Guys, you have been awesome many times helping me figure out my travel logistics don't seem to mind reading long posts. Here's another one for you.
Need 4 nights accommodations in Paris July 12 though July 16. Traveling with 13 y.o. daughter. Trying to weigh convenience vs overall out of pocket costs.
I have following options:
Option 1: Already have cancelable reservations made for 4 night at Best Western.
Cost: 480 Euros or $540 in todays exchange rate.
Plus: Good location, 15 min walk to Eiffel tower, 30 min to Louvre, close to river, 2 blocks from metro.
Minus: No laundry, will need to pack enough clothes for 12 day trip, this may require a larger luggage than would be allowed in cabin on a plane for a short flight Berlin-Paris, so extra luggage fees, more to carry around, etc.
Option 2: Airbnb for 4 night. Never used airbnb before. If we go with airbnb, it must have 2 separate sleeping spaces, air conditioner, washer and dryer, and kitchenet of some sort. It doesn't need to be fancy, but it needs to have these things and be conveniently located, otherwise we may as well stay at the hotel. Looked up on the website and found only 2 places that work based on prices, location, my required amenities, and availability for my dates.
Cost: Prices range between $95 and $115 per night plus various fees they charge on top of that. Comes out to $400 - $500
Plus: Laundry so we can pack for only 5-6 days, do a small wash while we are there. Less to carry with us, less concern about checking luggage on the plane. Kitchenet is a plus, but I am pretty good with picking up stuff for hotel rooms for breakfast or light dinners, so it's a plus, but not a huge deal. Laundry is the main draw with Airbnb.
Minus: $95 place is in the same location as Best Western I already have reserved, but $115 place is a bit further out west, 20 min walk to Louvre, over an hour walk to Eiffel Tower. Both places have only 3 reviews, but all are good. Pictures seem nice, though I'd need some more info than is provided. It's not clear what floor these studios are located on. I saw one listing when browsing that was a 6 floor walk up which is not ideal. One of these two doesn't show washer/dryer in the pictures, etc. Cancellations overall are more difficult than with hotels. Cheaper place with better location has a very strict cancellation policy (only 50% refund a week before check in), the other place is more flexible (full refund less fees a day before check in). Also overall fear of the unknown having no experience with Airbnb at all.
Option 3: A combination of two first. 2 days at Airbnb, 2 days at hotel. Hotel could be the same Best Western that I already have booked, or a Hyatt hotel 20 min away that I can book 2 nights for points with $0 out of pocket cost. I think I'd go with 'free' Hyatt in this option. It's located 5 min from Louvre.
Cost: 2 Airbnb nights - ~$230-$260, 2 hotel nights - Free. Total cost $260.
Plus: Best of both worlds, airbnb for laundry and light packing, hotel for free nights. Both locations are good.
Minus: Again, fear of the unknown with airbnb. Hassle of moving in the middle of stay, packing, caring luggage/backpacks, checking in, etc, when we can be sightseeing. This move would be on July 14th, the Bastille Day and will put us 45 min from Eiffel Tower when we'd want to hang out, picnic, and watch fireworks in the evening. Also, we won't be able to check in at Hyatt early, so we'll have to leave bags there and then come back late at night after fireworks and go through check in instead of just going straight to the room and gong to be bed. In addition, these two nights at Hyatt will 'cost' 40K points. I have 45K Chase UR left that I am thinking of using for this. Overall, this is not the best use of UR, but I will be canceling my Chase cards in April, and need to transfer these points somewhere. As I'm not gong to be earning anymore Chase UR points for the next couple years, I see no reason not to use them for these two night, even though I know travel hacking experts will say that this is probably one of the worst use of UR. But I can't think of what else to do with these points. And I don't have enough of Marriott points left to use for two nights in Paris even when combined with Chase UR points, so it's Hyatt or nothing.
One other thing, this Hyatt only has queen/king rooms available for 20K per night. Two-twin rooms are considered an upgrade and are not available for points. Pictures on hotel's site show that king is actually two twin mattresses on king bad frame. Considering that my daughter does not share a bed at all, one king matters is out of the questions, but I think I can get her to share if it's two twins pushed together. How likely that it is in fact two twin mattresses instead of one king mattress? Hyatt reservations were not able to answer this.
So there you have it. I'd like to hear your input and thoughts.
ETA: What info should I clarify with airbnb owners? What do I need to know, what to ask, etc?