh. I'm going to be homeless in Paris.

May 30, 2009 12:27 PM

I need to find a place to stay in Paris, starting tomorrow morning. I'm starting to panic. Oh yeah, and I have a migraine, haven't had any food on my stomach since yesterday, and generally feel awful. I feel pretty stupid.

I had an apartment lined up, went to see it today, and it smelled like smoke -- a lot -- in the bedroom. In my current state, it made me want to cry. Smoke and migraines don't go together well. I felt so bad, though, that I paid the guy 20 euros to let me take a nap there before I tackled the metro and the trip back to my current lodgings.

Ugh. I'm looking at hostels, but will a dorm room be OK if I'm still getting better? And I usually keep food around since I'm vegetarian; can anyone recommend a specific hostel, with vacancies from tomorrow?

I've looked at a few relevant threads on AskMe, but didn't get a plan of action from them.

My French is pretty bad, too.

posted by amtho to travel & transportation around Paris, France (13 answers total)

Have you tried Hostels.com? I've used the service before for a hostel in Manhattan and it worked quite well for me.

Also, if you're willing to go the non-hostel route, I can recommend the Hotel de Mericourt. I stayed there in late March and the room was pretty decent. Small, quiet; the clerks, for the most part, spoke some English.

As for the migraine... the only thing that gets rid of mine is for me to sleep for eight+ hours then start again the next day.

Good luck.
posted by LOLAttorney2009 at 12:35 PM on May 30, 2009

With nearly 46,000 French people on Couchsurfing, surely there is a free place for you. I've had great experiences in odd locations.
posted by Dee Xtrovert at 12:38 PM on May 30, 2009

St Christopher's. It's huge, modern, clean, English speaking and you'll meet some cool people who will cheer you up. Getting a bed shouldn't be a problem.
posted by fire&wings at 12:56 PM on May 30, 2009

A couple of friends have recommended the Kellerman Hostel. Another friend of mine recommended a not-so-expensive hotel at Montparnasse. Are you looking for a longer-term stay (i.e., for more than two weeks)?
posted by natalinha at 1:10 PM on May 30, 2009

I've had good experiences couchsurfing in Paris - once you sign up, you can post on a Paris message board asking for emergency last-minute accommodations. You could get a hostel for a night and then find a better situation ASAP.
posted by Solon and Thanks at 1:46 PM on May 30, 2009

Seconding couchsurfing.com. A friend of mine has had great experiences hosting and being hosted.

I found great hostels in Europe using HostelWorld as well. Now eat something and a good night's sleep. Feel better soon!
posted by futureisunwritten at 2:33 PM on May 30, 2009

Go to a pharmacy and ask for Prontalgine-- it is the most helpful thing I've found for migraines. It is codeine + acetominophen. You can maybe even ask the pharmacist if they have other recommendations.

For a place to stay: email 222paris at gmail dot com. It is a family that rents out several rooms in the 15th arrondissement (or did as of last year) and may have one available. It would be private and quiet, and not too expensive depending on how long you want to stay. They speak English well and their house is gorgeous.

Good luck!
posted by ohio at 2:40 PM on May 30, 2009 [2 favorites]

I live in Paris and would be happy to give you on-the-ground assistance. I sent you a mefi mail with more information, and I'll be up for a few more hours if you need immediate help.
posted by cimton at 3:02 PM on May 30, 2009 [3 favorites]

Hostelling International hostels usually have room, are dirt cheap and perfectly decent. In Paris, I've stayed at their Le d'Artagnan, Cité des Sciences, and Clichy locations and never had a problem. Good luck!
posted by aquafortis at 3:09 PM on May 30, 2009

Wow... cimton, that's an amazing offer. There are times when my fellow MeFites really stand out in the way they generously offer aid to each other. (Sorry if this should be on MeTa.)
posted by LOLAttorney2009 at 7:20 PM on May 30, 2009

Thank you, everyone. I'm not homeless anymore.

cimton, you are especially awesome. Let me know if you ever just want to hang out here.

I finally just phoned a pen-pal friend. It sounds like her house is rather bubbling over with life and quickly-spoken French, which will be an adventure, but she immediately offered to let me stay with her, her husband, and her 9-year-old daughter.

The whole thing does still seem a little overwhelming, but my headache is mostly better this morning and I think I'm going to be OK. I hated the idea of calling her just with the hope (ulterior motive) that she'd let me stay with her, but it's OK now.

I will definitely use these suggestions in the future. Thank you.
posted by amtho at 10:02 PM on May 30, 2009

Also as follow-up: I did visit a pharmacie, I'm not sure what they gave me but it isn't codeine (I think it's Paracetamol, which took a while to kick in). Probably because I told the nice pharmacist that my headache had abated somewhat. It's OK. They also gave me something to calm my stomach. Thank you, pharmacie.
posted by amtho at 10:11 PM on May 30, 2009

You might talk to this guy. He's a self-described vagabond who likes to travel all around the world for dirt cheap and give tips on it. I saw him give a talk at BarCamp Miami 2009 on living out of a single bag for a day, week, month, year, whatever, which was pretty informative.

You could also read Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell, which I found referenced on the blue a few weeks ago and was endlessly entertaining (although perhaps more so for you if it's not far-off fantasy) and I only had to put it down because of work.
posted by vsync at 12:04 PM on May 31, 2009