Paris with 1yo and 3yo - would it be fun?

[happygelfling]

My best school friend who now lives in Australia will be in Paris for a week in April. This will be a rare opportunity to be in the same continent as her (the last time being 5 years ago) so I would love to take my family to Paris and see her there.
I have two small children who will be 3.5yrs and 16months in April. Neither child has a passport and I've never taken both children anywhere further than a 4 hour drive. DH would come too but I still find the idea a bit daunting.
Any suggestions welcome! Could it be an enjoyable experience? How should we travel (from near Cambridge, so Stanstead airport and St Pancreas Eurostar are both within reach)? Where could we stay that would be child friendly and affordable? What sights/activities should we do in Paris that would be fun with such small children? My French is rubbish (a 20 year old GCSE) so I may not find Paris an easy environment to navigate.
I wonder if we might just decide that it's too difficult, but it would be good to make the effort and see my friend.

She'd really like to meet my children. Thanks for your suggestion though.

If I hadn't met my best school friend's children then I would be delighted to meet them in Paris. You might not want to be there for the whole week though.

We took DD (just 4) on the Eurostar from St Pancras - so a very short walk from Kings Cross and it was a really easy journey. We didn't go to Paris, so I can't comment on what to do or where to stay.

I'd suggest trying to stay in an apartment rather than hotel as it can be easier in the evenings with children going to bed, feeding them etc. Your DH may also be able to stay in for a few evenings with them while you go out for dinner.

I've also found Stansted to be much more stressful and more waiting around than the Eurostar was. Obviously it's good to leave yourself plenty of time in case of a delayed train on the way to the Eurostar, but there are plenty of family friendly restaurants in Kings X and St Pancras if you have time on your hands.

You also can take as much luggage as you like on Eurostar (as far as I can remember) and no faff about liquids.

I took my twins to paris when they were 3 because i love paris and I thought sod all this child friendly stuff! Eurostar was perfect, although book a seat for your older child because the child on knee scenario gets old very fast. We stayed in a little apartment in walking distance of the Gare de Nord (near the Madeleine Church) and generally ate at a nearby Italian restaurant. My tip is to be very unambitious about what you do - we walked to Montmartre and visited Sacre Coeur, went on the old fashioned carousel, went to lots of little urban parks. If i did it again, I would take my kids to the Tuileiries Gardens to see the boat pond and possibly to the Luxembourg Gardens and I would take them on an open topped bus. Saying this, the paris thing was not for them but for meeeee!

Thanks Pico. Apartments do sound easier than a hotel, I agree. We could also host my friend and her DP after the children are in bed too... I think we'd only go for a couple of nights realistically (with annual leave restrictions etc). Your luggage point re Eurostar is a good one. Both children still have an afternoon nap so taking our double pushchair would be nice (though a single pushchair plus baby rucksack would be a reasonable alternative - either way, it's a lot of luggage).

Ooh lots of good ideas there - thanks ByronBaby! How did you find out about the apartment?
I am used to being unambitious with children's activities! DH and I have been to Paris before (about 15 years ago) so this trip would be more about catching up with my friend and finding things to keep the children entertained.

Well, there are toddlers in Paris as well and are happy.

It all depends what you want to do. Yes, there a lovely parks and areas for kids to run and play so you could do these things, questions is, will your friend be happy to do this as well.

I would try to get your DH to be the children's carer, you meet your friend and you may do the odd thing together. I always found adult meetings difficult when Dd wa a toddler and needed more or less constant supervision and thoroughly planned activities in unfamiliar surroundings.

Or you leave your family at home, go on the Eurostar yourself and have a girly week together. I know what I would prefer doing.

We've been taking our children to Paris regularly since they were 3 months old! And my french is pretty pants ;-) (DH's is good though)

Open topped bus and boat rides would be fun, there are a number of parks - Jardins de Luxembourg, Parc de La Villette; Carousels; the Science Museum is free for under 7s.

We used Air BnB to find a house when we went with relatives a couple of years ago.

Eurostar and stay in an apartment. Homeaway.com are excellent - have used them many times or Citadines also good. I think you'll have a great time. Be aware though that the metro is v inaccessible for pushchairs - though Paris is v small so you can walk everywhere or take bus. Lots of little playgrounds all over Paris - there is a particularly nice one in the Jardins Luxembourg (with loo - not a given in Paris!) so you could watch the kids play and have a good catch up!

Thanks so much for all your advice and suggestions! Really useful food for thought so we can start to think about what might suit us best.

I don't think city break holidays are suitable for kids or enjoyable I'm afraid! Could you book a hotel with pool and facilities and then your friend can meet you there but you and you friend have some time as we'll if dh can watch the children?

Have to disagree Bryony. My dcs have been on loads of city breaks - it's their fave type of holiday! Maybe it's because of spending their early years in Paris and Berlin - they are city kids. Staying in an apartment is key though - that way it is home from home and if they need an early night you can put them to bed without having to go to bed yourself or you can just go back and watch a dvd or play a game for the afternoon if the weather is rubbish or if they just need a rest.

as much as she might think she would like to meet your children, a toddler and a baby are going to mean you can barely concentrate on her, so i think youre delusional a bit, with all due respect. Im assuming she has no children and doesn't realise this