Novotel Gare Montparnasse or Les Halles - which is better?

Hello. I will be visiting Paris for 3 nights in Aug. Can you advise which hotel is better? Novotel Paris Gare Montparnasse or Novotel Paris Les Halles?

The Les Halles will cost a bit more (20 pounds more a night) but it is classified a 4 star while the Gare M. is classified a 3 star. Both of them are a really good deal when booking together with the Eurostar so it is a toss-up between the 2.

Which is in a better location for sightseeing? (going with family - doing the regular tourist stuff .. have never been to Paris before)(NOT doing euro-disney though!!) :-)

Any help would be very much appreciated.

Thank you!!!!

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We stayed near the Gare Montparnasse last May. It is a great location -- several metro lines are there as well as a bus terminal for several routes. We took the bus from the Place de la Concorde back to the bus terminal and got the bus there to go to Ile de la Cite to visit Notre Dame and Sainte Chapelle. If you have never been to Paris, it isn%26#39;t on top of the most popular tourist sights, but you are no more than 20 minutes from everything. There are several reasonably priced restaurants in the vicinity of the station. I would highly recommend this area.

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Les Halles can be rowdy at times with groups of young people from the suburbs hanging around aimlessly and homeless scrounging around. There are also some in-your face X rated videos shops on St Denis. Nothing extremely dangerous but not sweetly nice either..

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The Montparnasse location is better for family, especially for a first time visit.

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Montparnasse is better...One point though, don%26#39; rely on star grading in France. If you really want a 4 Star like in US, you are looking at $300+/night; otherwise, they are all such!

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I am not crazy about les Halles but the Novotel is kind of on the edge of it and you can catch metro or bus at Chatelet, you do not have to go in the large underground mall/metro. Actually there is an access to line 14 right at rue de Rivoli.

I would say it is more central because you will be able to walk to Notre Dame/Louvre/Pompidou/Marais.

At Montparnasse you are more likely to have to take the metro more.

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thank you everyone for all the replies!! much appreciated and very helpful! :-)