Where to stay in Paris: the best neighbourhoods and hotels

This is Paris at its most monumental. The Louvre and the Tuileries gardens stretch along the Right Bank, the octagonal Place Vendôme glitters with jewellers, and the gilded Opéra Garnier presides over the boulevards, with the great department stores just behind it.

Hotels here are classic grand Paris: a historic address between the Louvre and the Opéra, a 150-year-old institution in a Haussmann building, a legendary palace facing the Tuileries, and a Park Hyatt with a serene spa a few steps from Vendôme. For something more boutique, there are newer five-stars near Galeries Lafayette and a stylish Art Nouveau conversion moments from the Opéra.

It's central, safe and superbly connected. The only thing it isn't is cheap.

The Champs-Élysées sweeps up to the Arc de Triomphe, and the streets either side, Avenue Montaigne, Avenue George V and Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, form the Golden Triangle, the city's most expensive postcode. Couture houses, embassies and the Élysée Palace set the tone.

No neighbourhood has more palace hotels. Avenue Montaigne's Plaza Athénée, the Four Seasons George V, Le Bristol with its huge courtyard garden: the names alone are a lesson in Parisian glamour. Smaller five-stars hide on the quieter side streets, a few with balconies and Eiffel Tower views.

It's undeniably glossy and a little corporate after dark, so foodies may prefer the Left Bank or the Marais. For a special occasion, though, it's hard to top.

Saint-Germain-des-Prés is the Left Bank as everyone imagines it: the famous cafés where writers and philosophers once argued over coffee, antique dealers and art galleries, chic boutiques and the formal splendour of the Jardin du Luxembourg. Next door, the Latin Quarter's student lanes run down to the Seine and Notre-Dame.

Hotels tend to be intimate and characterful: a boutique hotel styled like a private residence between the Luxembourg and Boulevard Saint-Germain, a 19th-century building on a quiet street facing Notre-Dame, and a stylish five-star near the Rodin Museum that faces the Eiffel Tower. It's perfect for couples and for anyone who thinks the best part of Paris is lingering.

Le Marais packs more into its narrow streets than any other quarter: aristocratic mansions, the arcaded Place des Vosges, the falafel joints of the old Jewish quarter, independent boutiques and bars that fill up early and stay busy late. Bastille, to the east, is grittier and buzzier, and Les Halles, to the west, has the great church of Saint-Eustache and the market streets around Rue Montorgueil.

Hotels have a creative streak: a five-star in a former chocolate factory between Bastille and the Marais, with a spa and terraced rooms; a Beaux Arts boutique hotel moments from Les Halles; and a design-led five-star near République with a living plant wall. Come for the food and the evenings.

If waking up to the Eiffel Tower is the dream, base yourself here. The Trocadéro gardens give the classic view across the river, the Champ de Mars spreads beneath the tower for picnics, and the 7th and 16th arrondissements are wide, quiet and seriously well-heeled.

Hotel choices include a palace hotel in the 16th looking straight at the tower, a Sofitel a few metres from Place du Trocadéro, and a boutique mansion in the 7th just steps from the tower. Further west, a striking hotel built around a 1930s swimming pool brings resort life to the city, with heated outdoor and indoor pools and a rooftop bar. Evenings are quieter than in the centre, which suits families just fine.

Staying in Versailles means having the Sun King's palace and its vast gardens to yourself before the day-trippers arrive. The town itself is gracious and green, with markets and wide avenues, and trains run into central Paris.

Hotels range from a grand palace-style retreat beside the park to a smart historic hotel near the château, apartments two minutes from the station, and an eco café-hotel in a two-hectare natural area. More space for less money makes it a good choice for families.

Europe's largest purpose-built business district is a forest of glass towers around the Grande Arche, just west of the city limits. During the week it's all suits; at weekends it empties out, which can mean better-value rooms, and the Métro and RER whisk you to the Champs-Élysées in around ten minutes.

Expect modern, comfortable hotels with good gyms and big rooms, including a bold, colourful MGallery and a calm Pullman, as well as aparthotels with kitchens. Les 4 Temps shopping centre and Paris La Défense Arena are right there.

For a dawn departure or a late arrival, a hotel at or near Charles de Gaulle makes sense. Several are a few minutes from the terminals, with shuttles and easy road links, and the exhibition centres at Villepinte and Le Bourget are close. Disneyland Paris is about 20 minutes away by car, but for the city itself, stay central.