Hasna's mother Halima is a wonderful woman who prioritizes safety which made me feel extremely safe. The neighbor next store has lived in the building thirty years and he was very pleasant to talk to and see often.
The elevator was also very useful . The button on the first floor doesn't work very well, you have to push it quite a few times before it actually calls the elevator but I'm sure they'll get that fixed seeing as residents have to go up and down.
I loved the neighborhood for its diversity, varied cuisine, lively atmosphere, and a great place to practice French where people won't just write you off as stupid American tourists when they hear your accent.
I will say that the streets were decorated with trash, the smell of urine, and we actually witnessed a man get mugged, a knife fight, and some other sketchy activity, all within 1 week. Obviously, that is outside Hasna's control but I do want to warn that the neighborhood did not present as the safest.
However the street art was beautiful. I recommend taking walks simply to see the ways street artists decorate the buildings. There's very clearly a talented street art culture in Paris that I witnessed the most in Goutte D'Or. The markets also have very fresh produce and for amazing prices!
Fat people, please do not rent here! I am very fat and struggled to fit into the shower but so did my not so plump boyfriend. the shower was teeny. That would have been fine if the shower head was not broken in a way that water drizzled out unfocused from every crevice in the handle. there was ZERO water pressure to the point where neither of us could properly wash the soap off and so I would have soap residue in my hair and crevices which would then chaffe or begin to break out with rashes from not being able to rinse well. They went away when our Air BNB in Cannes had an amazing shower. And because of the hot water handle and the tight space I was also burned a few times just trying to turn around. I'm not the fattest person in the world but I'm quite fat so I want other big people to be aware that this is not a suitable place to bathe for people like us.
I believed the accommodations that there were hangers. That would have been cool if there was closet space. There are closets not accessible to guests. They're locked. So there's no closet space so if you like to hang your clothes, tough luck. There ARE drawers by the bedside though so those were fine.
This apartment would be perfect if we were there for a night or two. I think it's inaccurate to say that it's good for long term stays especially with a kitchen that has no cutting knives, closet space, and very little room in general. I had to cut everything with a butter knife when I cooked, and poor quality utensils like a spatula that bends more than picks up.
ALSO IT CANNOT FIT 4 PEOPLE. that's super inaccurate. Y'all would get cabin fever by the end of your stay and there's certainly no space for 4 people to sleep in that apartment. I would say a couple could fit the bed and 1 could fit the couch. I know it looks spacious in the pictures. Trust me, it's not.
I would stay here in the winter or fall. The summer heat was unbearable and opening the window let in a million bugs that we then had to catch or kill. We didn't want to leave the apartment buggy, especially as many of them were mosquitos. It seemed like there was something for heating so that would fare better later in the year when you don't want to open windows.
I hate leaving a less than perfect review. If we had not found a better apartment in 5eme for cheaper than what we had in Goutte D'Or, I might have just accepted that these are what Parisian Air BnBs are like but this was clearly not the norm.
I'm sorry to leave less than 5 stars and I hope this is helpful and not condemning.
If it helps, I think this apartment is perfect for a night or two. But I don't recommend booking it for 2 weeks or more.