French hotels are among the cheapest in the western world, including Parisian hotels, where you can still get an attractive double room for E60 to E75 per night. The same standard room in the country costs as little as E40, although rates vary according to the time of year, the location and the individual establishment.

You may also be able to haggle over rates outside the high season and for long stays. Many hotels have rooms for three or four guests at reduced rates or provide extra beds for children in a double room free or for a small charge. A double room may contain one or two ‘double' beds, although they may not be full-size double beds; often a room will have a double bed and one or two single beds.  Budget hotel chains include the following:
1 Accor hotels 08 25 88 00 00, http://www.accorhotels.com which are owned by the same company as Formule 1  

2 Etap hotels 08 92 68 89 00, http://www.etaphotel.com also owned by the same company as Formule 1.

3  Formule 1 hotels 08 92 68 56 85, http://www.hotelformule1.com which are common on the outskirts of towns and cities (often close to motorways). Rooms cost from around E25 per night, and up to three people can share a room.
4  Ibis hotels 08 92 68 66 86,   http://www.ibishotel.com

5  Logis et Auberges de France, the world's largest hotel consortium with over 3,000 privately run hotel/restaurants in the provinces (none in Paris) with prices ranging from E25 to E65 per night for a double room. Contact the Fédération Nationale des Logis et Auberges de France, 83 avenue d'Italie, 75013 Paris(01 45 84 83 84, www.logis-de-france.fr) . A Logis de France handbook is available from bookshops and FGTOs as well as via the Logis website.

6 Mister Bed 01 46 14 38 00,  http://www.misterbed.fr  a chain of 23 hotels in central and north-east France.

An even cheaper option is a pension de famille, which is similar to a bed and breakfast but normally for periods of at least a month. Charges, excluding meals, range from around E150 to around E250 per month, which works out at just E5 to E8 per night. Meals can often be provided and are correspondingly good value. Pensions de famille, which used to provide accommodation for factory workers and others, are becoming increasingly rare but can be found through tourist offices and local tourist boards.
 An online guide to French hotels can be found at www.france-hotel-guide.com Details of hotels and pensions can be obtained through the French Government Tourist Office (FGTO - also known as Maison de la France), which has 33 offices in 28 countries, including Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK and the US as well as in France (20 avenue de l'Opéra, 75041 Paris Cedex 01, (01 42 96 70 00). Details of all offices can be found on the FGTO website  http://www.franceguide.com/mieuxconnaitre/bureau.asp

Excerpted from "Buying a Home in France 2006" It can be purchased from Survival Books.