Help with family Paris trip?

[citymama]

#1 tip: Advance bookings!

You need to book your Eiffel Tower visit ahead of time. If you are not able to book a visit to the top of the tower, never fear! Book the option to the level just before the top, and for 2 euros, you can buy tix at level 2 to go all the way up. Do not bother to pay 4 times the amount to reserve a ticket to the top thru a tour group.

I love the Musee du Quai Branly next to the Tour Eiffel. We took the kids last year at 7 and 11 to that one, Musee Picasso, Musee d'Orsay and the Louvre, in the space of a week. Crazy! To my amazement they loved the Louvre best. Seeing the Mona Lisa in person kind of blew their mind. I love the Orsay but it is so so crowded, whereas the Louvre is so enormous that other than a few places like the Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo, you can have a lot of space.

My older kid also loved the Catacombs and the Ste Chapelle church. You should walk to the Notre Dame for sure, not necessary to go inside. The grounds outside are fun to run around. Make sure to get some Berthillon icecream!

We also love hanging around in the Marais. One of our favorite days was the Picasso museum followed by lunch at L'as du fallafel in the Marais - so, so good!

Sailing boats at Luxembourg gardens!

My girls also enjoyed an afternoon of clothes shopping at les Galleries Lafayette - well, my older one did, anyway. DH hung out with a friend and drank Belgian beer and ate frites!

We wanted to book a day trip to Givernay but didn't make it. We decided to skip Versailles - DH and I have been there before and I'm pretty meh about it. There's plenty to do in Paris itself!

ETA As to which arondissement to stay in, I would just caution against the Montmartre area - it's where the cheapest places are but really not kid-friendly. There are nice apt rentals near the Luxembourg gardens or you could opt to be right in the middle of it in the 1st. The Marais would be fun too although can get pretty loud at night with the partiers.

[mom_hanna]

We went a couple years ago and used Air BnB. Kids were 9 and 11. We stayed in an apartment in the Marais, right next to Starbucks. We walked to Notre Dame during the day and at night - really fun to go at night. Took the metro all over - to the Louvre, Musee D'Orsay, Eiffel Tower. Walked around a lot just to sightsee - slow and casual. Had picnics of bread and fruit and cheese in the parks. Was super fun and low key. And if you take the Metro it can be pretty inexpensive. Our air bnb was only $100 euros a night and didn't have to eat all our meals out.

[123LuckyMom]

This has all been so helpful! We’ve decided not to go in August, because I was having trouble finding reasonable prices on lodging. We’re going to plan a trip in spring instead, and we’ll have a decent budget, so that will help! If anybody is willing to share specific VRBO or Airbnb lodgings, maybe by PM, I’d be incredibly grateful!!!


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