Paris with young children

[alexandra uk]

We're thinking of taking a day out of DLP to go into Paris, but I'm a bit worried there will be nothing there for my little boys.
They will be 3 1/2 and 18 months.

Is there much there for young children/families ?

 

[*123JOANNA123*]

Alexandra- we'll be there in two weeks with a 3yo and a 5yo so I'll fill you in on the details when I get back (if it's not too late). We're spending one night/two days there and from what I'm reading there seems to be plenty to do. There's a small playground with a carousel/funfair in the Jardins Luxembourg, there appear to be regular puppet shows in some of the parks too. My little boy (5) is mad for mummies and all things egyptian, so, we're going to take him to the Egyptian antiquities exhibit at the Louvre (there's also a medievel dungeon which he will love). If we get a chance, we'll show them Notre Dame and of course the Eiffel Tower and perhaps the Centre Pompidou.

For eats, we may try Leon de Bruxelles. I've eaten in the Brussels branch and it does a great moule-frites. They seem pretty child friendly. I've also heard that any of the FLO chain of brasseries can be accomodating for kids if you want good quality food (and are willing to eat early)

http://www.flobrasseries.com/en/

http://www.leon-de-bruxelles.fr/12_ans/espace.htm

http://www.paris-tourism.com/kids/

I'm aware that the weather is going to impact on our plans, so we'll be taking things as they come. I'll let you know how we got on when we return.

 

[alexandra uk]

Thanks for that Joanna
I'll look forward to hearing from you.

 

[Disney owl]

jardin de luxembourg also hire old fashioned sailing boats to sail on the fountains. our youngest loved them when he was younger.

to get around there is a boat service on the seine that you use like a bus . you can buy single tickets or a day ticket ours loved this too. I think its called Bateaubus not sure of spelling though, sorry.

You can walk?climb up the Arc de Triompe, good view from the top & small musuem & shop in middle. Last time we took the kids it was free for them.

Food you'll have no problem finding somewhere to eat. REmember theres always Macdonalds!!!!! Even if you don't want to eat there,we found them invaluble when kids were younger for a drink & toilet break.

 

[Disney owl]

another thought underneath the Louvre Glass pyramid is a shopping centre with a couple of nice kids shops. Also decent toilets!!!

 

[missypie]

My kids loved anything that could be climbed up and looked out of: Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame Tower, Arch de Triomphe, the top of Sacre Coure.

The also loved the playgrounds at the Tuilleries (right in front of the Louvre). There are trampolines and a carousel and very cool playground equipment. The Luxembourg Gardens has a cool playground, too. (Funny-the museums admit kids for free, but some of the playgrounds chage admission.) There are also puppet shows on weekends.

Buy a fresh crepe off the street - butter and sugar or chocolate...YUM.

 

[wnissen]

Don't forget the zoo! There's a page with links to various kid-friendly activities: http://www.paris-tourism.com/kids/index.html

Also, don't forget the Catacombs! For the teens, this is one of the cooler attractions in Paris. Oh, and don't forget the markets. Lots of interesting foods and goods for sale. However, in general I don't see a lot of kids in Paris. Not sure why. But you can certainly occupy them for a day.

Walt