Mister O.
Yelp
Nutshell: Military transit barracks run by ex-Foreign Legion paras, in a fine location. Inexpensive. Utilitarian. Clean. Good value for the money.
If your idea of a Paris hotel stay involves lush carpets, assloads of ormoulu, pretty young chambermaids dressed for Russian oligarch cosplay, and round-the-clock room service champagne enemas, there's the Plaza Athénée. But if you've survived a few stays at Connaught Rifle Range's infamous Building 47 and you consider CFB Bagotville's BOQs as an upgrade in comparison, the Cosmos will be right up your alley. Bonus: en-suite showers and toilets in (I think) every room.
My room for my first two nights in Paris was a miniscule 58 € single on the top floor. I can best describe it as spartan. The floor covering was some weird, industrial-looking fiber tile stuff. The bed and computer desk looked like loss-leader chipboard goods from Ikea. The bathroom was tiny; barely room to shave in, and the shower stall was so narrow that most corn-fed American football players would not be able to turn around in it. But the mattress and pillow were adequate, everything in the bathroom worked as advertised, there was plenty of hot water, and, apart from periodic bumps and groans from the elevator shaft and the plumbing in neighboring rooms, my room was acceptably quiet. Room heating and ventilation were excellent; my frequently rain-soaked clothes dried quickly when hung. Everything in my room was clean, and it worked.
Front desk staff were courteous, correct, and appeared polylingual. English was no problem for them with the many American and British guests I overheard when passing through the lobby.
Gripes: Not many. Free WiFi was weak, slow, and droppy. No instructions in evidence for the room phone. Adequate but fairly sad fluorescent lighting. Chiefest nuts-and-bolts complaint was a lack of towels- there were two (very clean) smallish bath towels in the can when I checked in, but whoever policed the room when I was out the next day left me with only one. There were never any face rags or hand towels, nor was there a bath mat. A call to the front desk would probably have sorted the towel issue out, but I didn't bother. Just be forewarned about this if you, like me, are a two-toweller when performing your morning hygienic rituals.
Despite the tiny, severe accommodations, this place shines as a basic tourist hotel. Its rooms' very severity will have the inmate dressed and on the streets at a brisk rate in the morning, and will further encourage him/her to *stay on those streets* until a place more suitable for languorous indulgence is found. The location, a block north of the Oberkampf bar strip, a few minutes' walk to Parmentier and its varied eateries, and a short hike to Place de la République and Rue du Temple, is superb for the food-and-drink tourist. And for those with deep, unfulfilled self-loathing, le Marais and its narrow sidewalks thronged with hordes of squinting, Nikon-toting innocents abroad is only a 20-minute forced march to the south.
If all you're looking for in a Paris hotel is a clean, functional place to sleep, store luggage, and perform ablutions, this place will serve, and at a very reasonable price. I will probably stay here again, if I ever go back to Paris.
