Hello,
I just wanted to write a trip report as a way of saying thank you to so many of you who provided invaluable information to me as I was planning this trip for our family. The information on this board was amazingly valuable throughout our trip.
We returned home on Tuesday 4/10 after an unforgettable week with our three children (ages 4, 7 and 9) in Paris.
We rented an apartment through Porter Scott at I love Paris Apartments. We stayed on Rue Mazarine in the 6th. The apartment was fabulous, clean, quiet, well equipped and unbelievably well located about 10 minutes walk to Notre Dame or 10 minutes across Blvd. St. Germain to the Luxembourg Gardens. My husband and two older kids also easily walked to the Louvre and back. Other than that, we took the Metro and buses all over the city and did so much walking that our feet ached every night. I can%26#39;t make any restaurant recommendations as we only ate out for two dinners at local places in our neighborhood and two lunches at small creperies. Otherwise, we had picnics or brought food into the apartment mostly because the kids were exhausted after very full days.
Day one 4/3: Arrived at CDG with no problem. Took a cab to our apartment, dropped off bags and headed out to explore and food shop. Took a late afternoon boat ride on Vedette de Pont Neuf (print out discount tickets from the website ahead of time to save a little money). A great way to get all of us excited for what was ahead.
Day two 4/4: Trip to top of Eiffel Tower. Got there at 8:30 am and were among the first to go up. Fabulous clear day so we could see for miles. On to the Sewer Tour which was smelly but the kids thought it was fun and then over to Rue Dauphine for lunch at a small creperie. After that, took bus #69 to get a overview tour of the city. Hopped off near Ile St. Louis for gelato at Amorino...delicious. Visited Notre Dame and the lovely park behind it for some relaxation before heading home for dinner.
Day three 4/5: Bought two day Museum Pass for brief visits to Orsay (pass was invaluable there because the line stretched for miles), Rodin (lovely and peaceful), Pompidou (the kids thought this was great). We stopped at a small park and fed the pigeons, ate ice cream and had some down time in the middle of the day. This was critical for the kids.
Day four 4/6: Used Museum Pass to climb the Notre Dame towers to see the gargoyles which the kids loved and over to Ile St. Louis for lunch at a creperie and Berthillon ice cream (also delicious). After lunch, on to Ste. Chappelle where there was a long line but the stained glass was magnificent. Not a highlight for the kids, but we enjoyed it. The altar is covered for restoration and one side of the church has scaffolding on the outside which blocks the sun from those windows. Nevertheless, it was beautiful. After that, I went home with our 4 year old and my husband and older kids went to the Louvre for a late afternoon visit with Mona Lisa only. They arrived around 6pm and found no crowds and had Mona almost to themselves. The kids loved the pyramids at sunset and took lots of gorgeous pictures.
4/7: Took Rick Steves walk around Sevres Babylone stopping at Le Bon Marche for picnic items, Poilane for bread and ending up at Luxembourg Gardens. This was a huge hit with the kids. They loved sailing the boats on the pond, the swings and the pony rides. We had a beautiful and restful afternoon there.
4/8: Easter Sunday mass at St. Sulpice. Got to hear the world class organ...so worthwhile. Then back to Luxembourg Gardens so the kids could sail boats again, visit the wonderfully imaginative playground and swings. The crowds were much larger than the previous day, but it was fun to see Parisians enjoying a day in the park. The kids even met other children on the playground.
Attempted an unsuccessful trip to Sacre Coeur in the evening. The crowds on the metro were unbelievable and the even larger crowds at the top of the metro and up the hill to the church made it impossible to navigate with the kids so we turned around and headed home (after stopping for Amorino gelato on Rue de Buci, near home, of course!).
4/9: Our last day in Paris (sniff, sniff). The kids really wanted to walk down Champs Elysee to the Arc mostly because we are big Tour de France fans and wanted to experience it for ourselves. We had such a nice walk and the kids loved visiting the car showrooms along the way. The Toyota showroom (of all places!) was a huge hit with their simulated driving games and a place for the kids to design their own cars (on paper). It was unexpectedly fun and the bathrooms are amazing!! We stopped at Laduree...a must see and eveyone must eat at least one of their macaroons (truly amazing)! Strolled down the street towards the Arc and then hopped on the metro. Got off at Cite to visit Notre Dame one more time before leaving. Tried to talk an evening ride on the Batobus but found that the last boat at 7:05 would not allow us to board (at St. Germaine) because it terminated at Eiffel Tower rather than going round trip (which we didn%26#39;t mind)...didn%26#39;t quite get that but nevertheless, it didn%26#39;t work so we headed home to get more gelato at Amorino and pack up.
All in all, we had an amazing time and our children were thrilled by the whole experience. We found Parisians to be wonderfully friendly and helpful and were gracious and accommodating to us and our children. I would be happy to answer any questions about traveling with younger kids in Paris. I got so much useful information from this board from others...it really made the difference between a fun trip and an unforgettable one. Many thanks.
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jjjkn
I%26#39;m glad to hear that you had a wonderful time with your children. We%26#39;re travelling to Paris at the end of May with our 18 month old and every positive bit of information helps.
Thanks for the trip report.
Julie
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What a wonderful trip! We are traveling with our 8 year old next month so I appreciate hearing about your %26quot;real%26quot; itinerary with tired little legs. How did jet lag affect them?
One thing I would like to do is take her to a puppet or marionette show. Did you see or hear of any (particularly in English) around town? How about any hands on children museums?
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Love your report. Going to paris with my kids in August too and will definitely use this.
Question re apartment, I am just about to finalize my apartment arrangements and a little nervous cos never did this before.
Choosing between two apts in the Marais and one company wants a credit card deposit up front and the remainder in cash when I arrive, an arrangement that I can live with. The second company with the apt that I prefer wants a deposit via wire now and the remainder of rent and a security deposit of 200 Euro 60 days in advance of arrive. Both are very similar in total cost, so choice made on size, decoration and layout.
What are typical payment arrangements, should I be leary of the 2nd route and is there any option of checking. 2nd one is private owner with VR Connections.
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Hi d7858,
Re: Jet lag. The kids fared pretty well. We tried to get them on Paris time immediately so when we landed at 11 am (after an overnight flight) we proceeded with the day without naps. They went to bed around 8 pm and woke up for the first two nights from midnight till 2 am. They mostly read/played quietly (sort of) and then went back to sleep until about 8 am. After that, they were pretty much okay. We just returned on Tuesday and so far so good.
Re: puppet shows. There is a puppet theater right next to the playground in the Luxembourg Gardens. Our kids were so absorbed in the playground that they did not want to go to the show. I believe it was in French but I%26#39;ve heard the storylines are easy enough to follow even if you don%26#39;t speak French. It was a cute little theater and a gentleman came out an rang a bell at show time and lots of kids scampered in.
Re: children%26#39;s museums. There is apparently a wonderful Science and Discovery Park at Parkcde la Villette at the edge of the city. It sounded amazing, like a science museum on steroids. We planned to go but found so much to do within the city that we never made it. Instead,I tried to make the Orsay and Pompidou come alive for them by focusing narrowly on artists they had heard of or studied in school. I gave each of them a travel journal/sketchbook and colored pencils and they sketched one thing in each museum that they really loved. Our visits were short, hopefully just enough to whet their appetite for more as they get older. By the way, the self serve cafeteria at the Musee D%26#39;orsay is really great.
Have fun.
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Jadepearl,
We paid for our apartment with a credit card...half when we made the reservation and the balance about 30 days (I think) before we arrived. So, we were paid in full before ever setting foot in the apartment. No security deposit was required because they said they have almost never had a problem with renters and if they do, they just charge your credit card for damages. I felt comfortable with this and preferred not having them hold on to money that I then had to get back. I felt, too, that the credit card transaction gave me some measure of protection. I also did alot of research on the company by asking questions on this board, by googling the company and on slowtrav.com to be sure this was a legitimate arrangement. It all worked out really well for us.
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Last year I took my seven year old and sixteen month old daughters to Paris and we had a great time. We are doing it again this year.
A few tihoughts for Julie and d7858:
If you are worried about tired legs, start walking your child more now before the trip so they will be more used to it before you go. I am already walking my toddler up and down several flights of stairs whenever we have the opportunity to get her ready. We are also taking her out on walks without her stroller (of course we will be bringing one) to build up her stamina.
Park Villette is great, especially the hands on play area on the main floor. I would suggest making reservations before you go and then arriving at the appointed time. The Pompidou usually also has some wonderful exhibit especially for children (in fact an adult can%26#39;t get in without a child). on the ground floor on the left. My kids have spent hours there.
Do plan to spend plenty of time in Luxembourg Gardens playground and in the Tuleries. Aside from the carousel and the donkey rides, there are also trampolines in the Tuleries which are great to work off some energy.
The puppet shows in Luxembourg are in French and are easy to follow. The show in the audience is as good as the show onstage. I like the puppet shows more than my older daughter, but she tolerates our going.
The Jardin d%26#39;acclimation is also a joy and very easy to get to.
As to the flights, I agree an overnight flight is easiest. I do try to have some new things for each child for both flights, so they have plenty to do before they sleep. Last year on our flight back, I wanted my seven year old to stay awake as long as she could and so I let her have a can of Coca Cola, which she never has, and the caffeine did keep her awake. She was, of course, thrilled to drink it. and ready to sleep when we got home that night around ten.
Julie- Paris will have everything you need for the baby, but the diaper sizing runs a little differently so check before you buy and if your toddler is still eating baby food, there is plenty of it, but the flavors are quite different.
Please let me know if I can be of any other help.
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Sounds like you guys had a fabulous time!! So glad everything worked out with the kids too. Sometimes with a 4 yr old you just never know!! :-) Thanks for the report - I enjoyed reading it!
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Jadepearl- check out the cost of wiring euros before you do. Here in the us it can cost over 40 dollars. We also have the 9/11 patriot act to get around and can be a pain. I like to use credit cards so if there%26#39;s a problem, I can call the credit card company for some back-up.
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Thank you so much for your trip report! I am going to Paris in August with my three kids (7.9,11) but staying in a hotel. I hope we have as much fun as you all did! I will be saving your report to refer to.
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jjjkn
Could you share with me who and where you stayed with. I%26#39;ll check in out since you gave such great reviews and found no trouble with the company.
muffya
Thanks for your note of caution, wiring is going to add to the costs and it wil be twice.
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