Tips for taking the kids to Paris?

[clare8allthepies]

Both of my kids are desperate to go to Paris, they’ve never been abroad before and we are planning to take them in the Easter holidays for a few days.
However on the thread on here a couple of days ago about the most disappointing place that you had been Paris came up over and over again. Now I’m worrying that a trip that they have been looking forward to so much will be crap. Any recommendations on what to do that we will all enjoy? (They are 11 and 8) I have spent all afternoon on google but I’m just going round in circles now.

I love Paris although haven’t been with DC. There was graffiti and dog poo yes but apart from that it was by far and away the most beautiful urban place I’ve ever been. It’s like a work of art in itself.

Your suggestions sound great - it's making me want to go!

If they want a theme park go for Parc Asterix instead of Disney. I've done both and Parc Asterix is sooooooo much better.

The catacombs are spooky but fun.

My biggest tip for Paris though is to be aware of pickpockets, especially around the big tourist sites and the Gard du Nord.

I love Paris, loved it as a child and moved there as an adult for a couple of years as I loved it so much.

The big parks on the outskirts are nice to viist and you can hire bikes. Sacre Coeur is beautiful and you must take them to the catacombs - really creepy.

I do think the Louvre is boring as fuck though, but I hate art.

I took mine at 6 and 10, and they loved it. Eiffel Tower at night is simply beautiful, boat ride definitely. Pere lachaise was a hit, and a day at Disney was super easy on the RER. We did sacre
cour and Montmartre, and be sure to teach your children to say BONJOUR to shopkeepers when spoken to!

I don't agree with the "Paris is shit" statement either. I've been lots of times and ran a marathon there, I think it is a beautiful city. You can do Disney by train from Paris and it's relatively quick and cheap (I've always done a day in Disney when I'm there).
Recommendations :
Eiffel Tower
Montparnasse Tower (free or cheap to go up and great views of the Eiffel Tower and city)
Boat trip on the Seine (we did it at sunset which was lovely)
Walk along the Champs Elysees
Notre Dame
Basilica Sacre Couer MonteMartre
Luxembourg Gardens

It is ultimately dirty and there are lots of beggars, but what city doesn't have this?!
Eat lots of baked goods and see the sights. I love it!

@ThePlantsitter

Paris is not shit! What a ridiculous thing to say about anywhere.

Cite des sciences in Villette is highly recommended www.cite-sciences.fr/fr/au-programme/expos-permanentes/la-cite-des-enfants/

Take a river tour, go up the Eiffel Tower, run about in the Tuileries, google playgrounds because there are many and they are actually working due to public money being spent properly.

Go and look at the Galleries Lafayette and have coffee and a croissant on the Champs Elysees.

Agree, we took my 3 year old for my 40th (obviously for my benefit not hers!) and these are the exact things we did. She loved it! Agree with not trying to do too much. We stayed close to the Eiffel Tower so it was a real backdrop, with its park right there too, which worked well. We did have great weather though.

Took our 6 and 8 yo dc a couple years ago. Think we did 3 nights/3 full days. Plenty to do, obvs Effiel Tower. Found a mini theme park/animal place, I'm sure it was called 'Jardin' spent a good few hours there, lots of rides etc.

@GoudaVonCrumb

If you go once your eldest reaches 12 then just beware they will need to be fully vaccinated or else they will have to do a 10 day quarantine on arrival and they won't be able to get their Passé Sanitaire which is required by law for entry to restaurants and many indoor places.

Also in order to be considered fully vaccinated' adults must have had their 2nd dose or booster jab no more than 7 months ago.

...and at the moment, children from 6 need masks (as will you).

Keep an eye on the current regulations.

Some great suggestions in this thread OP.
Sit the kids down and ask them exactly what they want to do.
They'll probably say things like Nutella crepes , the Eiffel Tower, maybe the Mona Lisa? Do it all and add in a river trip, maybe Versailles and things that don't take hours and hours. They could look at the Van Goghs at the Musee d'Orsay but don't feel you have to look at every piece of art. Our son was really interested in Napoleon's tomb and the Invalides? War museum. The kids were honestly just fascinated by everyone speaking French around them!

Ignore! It’s a fabulous city for kids. Get yourself a good guidebook, bit of research in advance.
One of the things ours enjoyed most was walking along the riverbank in the evenings, so much to see and a lovely atmosphere. the night trips to the tower on a riverboat are brilliant : try to time it with the lights switch on.

Be careful at sacre c’ouer (spelling?) though. You can find your kids grabbed and friendship bracelets on their wrists scarily quickly if you don’t keep your eyes open. You’ll be badgered for payment, then.

Embarrassed by posters saying "Paris is shit", seriously!

Paris is an amazing city. Like all cities you can do so much. We love mooching around the Marais, area around canal St Martin, Les Halles and the Pompidou, St Germain.

The river! The art! Practically anywhere you walk is interesting, wonderful architecture, beautiful shops. I'm baffled by some people saying it's shit. What on Earth do you want from a city?

I'm not a massive fan of Paris but I'm shocked that so many people would say it's shit. I can't get my head around that. We are doing a disney trip this year and I've been considering tacking an extra day on just do a bit of Paris. In my experience, DC love being in new cities - exploring, trying different playgrounds etc - and while they probably won't want to spend 5 hours in the louvre, they'd enjoy going there for a bit, walking around, eating french food.

I definitely plan to do a river trip with them when we go. I hadn't thought of going up Montparnasse rather than Eiffel but might do that. And I love the Museum d'orsay and suspect DS would too so we'll do that. I've never been to Versailles so that's on my list. Frankly, if we only do one night, we're never going to be able to fit all that in.

My kids are 8 and 10 and we go to Paris often as my parents live there - the things they enjoyed most recently:

• ice cream at Berthillon on the Ile st louis and watching the rollerskaters on the bridge
• going out for dinner on the rue de buci in st germain
• the museums, especially the one of bones and stuff in jars in the jardin des plantes - they like the zoo there too
• they like the musee d'orsay better than the louvre, also liked the musee de la chasse in the marais and usually there is something wild on at the grand palais
• buying a picnic and heading out to versailles on the RER, renting bikes in the park and cycling all the way to the end of the lake and having a picnic - this is best when it's warm obviously!
• the palais de la decouverte in the 8th
• all the stuff up in La Villette like www.cite-sciences.fr/en/explore/permanent-exhibitions/cite-des-enfants/cite-des-enfants-5-12-years/ and www.cite-sciences.fr/en/visit-us/nearby/

-

Although my mum has just texted me to say that the palais de la decouverte is being renovated for the next 4 years, and has moved to the Parc Andre Citroen that @PsychoSyd mentioned above where the balloon is!

I took my 2 age 9 and 8. Don’t miss the catacombs-they still talk about that now they’re in their early 20s. Underground tunnels filled with bones of long dead Parisians when the cemeteries were cleared. The Eiffel Tower is essential for kids that age. We went in the evening when all the lights flashed on and off on the hour and they thought it was so cool looking out over dusk time Paris with the tower flashing around them. Another thing they still talk about is feeding the birds in the square outside Norte Dame. Looking out over Paris from Sacre Coeur and going for a meal in Montmartre, delightedly clutching their name painted by the talented Chinese artists. That artwork stayed on their bedroom doors for years! What a lovely idea to take them-Paris is a city which will live in their memory.

Goodness me, thank you all so much for all the wonderful suggestions! Just looking at apartments, are there and areas to avoid particularly?

I'd avoid the areas around the big train stations eg. the gare du nord/gare de l'est, and maybe around Chatelet although that's been cleaned up in recent years.

I'm not a massive Paris lover either as there are nicer cities but it's close therefore easy and as your kids have never been abroad everything will be new and exciting to them, they will have a great time. You can definitely do a day in Disney too, that would be fun.

@clare8allthepies

Goodness me, thank you all so much for all the wonderful suggestions! Just looking at apartments, are there and areas to avoid particularly?

Don't stay anywhere near any of the mainline train stations, & avoid the area around Barbes-Rochechouart metro station.

As a warning, the beggars can be a lot more aggressive than in the U.K. & the homeless problem is even more shocking than here. Although people are a lot better at picking up dog poo than they used to be, you still need to be watchful for it. And if people approach you waving a clipboard asking you to sign, give them a very wide berth as it's a pickpocketing scam.

My tips:

• Plan a schedule that isn't too busy and doesn't have too much walking
• Research the Louvre before you go and note say 10 things you want to see and where they are
• book tickets for the Eiffel Tower in advance
• research metro tickets, sometimes the ones marketed to tourists aren't the best value
• eating out is more expensive than you might think

Not sure if they are still in business but YellowStay used to have some really nice holiday apartments to rent around the Marais area.

Paris is lovely and plodding around is great to sink in the atmosphere.
Museums are fab Louvre you can take as much as you like in. Galleries Lafeyete has a great ice cream shop on the top floor, with great views, probably similar to Harrods. Monmatre for the artist vibe.
Walk along the Seine, boat cruises, markets. I've not been for years but took our stepchildren and they loved the vibe. What time of year are you going? If its warm grab some freshly baked baguettes, cheese and enjoy the scenery.
The eiffel tower really is fascinating to go up and the history, lovely in the evening with it lit up. I know the french think it's tacky.
Always music and buskers playing, artists, performances going on.

I went to Paris with school twice. We got lost in the Louvre and only realise when we passed the same Egyptian mummy. I agree about the Mona Lisa tin and dingy and you can't get close enough for a proper look, however there's lots of stuff that isn't the Mona Lisa that's worth seeing. Personally I preferred the Musee D'Orsay, which has the collection of impressionist art.

For a day out I'd recommend Versailles it's too outrageous to be just another historic palace.

Also loved the bateaux mouche river trip. We were older but found the trip the Bastille really interesting, however the tour was in French and I ended up translating, however this was years ago and it's probably available in English now.
My favourite place was Montmatre here I had my portrait done in charcoal, it till hangs in my Dad's bedroom.

We stayed here when the DSs were young
www.discoverasr.com/en/citadines/france/citadines-montmartre-paris
It was the perfect location for us. Loads of places to eat and to buy food for breakfasts, picnics etc. They loved Montmartre itself and it was a short walk to the metro to explore further afield.

Highlights were the Louvre, walking down the champs elysee, the day trip to Versailles and the Pompidou centre but I think they’d have been happy just to stay in Montmartre. They were 11 and 8 the last time we went and it’s one of their favourite holidays