Hoping to visit Paris with our college-aged kids this summer. We’ve been before (LONG ago), but have never taken them. Will have approximately four days to do the highlights. First order of business is deciding where to stay. Which arrondissement would you recommend for safety, convenience, vibe, etc.?
Appreciating having the benefit of the internet this time around 
, but I’m experiencing information overload!
What is your budget? How comfortable are you with public transportation? Do you want your accommodation to be in a extremely walkable part of the city?
Probably depends a lot on budget and what your kids want to do.
When I was in college, I loved staying in the Latin Quarter, near the Sorbonne and the Luxembourg Gardens. As an adult, we stayed in the 8th.
A stretch for Paris, but we’d love to keep it around $400/night for the four of us. We’re comfortable walking and using public transportation.
What fun! Luxembourg Gardens and art museums, for sure! D has an art history class this semester that she’s loving. Will be great to see some works in person! Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Trocadero. Food tour in Montmartre for mom and dad
We went with two young teens about 6 years ago and rented an Airbnb (or equivalent) right near the Eiffel Tower. It was very affordable and a lot of fun to be in an actual apartment.
I would highly recommend staying on Ile-St Louis. Small boutique hotels, super walkable, very old city feel. Unless you don’t like the idea of boutique hotels…in which case, avoid.
Suggest to find an AirBnB. Public transport in Paris makes getting around very easy. Trocadero is a nice place which is centrally located and not too expensive.
When we went to Paris with the kids (as teens), we found it very difficult to find hotels with rooms that would accommodate four people, which was the easiest way to keep the costs down. One of the few decent options was the Hilton at La Defense (typically between 200 and 300 Euros per night). It’s out of the center but still simple and quick to get around because the metro and RER are adjacent to the hotel. Not sure whether you all want to share a room given the kids are older.
Check this out, it has a family suite for 4 for your price range.
We stayed near Notre Dame in 2018, and it worked well. We booked through Homeaway, but it looks like our specific link no longer works.
We shared with another couple and prioritized location. The compromise was only one bathroom. But, as sometimes is the case in renovated buildings, the toilet was in a separate place from shower/sinks. So it worked out ok.
As I recall, you can find better deals if you are willing to stay in an upper floor of building without elevator.
We stayed at La Defense before, it’s reasonably cheap, I forgot now, maybe €22 for 2-3 nights with great breakfast, but that was in 2006 time frame. Memorable stay, the kids were watching Scooby in French, I think French won the World Cup or something, they were honking the whole night.
Scooby in French 
Love these memories of traveling with littles! The honking all night…memorable, but not so enjoyable! Lol
We rented an Airbnb in the 6th arrondissement. Thought it was centrally located and a beautiful neighborhood. Felt very immersed.
We’ve stayed in Paris Perfect apartments during all but one of our trips.
Our last visit was in Dec 2019 for our last few days of visiting Christmas markets. Not worth an apartment for 3-4 nights, we stayed at the Hotel Beaubourg in the Marais just down the block from the Pompidou. Typical older European hotel, but friendly and comfy.
I know they were cracking down on vacation apartment rentals (licenses, etc), but have no clue what the situation is like today.
Arrondissements 1-6 are the best for the usual touring. We like the 7th, but are used to the area and the walking distances to the metro (or just plain walking, 10 miles per day wasn’t unusual for us all).
Look at a map of the places you’d like to visit, then pick the area to stay in. No sense staying in the 15th if everything you want to see is in the 4th.
I stayed in this hotel suggested by @beebee3 in 2016 with my then 12-year old. Room was tiny but lovely and we loved the location. I highly recommend with the caveat it was almost 6 years ago (we were there in April).
It is true that Airbnb is less worthwhile for shorter stays. If you go that route, do look very carefully at all fees, the reviews etc.
We used to stay around Palais Royal. It’s convenient to every where.