amla

Hello! Our family of four (two parents, two kids ages 8 and 12) will be in Paris for five nights in October. I need to decide (today!) between two lovely apartments:

http://www.parisdeluxerentals.com/ap...-cherche-midi/
This one is in St. Germain on Rue du Cherche Midi (cross street Saint Placide).

http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p883762a
This one is near Pompidou (rue de la Reynie). Fifth floor walkup.

My main consideration is location--we're looking for something with good markets nearby since we plan to cook most dinners at home (my 12 year old has diabetes; restaurant meals can be complicated for us to calculate), easy access to metro/museums (Louvre, Orsay, Cluny), charm. We had originally planned to stay in the Marais but that apartment fell through. Please advise--I'm anxious to book an apartment and start the fun part of the planning process. And many thanks in advance!

seafox

I can't speak to the first but the home away apartment is well located for your needs. There is a grocery store directly across the square from the main entrance to Pompidou near the corner go Rambuteau and Saint Martin next to "Dish of the Day".

Rastaguytoday

For HomeAway. Wow, a 5th floor walkup. Remeber that the ground floor is floor zero. Those are a lot of steps to haul things up and down. I had a 4th floor walkup in Aix, and that was a real pain. Never again for me.

My personal choice would be the one in the 6th arrondisement.
Large store nearby, Grande Epicerie De Paris. Here's a youtube video from a person walking through the store. Everything you could want. He'll move on to fish and meat.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3skqdYP07I

There's also a Monoprix somewhere nearby.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NnxN4dyXdug

Both are large grocery stores.

MaineGG

I'd pick the one in St. Germain for location.

There are markets on the Boulevard Raspail three days a week, with the Sunday market being a "marché biologique" for organic foods. You will also be near the Poilâne bakery on the rue du Cherche-Midi.

The other apartment looks very nice, but 5th floor walk-up? No way.

iffy49

I agree with Rastaguytoday. Fifth floor walkup, really SIXTH floor, is a lot to deal with.
I'm just back from Paris and love the St. Germain area. It felt like a place where real (real rich) people live. Cafe's, speciality shops,little winding streets.
By the way, I went on a food tour thru Culinary Tours of Paris and he mentioned that he can arrange tours for special diets.
http://www.culinarytoursofparis.com/

amla

Thanks, everyone! We've decided to go with the apartment in St. Germain (seafox, you must have strong legs!). It's great to know that the Grande Epicerie is just around the corner, but we'll be sure to explore the other markets, too. iffy49, thanks for the culinary tours rec! My son just wants to be sure he gets to eat some croissants (any guesses on the carb count? sigh).

By the way, this is my first experience on the forums--everyone is so nice! Will have to start chiming in (we've been to the UK and Italy with the kids in the last two years) and noting down everyone's fantastic advice!

framboise_et_rose

A croissant is roughly 45 grams of carbs. He can drink plain tea or coffee. I had a croissant and cafe au lait without sugar for my breakfast everyday when in Paris and occasionaly have a pain au chocolat which is slightly more but a little more exercise (walking from one place to another worked for me). Just make sure he does not get hypo-glycemia which I had some trouble when I overdid the days with too much walking. I am an older person who got it only 2-1/2 years ago (actually diagnosed after being in a hospital in Paris!) after an unfortunate result of some kind of anti-biotic.

I like your choice of apartment - I tried to rent that one but it was not available for our dates at the time. I agree with the other posters about the location - fantastic!

Good luck to you and your family especially your son. If he is on insulin he can adjust depending on how much carbs he wants to eat in a meal. It can be done!

amla

framboise_et_rose, thank you so much for your encouraging words! Traveling with diabetes seems overwhelming at times and it helps to hear than it can be done.

I will be sure to post a trip report with details about the apartment in case you (or anyone else) considers it in the future.

Thanks again, and good health to you!

Christina

The problem with croissants is they are full of fat (very high in cholesterol and saturated fat) due to the high butter content, and they are low fiber. So nutritionally, they don't have a lot going for them. They are very high calorie, also. Children don't usually care about calories and fat. I would hope small children wouldn't be drinking coffee or tea, those drinks aren't really good for children due to the caffeine which affects children worse than adults.

amla

I feel compelled to respond to Christina--no, my children don't drink coffee or tea or any sort of caffeinated beverage (although I do). Nor do they routinely eat croissants for breakfast, but they are very much looking forward to doing so in France! Mmm, Poilane, too. Thanks

framboise_et_rose

amla, I didn't mean to recommend the cafe au lait for your son. My children did not drink them when we lived in Paris and we usually had the croissants for breakfast on Sundays only. As you said, the children would like to try them. I do so everyday when I am in Paris (usually about 2 weeks) and eat sensibly when I am home the rest of the time.

Poilane is such a good bread. Maison Kayser also makes different breads that are so delicious as well. I wish you a great visit in Paris. I'll have to wait until September for ours.

surfmom

just a heads up for future... we just went to Italy and the apartments were on the:
- 2nd floor European
- 4th floor European
- 5th floor European

We traveled with kids ages 7, 9, and 11 years. Honestly, they had more energy than we did. The hardest was initially getting the luggage up, but it certainly allowed us to work off the copious quantities of gelato! While I would prefer an elevator in the future, it wouldn't be a deal breaker for me - this trip proved that!

amla

I knew you weren't, framboise_et_rose (although I'm sure plenty of French children do drink cafe au lait every day!). And we're the same way when we travel--it's nice to change the routine and indulge in a specialty like croissants, especially when one is going to be walking all day.

That's a lot of stairs, surfmom! Good to know it's not a deal breaker. Our kids were 7 and 11 when we went to Italy last fall (Florence, Venice, and Rome--we rented an apartment in Monti), and they were definitely more than able to keep with us in the walking department. I love traveling with kids--I bet you had a fabulous trip!

framboise_et_rose

Amla, we are just back from Paris and had a Visit with my French endocrinologist.
Update on tithe carb counts - croissant has about 30 grams carbs, pain au chocolat has just a tad more. in case or any emergency, the doctor said to phone 15 from any telephone (free call). It is the fastest way to get help. It is the SAMU (ambulance) and they come immediately. Just mention that it is a diabetic emergency!
Enjoy your trip next month!

amla

Thank you, framboise et rose! That's very helpful information (although I hope we don't have to use the emergency bit, I'm glad to know it just in case). Hope you had a lovely trip! I'm about to post some last-minute queries about ours--we leave on Friday. Thanks again!