I would definitely fly. It is 700 miles and a car is useless in both Venice and Paris. Fly, fly, fly.

The fastest and most direct way to go is to fly. You can fly from Marco Polo Airport to Paris, Orly or perhaps to De Gaulle.

Check the baggage regulations on Easy Jet, so you can pack accordingly. The ticket price will vary depending on the day/time/month.

Thanks - you confirmed my thoughts exactly. We will have to pay a hefty penalty for dropping off our French rental car in Italy but I guess that's the part of family travel you sometimes can't avoid. Easyjet has some good fares 52Euro seems good..plus all of those sneaky extras they add on.

There is a direct overnight train - the Thello that goes between Paris and Venice, of you book 3 months ahead you can get some really reasonable fares. It leaves at 8pm and arrives into Venice Santa Lucia - right on the island of Venice at 930am the next morning. I have one by train to Venice and there is nothing that compares with stepping out the station to see taxis bobbing on the water, unreal!

We did the overnight train as well Paris to Venice - not sure how it runs in reverse, which is what the OP was asking.

Whether to train would depend very much on your kids - would they regard sleeping overnight on a train as an adventure, or are they better when you fly and minimise the time they are restricted?

As loco says - it is amazing to walk out of the station in Venice, straight on to the Grand Canal!

I read several reviews about the overnight train and they were not favorable...pretty much all recommended flying instead.

Train was great - we all slept fairly well - left the centre of Paris after a fairly relaxed day (used our extra half day to visit Musee D'Orsay)and arrived in the centre of Venice in time to have a relaxed breakfast - much less stress and hassle thana double airport shuttle!

Thanks everyone - I really appreciate your input. If we didn't have an energetic three year-old, we would most likely take the train. We have decided to jump on Easyjet and make the trip faster.

bendigo...I'm glad you had a great train trip. I was kind of disappointed after reading the reviews about the ride and the cost, but it does sound like a lot of fun. I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it. Thanks.

I took Easyjet with my 16 year old neice from paris to venice and it was very stress free and easy. One thing I would do is pay for baggage in advance on their website if you have alot of luggage.

Thanks kelbo. I booked seats and paid for baggage. Glad to hear your flight was good. It was so cheap compared to other airlines that I was a little concerned.