Hi everyone! I really need your help here... Actually, i'm looking for an hotel that is kid friendly for an upcoming trip in Paris. I'm travelling with my two kids (6 and 8) for the first time in september and i don't know which hotel to chose... I found one close to the Bois de Vincennes, named "Hotel de la Porte Doree" and i would like to know if anyone has experienced it already... Thanks a lot for your help! =)

Hi J,

Your hotel is out at the eastern side if town.

You can locate it at www.viamichelin.com.

www.ratp.fr says it will take about 0:25 hr to get from there to the center of the city (hotel de ville).

Their website shoes a triple for 95E/nite + 30E for bkfst = 125E. This is a pretty good rate.

Check to see if they have AC. Sept can be hot.

Enjoy your visit.

If you will be staying more than a couple nights you might look into an apartment. This gives everyone more space to spread out. You can often save money by eating a quick breakfast in or a dinner if everyone is exhausted after a day of site seeing.

This is how we do it when we stay in Paris so I'm sorry I can't help with your hotel or offer any other suggestions!

I have seen a reccommendation for that hotel some years ago here on this forum.
Just curious to know what you mean by 'kid friendly'?
This may guide us, knowing what your requirements are.

What I mean by kid friendly is the fact that they have baby chairs or toys, stuff like that =) Because taking all the kids toys with me would cost me extra charges for luggage

I see. Children of 6-8yrs - Toys from the hotel? I doubt it. Never seen a babychair either but that doesn't mean they won't have one. Obviously not for your two!
Would be nice to treat them to one special toy during the trip if they promise to behave very well. There are lovely shops all over - I found a delightful little place in Rue Daguerre where I bought some toys for my grandson.
Are you taking them to Disney for the day?

I've heard good reviews of that hotel out in the 12th, but not for your purposes. I don't think it has AC and is kind of far out for someone who hasn't been there before.

I don't know any hotel that has toys for kids, either. I think the Citadines aparthotels can provide baby changing tables and stuff, you can see what they have.

But you don't have a baby so I don't understand why you want a baby chair.

Christina - I think the OP was just asking about relevent 'baby' stuff which included baby chairs etc. etc.,
I've got to add however, that when I take my little Snookums to Paris sometime in the future, the last thing he will be doing is amusing himself with toys - I'll get him so doggone tired riding that carousel in the Jardin du Luxembourg he'll beg me to put him to bed! Grannies can dream eh?

Well yes you're right for the baby chair, but i was giving it as an example of amnenity the could have in the hotel =) Of course they're not going to play all day long in the hotel, but it's just that in the evening i'll have to work on the internet (nice vacation heh? =) ) and i don't want them to be bored... But you're right, i could buy them at least a toy if they don't have some! Yes i'm also planning to take them to Disneyland, I do love Mickey as much as they do! Thank you for the answers!

6 and 8 years old are old enough not to need a lot of toys to entertain themselves. Have them each pack a small backpack for the trip with books (chapter books, puzzle books, etc.), paper, colored pencils, a deck of cards, and a small toy. If they have a handheld video game, such as a Nintendo DS, and/or an ipod/mp3 player, those would be perfect. Let the kids use their backpacks for the flight to entertain themselves and at the hotel.

Maybe you could pack a portable DVD player and movies for them to watch in the evening. If you do a lot of walking during the day they will be tired. It is also fun to watch their favorite TV shows in French. (My son thought Spongebob speaking French was a riot.) Be careful though with the TV, some of the commercials are a little more "mature" than the ones back home.

I wouldn't stay in a hotel that far out from the city center, with kids or not. And in all my bazillion years of traveling with kids in France I have never encountered a hotel that provides toys or any other amenities particularly for kids. I would expect absolutely nothing like that from any French hotel.

We always stayed at the Hotel Duquesne or the Hotel de France in the 7eme, in triple or quad rooms or chambres communicantes.

Maybe they could spend a little time each evening working on simple scrapbooks of things they saw that day, drawing pictures, writing some short descriptions, using glue stick for affixing ticket stubs, other mementos,etc.

I also would recommend staying in a hotel that is not far from the center, and if you're staying for over 3 days or so, an apartment would be ideal.

Have fun!