With a quick twenty five hours in Paris, France, we needed an overnight hotel room near Paris Roissy Charles de Gaulle Airport, France. We ended up at the nearby Residence Inn by Marriott – Paris Charles de Gaulle Central Airport, France for a quick overnight stay. With Residence Inn’s expansion throughout Europe, how would our stay with this brand fare?

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This post is one chapter on our trip to Jordan, Israel and France during the end of the pandemic. This trip was enhanced through Marriott Bonvoy Elite Status, Hertz Gold Plus Rewards and Alaska Mileage Plan. For more information on how this trip was booked, please see our trip introduction here. For other parts of the trip, please see this index.

If you enjoyed this post, please follow us here or on social media through Facebook, Twitter or Instagram for more travel tips and hacks on how to “Upgrade Your Travels”.

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Review: Residence Inn by Marriott – Paris Charles de Gaulle Central Airport, France

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“An Excellent Choice for a Layover at Paris Charles de Gaulle, the new airport hotel may only be eclipsed by the better Marriott Elite Benefits at the Courtyard Paris Charles de Gaulle located right next door”

We ended up coming off of our flights from the United States to Europe courtesy of Icelandair Saga Premium Business Class Seattle – Reykjavík and Icelandair Saga Premium Business Class Reykjavík – Paris.

We would have twenty five hours in Paris between our next series of flights onwards to Jordan on Turkish Airlines Business Class Paris – Istanbul. As a result, we would need a convenient place to stay with a little extra room near to Paris Charles de Gaulle airport.

Booking The Residence Inn Paris Charles de Gaulle:

I ended up selecting this property given our needs; a convenient 25 hour layover near or on the airport. When shopping around, I also considered the Paris Marriott Charles de Gaulle and the convenient in terminal Sheraton Paris Airport Hotel and Conference Center.

The Sheraton seemed to have less than glowing reviews given the higher price point paid and the Paris Marriott required a bus transfer, something I wasn’t too excited on after two international flights.

As a result, I decided on the Residence Inn by Marriott Paris Charles de Gaulle Central Airport which was more conveniently situated. While I don’t normally stay at Residence Inn’s since they earn Marriott Bonvoy points at a lessor 50% rate, I made a bit of an exception for this stay.

The Residence Inn by Marriott Paris Charles de Gaulle Central Airport was conveniently located on the CDG VAL airport tram, meaning that we wouldn’t have to hop any airport / hotel shuttle busses. The Residence Inn Brand also offered a little extra space instead of a regular hotel room as all hotel rooms are branded as suites. This would be valued after a long flight. Much like my past stay at the Residence Inn London Kensington, this Residence Inn was a newer properly that had generally favourable reviews. We would also be able to leave our bags at the airport and perhaps take the RER train into Paris for sightseeing, if we were so inclined.

I was able to get a AAA rate of 140€ ($149 USD) for this property which booked into the basic Studio Room configuration. Every rate at Residence Inn properties includes a complimentary full breakfast. I booked direct on the Marriott Bonvoy website. As a Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Level member, I would also be entitled to Upgrade to best available room, including select suites.

The price point was much more reasonable than the Paris Marriott who was seeking 206€ ($219 USD) for a room and the Sheraton Paris Airport Hotel and Conference Center that was priced around 240€ ($255 USD) for our stay.

Getting to the Residence Inn Paris Charles de Gaulle:

The Residence Inn by Marriott Paris Charles de Gaulle Central Airport is located amongst the hotel zone immersed within the roads around Paris Charles de Gaulle airport. Make no mistake about it, this hotel is squarely located within an airport environment. Those hoping for a hotel on a beautiful French street, within walking distance to charming bistros and a cave des vin (wine shop) will be sorely disappointed. There isn’t anything quite like that around this particular property given it’s location in a modern office / hotel park.

In terms of getting to the hotel itself, after coming off our Icelandair Saga Premium Business Class Reykjavik – Paris flight, we found ourselves in Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport Terminal 2B.

We located the not so well marked CDGVAL train, which was located adjacent to the access to the Paris CDG TGV train station that served all airport terminals situated between CDG Terminal 2D and 2F. This required navigating through each terminal with the assistance on moving escalators and over flat concrete concourses.

With two escalators down to the CDG VAL train zone, and 3 stops over from CDG T2, we exited the train station at Parking “R” “Holiday Inn Express” station. We had two elevators over the tracks to get to our proper exit onto the correct side of the tracks.

It was a 7 – 10 minute walk with luggage down a partially covered walkway from the CDGVAL train station. There’s no luggage assistance or trolleys available from the CDG VAL, so if you’re traveling this on your own, make sure you’re able to manage without luggage assistance. If it happens to be raining, you can probably do about 85% of the walk under a covered walkway.

While the walk was perfectly fine during the daytime, I doubt MrsWT73 would be making this walk with a late after dark arrival, since it was pretty isolated and in the middle of a airport office park environment.

It actually ended up being next to the Headquarters of the France Border Police (n the grey low rise office structure), so it was likely a reasonable safe area as there were police located outside of the staff entrance at most times we passed through the area. In the end, the whole process to transfer over took about thirty minutes from airport to hotel door.

The Residence Inn by Marriott Paris Charles de Gaulle was one of the newer hotel properties in an area that also included the Moxy CDG, the Courtyard CDG and the nearby Mercure and Holiday Inn Express; all within the same compound. The building had a slick European contemporary modern look to it, consistent with a student housing type of feel to it.

The entrance was easy to locate and easily approachable from the walkway while on foot.

While I didn’t realize it at the time of booking, the Courtyard by Marriott Paris Roissy Charles de Gaulle Airport hotel is actually attached to the Residence Inn by Marriott Paris Charles de Gaulle. The two hotels share facilities, including a restaurant, lounge, breakfast hall, and laundry room.

Checking into Residence Inn by Paris Charles de Gaulle:

We had a reasonably friendly check in for France. At check in, I pro-actively inquired about a Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Suite Upgrade and was eventually provided a one bedroom suite up from the Studio Suite that I had booked. The One Bedroom Suite was up to the top category available. This was really appreciated “on request”, although I happened to note that this was not proactively provided or upgraded through the app (which still showed us in the studio that we had booked on arrival).

As a welcome bonus, since all Residence Inn rates included breakfast, it was a choice of 500 points or 8€ credit for the bar. Since we were going to be on the property a full 24 hrs, we ended up going for the 8€ credit.

Our room was immediately available upon our arrival at 2:15 PM, which was really appreciated given our overseas flights earlier in the day. We were also provided a Marriott Bonvoy late checkout of 1 PM, courtesy of Marriott Titanium status without any issues or opposition.

The Room: A One Bedroom Suite

We wandered up the clean elevators and halls to room #6606. We had to fob our way up on the elevator, which was key carded to each floor. With the Residence Inn Paris being an almost new hotel, the One Bedroom Suite was brand new and presented really well..

The Living Space:

Immediately upon entering the room, we found ourselves in the living space of the room. The living space was a separate and detached room from the bedroom, reflecting a proper suite configuration. There was also a compact dining room table for 4 persons, although it would have been more comfortable with just two.

The living area space had a small desk with one plug and one usb charging point. This was matched with a 55 inch flat screen television featuring the usual french and European movie channels.

The couch in the room was a sofa bed variety. It was quite firm to sit on and wasn’t super comfortable for long term relaxing.

The Kitchen:

The Residence Inn by Marriott Paris Charles de Gaulle offered a kitchen within the suite. This consisted of a rail kitchen that ran the length of an inside room wall. The kitchen consisted of a two plate HOB (flat two plate burner). The kitchen is described as a “fully fitted kitchen” but it does not contain a conventional oven and only featured a microwave and compact dish washer.

The kitchen also featured a sink, cooking knifes with cutlery, a coffee maker, a kettle, along with a toaster. There was more than enough there to make yourself a home for a day or two and be comfortable doing so.

There was also a small half height refrigerator. Like most others, it was small enough to store a bottle of wine on the diagonal. While it wasn’t super spacious, it was more than enough for a short stay.

The living space of the room featured a view into the neighbouring hotel. While it wasn’t a super aspirational view, we did find ourselves on a high floor

We had a few challenges getting connected to the wifi. Although the wifi sign on screen offered a room name and room number sign in option, after heading back down to the front desk, I was later given a code entitled “30mbps”, which I errantly thought was the internet speed (and not the wifi code). The internet seemed to have a tendency to drop in our room, so I’d rate it on a 6 out of10 on the reliability scale. It worked with some fiddling.

The Bedroom:

Off the living space and kitchen, we took a right turn into the bedroom. In the context of most Paris hotel rooms being compact in nature as a result of being in turn of century buildings, the newer Residence Inn by Marriott Paris Charles de Gaulle offered a reasonable amount of space in the bedroom. The bedroom featured a comfortable and plush king sized bed.

The bedroom offered a single two prong round European styled charger by the bedside without a USB function. This mean that adapters and plugs were out to charge smartphone devices.

Not pictured but also located in the bedroom was a second 55 inch flat screen television. This allowed for comfortable viewing from bed.

In terms of sleep quality, it was pretty quiet throughout the hotel and the surrounding area. There was good sound proofing between the airplane noise and I didn’t hear too much in the way of airplane noise.

The Bathroom:

Perhaps the highlight of the room was the spacious bathroom. I don’t usually expect a large bathroom while travelling, but this one was spacious enough that you could towel off after a shower without having to exit the space. The shower was of a “low flow” variety but there was heaps of room in the bathtub and in the washroom area.

The bathroom featured a large tub and shower combination, along with a single vanity sink. There was a shower contained dispenser toiletries, which weren’t as exciting but highly convenient and functional.

For those that are curious, I have attached the hotel plan layout. The floor plan shows a single One Bedroom Suite per Floor, making Marriott Bonvoy upgrades a little less available likely if you plan strictly by the numbers.

While the room was functional, it was completely brand new with a minimal amount of markings that you’d otherwise expect in an airport hotel. The highlight was the spacious bathroom, along with the availability of actual glassware in the kitchen, and just having that little extra space to stretch out in the living area.

Around the Hotel Property:

Being a brand new hotel, everything in the hotel looks new and fresh. Making a great first impression is the lobby area. While I though that this space doubled as a breakfast area, I’d later find out that this was strictly the hotel lounge space.

The hotel lounge and flex space offered a comfortable place for hanging out, and featured a nice amount of features that included relax chairs and bright seating spaces from floor to ceiling windows. I rarely saw people sitting in this space, and it was easy to locate a spot to sit during my visit.

As I mentioned earlier, the property shares its building with the Courtyard Paris Roissy Charles de Gaulle Airport, which is fully connected to the hotel on certain lower floors. This allowed the hotel to economize on certain features.

Laundry Room:

There is a laundry room on the property that offer six machines between the two properties.

Gym:

There is also a shared twenty four hour gym available between the two properties. Given the hotel’s low rise configuration, the gym had some but not expansive daylight views.

Food and Beverage:

The Courtyard Restaurant:

There is one restaurant and lounge that is shared between the two properties. The restaurant features both the sole on property dining option, and is the location on where the Residence Inn breakfast is served in the morning.

The Courtyard Restaurant was a bright contemporary dining space. Even though it doubled as a breakfast space, it still had a modern look to the room. The Courtyard Restaurant also offered the ability to access patio space, which would allow for outdoor dining in the warmer summer months.

Unfortunately, aside from the hotel restaurant, there isn’t much around this particular property in the way of exciting places to eat. Aside from the hotel restaurant, your only other there are other hotel restaurants, or the option of taking the CDGVAL back to the Paris Charles de Gaulle airport for take away sandwiches. There wasn’t much in this particular neighbourhood for things to eat.

While I was initially reared up to head into Paris via the RER to make the most of my 25 hour layover, MrsWT73 was pretty keen for a nap and a catch up on sleep after several taxing weeks at work. As a result, I enjoyed a walk around the neighbourhood.

When MrsWT73 woke up, we didn’t fancy a full trip into the city or any other neighborhood for dinner. As a result, we ended up eating on property.

We went down to the Courtyard Restaurant for about 7 PM. Unfortunately, everyone else in the two hotels that share the restaurant had the same idea. We added our name to the list. I had a grandma behind me complain to us that the list was about 45 minutes. The staff were doing their best and running around to try to get everyone taken care of. We were encouraged to enjoy a drink in the attached bar. I headed over there and learned we could eat dinner there.

As a result, I enjoyed a Chablis and we split a clubhouse with fries. The menu was pretty American styled and hotel oriented along with the clientele dining in the hotel tonight. There wasn’t much regional fare on the menu, although French onion soup made an appearance (no croque monsieurs)

The cheque came to about 40€ with two wines along with a club sandwich. MrsWT73 fancied a drink for the room, so we wandered next door to the Moxy Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport for a take away wine.

Residence Inn Breakfast:

The next morning, we enjoyed an included breakfast along with our room rate at the Residence Inn. The Residence Inn breakfast was pretty extensive and contained a pretty robust featuring of continental bakery items, in addition to more American hot items.

The buffet was open between 6 AM – 10 AM on our visit. Unlike our Residence Inn London Kensington visit, there wasn’t any wait or crush at 9 AM.

The continental consisted of European Gouda and Swiss cheeses, Italian and American styled hams, along with an assortment of vegetables. There were also doughnuts, croissants, pain au chocolates and large and small French baguettes.

Along with the baked goods, there were salad dishes available.

In addition to the baked goods, there were fritatta and baked egg dishes along with apple dishes.

For those looking to fill up, there were also traditional American scrambled egg dishes, hashbrowns, streaky bacon and sausages.

The coffee was also provided through a machine, which prepared each cup individually.

I was pretty satisfied with the breakfast offered at the Residence Inn. There was ample food available with more than enough variety to keep any traveller happy.

For those staying at the Courtyard hotel, breakfast was an extra charge. Residence Inn guests would have access to this spread without additional charge being included in their room rate

The Market:

The Residence Inn also offered a small take away market located just off the front desk of the Residence Inn. The market contained some small take away items.

The Market itself was a a little small in comparison to some other properties that I’ve stayed at. Despite this, it was will convenient to have items available within the hotel.

Checking Out of the Residence Inn:

Our check out the next day, our check out was without incident. My 8€ Marriott Bonvoy welcome credit was applied separately and deducted on a separate invoice from the hotel. Despite challenges getting stay credits and invoices through Marriott, my invoices (and my separate 8€ credit) turned up immediately after leaving the property. Our 50% earning points would post without any issue.

I later learned that there was a van shuttle service available too and from the airport. The fee was 8€ per person, and required an advance reservation. While I didn’t use the services, it could be handy for those with a lot of luggage.

We walked up to the CDGVAL and had a walk over to Paris Charles de Gaulle Terminal 2A for our Turkish Airlines Business Class Paris Charles de Gaulle – Istanbul International Airport flight.

Bottom Line: Residence Inn by Marriott Paris Charles de Gaulle Central Airport

The Residence inn by Marriott Paris Charles de Gaulle Central Airport was a better than expected stay for us between our flights at Paris Charles de Gaulle. We were able to avoid the large price premium that the Sheraton Paris Airport Hotel and Conference Centre by taking the CDGVAL train a few stops away. Provided you can maneuver a 10 minute train, a few escalators and an elevator ride or two along with a 10 minute walk, you’ll likely save yourselves several hundred euro.

The Residence Inn hotel itself was a new stay with every comfort amenity. We received an upgrade courtesy of our Marriott Bonvoy Titanium status, and our room was comfortable and quiet. The restaurant wasn’t the high point of the trip due to the wait, but the food itself was reasonable. About the only downside of this property is that there is nothing but hotel restaurants in this area, so you’re not likely to get any form of a French experience; unless you interact with the staff in French. You could very well be in any corner of the world. I’d be happy to have the opportunity stay here again for a sterile layover environment.

Lastly, for those looking to maximize their Marriott Bonvoy earnings, it may make more sense to stay at the Courtyard Paris Roissy Charles de Gaulle Airport, immediately next door. By staying at the Courtyard, you’ll earn a full 10 points per dollar on Marriott Bonvoy hotel spend, instead of the 5 points per dollar at the Residence Inn. If you happen to be a Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite or Higher, you can take advantage of the same breakfast as your welcome benefit, and likely come away with greater points.

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If you have stayed at the Residence Inn, did the stay meet your needs ?

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