A month in Paris: palace suite or serviced apartment?

Palace suite or serviced apartment: which is better for a month?

For a month, a serviced apartment is usually the better choice for a family or anyone who wants space, a kitchen and privacy: two to four bedrooms for the price of one palace suite. A palace suite is better when you want everything under one roof, around the clock: room service, restaurants, spa, security and a concierge desk downstairs.

Many long stays combine the two: a few nights in a palace on arrival, while the apartment is prepared, then the apartment for the rest of the stay. The sections below give the facts to decide, and the questions to ask before paying a deposit.

What does "palace" mean in Paris?

"Palace" is an official French distinction, not a marketing word. It is awarded by the French State, through the tourism agency Atout France, to five-star hotels of exceptional standing. In the list published on 2 June 2026, 33 hotels in France hold it, 13 of them in Paris.

Eight of the thirteen are in the 8th arrondissement, within walking distance of avenue Montaigne and the Champs-Élysées. The list is reviewed regularly, and several famous five-star hotels in Paris do not hold the distinction: if the word matters to you, check the official list rather than the hotel's own description.

What is a serviced apartment, and is it legal to rent one for a month?

A serviced apartment is a furnished apartment let by the night, week or month with hotel services: housekeeping, linen, a concierge. It is lawful when the operator has the right status for tourist accommodation. A private owner's second home, by contrast, cannot lawfully be let to a visitor for a month in Paris without a change-of-use authorisation.

This is the point most visitors miss, and it matters because an unlawful letting can be stopped mid-stay.

• A month is still a tourist let. French law treats as a meublé de tourisme any furnished home let "by the day, the week or the month" to a visitor who does not make it their residence. In Paris, an owner may let their main residence this way for at most 90 nights a year; any other apartment needs a change-of-use authorisation with compensation, which is very hard to obtain (paris.fr).
• The "mobility lease" is not for holidays. The bail mobilité, a furnished lease of one to ten months, is reserved for people in training, higher education, an apprenticeship, an internship, civic service, a job transfer or a temporary work assignment, with proof (service-public.gouv.fr; law of 6 July 1989, art. 25-12). A family on holiday does not qualify. An executive posted to Paris for six months does.
• What is lawful for a visitor: a hotel, a classified résidence de tourisme or aparthotel, and apartments operated by a company in premises that have the right planning status for tourist accommodation. The established serviced-apartment brands work this way.

Before you pay, ask the operator two questions in writing: under which status is this apartment let to visitors, and what is its registration number with the City of Paris? A serious operator answers in one line.

What does each option cost?

Published rates in 2026 start at about €630 a night for a one-bedroom serviced apartment near the Champs-Élysées and €2,500 to €2,800 a night for 150 to 180 square metres with two or three bedrooms. Palace hotels are quoted in the press at about €1,300 to €2,100 a night for an entry-level room, and €10,000 to €30,000 for their best suites.

The comparison that matters is per bedroom. A family of six needs three palace rooms or one large suite; the same family fits in one three-bedroom apartment. The largest "signature" apartments, 250 square metres and more, are priced on request, like the great palace suites. Monthly figures above are simple multiplications of the nightly rate: operators often quote less for a full month, so ask.

How much is the tourist tax in Paris in 2026?

In 2026 the Paris tourist tax is €15.93 per adult per night in a palace, €11.70 in a five-star hotel or residence and €8.45 in a four-star. In an unclassified apartment it is 5 percent of the nightly price per person, plus surcharges, capped at €15.93. Children under 18 do not pay.

The tax is added to the bill and collected by the hotel or operator. On a month-long stay it is small next to the accommodation, but it is often missing from the first quote.

How do the two compare, point by point?

Which one suits you?

• A family spending the summer in Paris, with children, relatives or staff: an apartment of three bedrooms or more, near the Champs-Élysées, the Trocadéro or the Champ-de-Mars, with daily housekeeping and a driver on call.
• A couple for ten days, a honeymoon, a first visit: a palace. The service is the experience, and you will barely use a kitchen.
• Fashion Week, Roland-Garros, a business season: an apartment if you receive guests or work from home; a palace if your days are spent outside and you want nothing to organise. See renting a residence for Fashion Week or Roland-Garros.
• A posting of three to ten months: a furnished apartment under a mobility lease, which the law allows for a work assignment. This is a different market from serviced apartments, and much less expensive per month.
• Thinking of buying: a month in a Haussmann apartment is the best test of a neighbourhood before you buy in Paris.

What to ask before you book an apartment

• The legal status of the letting and the City of Paris registration number.
• What the rate includes: housekeeping frequency, linen, utilities, concierge, tourist tax, VAT.
• The deposit, the cancellation terms and how the security deposit is held.
• Air conditioning in every bedroom (not standard in Paris), lift, floor, street noise.
• Who holds the keys, who answers at night, and how fast.
• House rules: most serviced apartments forbid parties and events. If you plan to receive, read our guide to private events in Paris first.

How we help

We advise on the choice, shortlist hotels and residences that fit your family and your dates, visit apartments for you and film them, and introduce you to the operator. You contract with the hotel or the residence and pay them directly: we do not sell hotel nights, transport or packages. Tell us about your stay.

Short answers

How many palace hotels are there in Paris?

Thirteen hold the official Palace distinction in the list published by Atout France on 2 June 2026, out of 33 in France: Bvlgari, Cheval Blanc, Fouquet's, Four Seasons George V, Crillon, Plaza Athénée, La Réserve, Le Bristol, Le Meurice, Mandarin Oriental Lutetia, Royal Monceau, Shangri-La and The Peninsula.

Can I rent a private apartment in Paris for one month as a tourist?

Only from an operator or owner entitled to let to visitors. A one-month let to a visitor is a tourist let under French law. A main residence may be let up to 90 nights a year; a second home needs a change-of-use authorisation. The mobility lease of one to ten months is reserved for students, trainees and people on a work assignment.

How much does a luxury serviced apartment in Paris cost per month?

From about €19,000 a month for a 45 m² one-bedroom near the Champs-Élysées to about €75,000 to €84,000 for 150 to 180 m² with two or three bedrooms, based on rates published by one operator in September 2026. Larger signature apartments are priced on request.

What is the tourist tax in a Paris palace in 2026?

€15.93 per adult per night, all surcharges included, according to the City of Paris rates in force from 1 January 2026. Two adults staying 30 nights pay €955.80. Minors are exempt.

Is a serviced apartment cheaper than a palace?

Per bedroom, usually yes. A three-bedroom serviced apartment is published from about €2,800 a night, where three entry-level palace rooms cost about €3,900 to €6,300. For a couple, an entry-level palace room and a one-bedroom serviced apartment are in the same range once services are counted.

General information, correct to the best of our knowledge on the date shown. Prices are those published by the operators or the press on the date indicated and change with the season; rules change too. We are not affiliated with the hotels and operators named. If you spot an error, tell us and we will correct it.