We are planning a month long stay on the Ille de Cite right behind Notre Dame next April. We would like to know how often Notre Dame rings the bells? In some places, bells are rung hourly starting early in the morning. If this is the case, we want to change areas! Anyone experienced this area? Thanks
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I%26#39;m not sure how often they ring the bells, but I still wouldn%26#39;t stay in that area for a month. It is CROWDED and extremely, extremely touristy. It%26#39;s good to see Notre Dame and go to a Mass there, but the surrounding area is rather sad, simply because there are so many tourist traps.
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Last February, I stayed at L%26#39;Hôtel Hospitel Dieu (http://www.hotel-hospitel.com/ang/accueil.htm) right next to Notre Dame. Every morning Quasimodo woke me up at about 7 am. However, the bells were quiet at night.
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My husband and I stayed in an apartment on the Ile de la Cite for a week in June and I can assure you that we were in no way inconvenienced by the ringing of the bells of Notre Dame, one tower of which we could see from our living room window. The last ringing for the day was around 8pm and the earliest would have been around 7am, and it was like music to our ears to hear that first chime every morning, absolutely wonderful. And being so close to the cathedral, we popped in numerous times on our way out in the morning and on our return a lot of evenings.
And as for the area around being sad, we thought the opposite. Sure, there were souvenir shops, but they can be found at lots of sites in Paris, as can crowds. We walked around the back streets of the island and found it to be delightful, and such a short walk to Ile St Louis, and Left Bank and Right Bank. We thought it a wonderful location. I would stay there again and hope to next year. We loved it!!
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I can%26#39;t imagine anything more exciting than to wake up to the bells of Notre Dame. However, if they start ringing only at 7:00, they could never wake me up since I%26#39;m such an early riser.
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Thank you for the valuable info. Because we are staying for a month, we are trying to consider all angles. We are so thankful for all of our fellow travelers on trip advisor!
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I was in Paris the weekend that the Spanish trains were bombed several years ago. The city of Paris stopped [even the metro] and shared several minutes of silence as a tribute to the victims of that bombing on the following Monday morning. I happened to be climbing the spiral steps to the Notre Dame towers as the city paused that morning, and as I was emerging onto the upper level, the bells of Notre Dame started ringing to break the silence. I have never had such a moving experience as I did standing among the gargoyles and watching the biggest, Emmanuel, rocking back and forth behind the louvered screens. My ears were a little worse for the wear, but to experience those bells, that have rung out so many historical moments, on such a day is a memory of Paris I%26#39;ll treasure for the rest of my life. I still get goosebumps when I think about it.
Stay near Notre Dame and maybe you%26#39;ll get some goosebumps of your own.
Bells are part of the ambience in Europe. If you find them calling to you, there is a bell foundry on the way to Mont St Michel that still makes them the way that the Notre Dame bells were cast. Better yet, stop on your way back to Paris from a day at the Mont!
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You will love the area and don%26#39;t worry about the bells they will not disturb you at all!
Have a wonderful time!
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We stayed on the Ile St. Louis and heard the bells in the evening as we were out during the day and rose early in the morning. So they did not disturb us. In fact, it added to the atmosphere instead!
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Upon further reflection, the area I was describing is on the Right Bank, not on the Ile itself. I apologize for the error. Enjoy the bells :-)
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