Paris Accommodations: K&K Hotel Cayré

Paris St. Germain

Travel Tuesdays

I keep promising to write about hotels, restaurants, sightseeing and other travel-related topics, and then those posts seem to get lost in the shuffle. So to try to make good on my promise while not boring those of you who are here to read mainly about style, each Tuesday’s post will be focused on travel. Where we’ve been, where we’re going, and my recommendations. (However, when I’m actually traveling, I like to share some of my experiences in real-time, so frequency may increase.) I’ll kick this off with a review of the Paris hotel where I stayed during my December visit.

K&K Hotel Cayré Paris – Location, Location, Location

K&K Hotel Cayré lobby bar

Late last summer, le Monsieur came across a discounted travel package for Paris in early December. I’ve warned him never to dangle Paris in front of me, because I’ll always bite. 🙂 The package included flights and hotel accommodations, and from the choices available I liked the location of the K&K Hotel Cayré the best. And, wow, what a location! It’s in the 7th, very close to the 6th. Steps away from a Metro stop, next door to a decent Monoprix, and in a great neighborhood (intersection of Blvd. St. Germain, Blvd. Raspail and rue de Bac) with lots of shops and cafés nearby. While most of my exploring this trip was on foot in the surrounding arrondissements, it was also an easy Metro ride to destinations further out.

Photos – top: view from my room on 4th floor (5th to those of us in the US) and above: the lobby bar (image source).

The hotel decor is clean and modern, if a bit generic. If you’re looking for distinctly French ambiance, that stops at the door. (But just step outside for ambiance up to your eyeballs.) Everything seemed to be well maintained.

Room at Hotel Cayre Paris

Hotel Cayre Paris room

Room Details

The room that was included with the package was listed as an “Executive” room. It was a pretty decent size for a European room. The queen-sized bed was comfortable, and once I figured out how to work the thermostat, was able to adjust the temperature to my preference. My window opened out onto Boulevard Raspail. There were a couple early mornings where it was a little bit noisy with trucks and horns, but most of the time I didn’t notice traffic noise. The street was quiet at night.

One thing I liked was that the electric tea kettle was nicely set up in a pull-out drawer of the credenza, and didn’t take up any space on top. I like having a cup of coffee when I first get up, so always travel with some packets of instant.

The closet was plenty big for me, and had a small 3-drawer cabinet inside. There was the usual combination safe.

bathroom Hotel Cayré Paris

The bathroom was smallish, but ergonomically very comfortable. There was a tub-shower combo. Two things I really appreciated were the heated floor, and that shelf unit you see on the far wall where I could spread out my toiletries. The towels were standard-issue hotel towels, and the toiletries provided were nothing to write home about. There was a hair dryer, but no makeup mirror. Because of the configuration of the bathroom, I was able to get close enough to the backsplash mirror to put my makeup on. The lighting was very good.

Facilities

I didn’t get pictures, but there’s a large breakfast area where a substantial buffet breakfast (including several hot dishes) is offered each morning. The food selection was impressive. Lots of good pastries too. The coffee, like most hotel coffee, is meh. They also have a DIY espresso/cappuccino machine, also meh. However the service is friendly and accommodating. Greetje and I enjoyed a nightcap after dinner one night in the lobby bar, and it was quite pleasant.

I did not check out the fitness facilities.

The front desk gets busy during check-in/check-out times, but they were very helpful and made some dinner reservations for us, as well as arranging for a cab for me to the airport when I left. You leave your room key with the desk when you leave the building and then pick it up again when you return.

I’d definitely recommend the Cayré Paris for location, comfort, and convenience, and for the helpful staff. If charming decor and traditionally French ambiance is a must-have for you, I’ll have more recommendations in future posts.

I did not receive any compensation or consideration in exchange for this review. All opinions are my own.

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20 Comments

  1. Thanks for this post. Boy, you’re right about the location of that hotel being great. We have always stayed in the 6th arondissement very near St-Germain-des-Pres. (Hubby can’t bear to be very far from his favorite 6th cafe haunts!)

    If you have time to post about it, I’d love to know more about the travel package you used, which included your business class fare.

  2. Thanks for this review. It’s always nice to learn of different hotels and I visit Paris often and like to vary up the locations where I stay. I stayed at the K+K in London and can NOT say the same about their location – Earl’s Court. Yuck! They do have a good breakfast spread though!

  3. I stayed at the same hotel five years ago. We had a “package” with Travelocity, and probably a more budget level room. When we went back to Paris two years ago, we thought that we would stay there again, but booked a la carte it was quite a bit more than our budget. We found a wonderful small hotel just down the street, The Signature Hotel, a very small family owned establishment which was almost half the price. It is on a tiny side street that doesnt appear on many of the maps, and very quiet. Had just been totally redecorated, so although the rooms were small, they were well thought out and we were quite comfortable. The best part was the front desk staff who guided us to small independent restaurants in the neighborhood, made sure that we were planning our route for the day well, often suggesting little places to stop along the way that we might not have discovered ourselves. That hotel made the trip for us, and helped us to enjoy the neighborhood even more fully.

    1. Your hotel sounds wonderful Ellen! In Europe I travel on a tight budget and usually have a much more “authentic” experience with small hotels with fewer frills.

  4. That’s where we stayed when my husband and I went to Paris in October 2015. I loved it! The location was perfect, and the staff was fantastic. I am also a big breakfast person, and K&K’s breakfast buffet kept me going until dinner!

  5. Personal recommendations for where to stay are always so helpful. Thank you for this! In my last trip to Paris, now nearly 2 years ago, I stayed in a place I had never been before. I previously had a favorite hotel but this time I went for something different. I didn’t regret it, so it’s definitely worth the while to try something new now and then.

    And… bonne année 2017!

  6. I am so pleased that you are beginning to post travel “reports” and hope that your London trip will be next! Yesterday, we finally booked our flight to and from London I immediately went to your page, recalling your brief sojourn to London this past summer. I hoped to find a post on where you stayed because I remembered the lovely walk along a canal. If you did post a London summary, I was unable to locate it.

    However, unable to find anything on London, I read – and re-read – many of your “packing” posts, your thought process, your insights after the trip – much to think about and I’m going to order my first article of Eileen Fisher clothing (the crepe ankle pants) as a result. Your blog is one of my daily (now M-W-F) pleasures and I know that I will researching it quite a bit in the next few months.

  7. Sounds like a good find. I like Hotel des Grandes Ecoles, which is a bit farther off the beaten path, in the 5th (behind the Pantheon), but very quiet and with an amazing courtyard. And it has a parking garage (good for us, because we tend to go by car).
    The K&K Hotel Cayré’s location really is fantastic.

  8. I stay in the Best Western Louvre St Honore which is about two minutes walk from the Louvre Museum. A great little boutique hotel with a fantastic concierge John Baptiste. Surrounded by great intimate little restaurants and bars, it’s an inexpensive gem right in the heart of Paris.

  9. I love the travel posts, especially the ones with street style pics, but hotel reviews are also good. It would be great if you could include to what extent the staff speaks English. I speak enough French to get by, but not enough to convey complex concepts in multiple tenses.

  10. Susan thank you for the review! Looks lovely! I’ve placed clients here in the past and they enjoyed the hotel, especially the location but it’s been a few years so . For any one interested, OpenSkies is advertising air fare and hotels to Paris from $699 this winter! OpenSkies is operated by British Airways.
    Of course a good travel agent can also be invaluable in finding you flight options and a hotel that works in your budget, as well as helping with transfers, tours, activities and travel insurance! This is especially important if you’re a first time visitor to Paris or any other city or country!
    Thanks Susan for your wonderful blog, it’s joy to read each post. I’ve shared it with many clients looking for advice on how and what to pack!

  11. This was the go-to hotel for my parents in Paris, so I remember being there as a small child and adolescent– which means it has been around under one management or another for a long time (I’m in my sixties…)

  12. My daughter and I stayed in this hotel summer 2006 and it was divine – there was a bakery with wonderful macarons across the street and we ran (in the twilight at 11 PM) to the fireworks at the Eiffel Tower on Bastille Night. The fitness facilities had the best showers! I love a shower with a thermostat.

  13. I just spotted this post in the ‘related’ posts and had to comment. Scott and I have stayed in this hotel twice, including our first trip to Paris in 2003 and again for my 50th birthday. The location is everything…simply our favorite area of Paris. What a fun coincidence!
    xx