travelchat

End of May my daughter, son-in-law, babysitter, three grandsons and myself
are going to be in London for four days, take the Chunnel across to Paris for four days, then home to Chicago. The boys ages are 18 months, 3 1/2 and 6 years. My son-in-law will go a week ahead for work after which we will join him in London to celebrate the parents tenth wedding anniversary. We are booked into The Berkely Hotel in Knightsbridge and Hotel Edward VII in the 2Arr. Having access to one or more kid friendly restaurants close to the hotels is the main objective. Also, knowledge of parks, kids activities, in these immediate hotel areas would be extremely helpful. I throw myself on the mercy and expertise of the Fordorites! I will be one exhausted Grandy when this trip is done!

StCirq

Can't help with London, but in Paris you're within reasonable walking distance of the Jardin du Palais Royale and the Tuileries. And for places to eat with a brood like that, Flunch cafeterias, the Hippopotamus chain, and Chinese/Vietnamese restos if the kids like that kind of food. That hotel is smack in the middle of the commercial center of Paris, so not sure how close you'll be to kid-friendly eateries, though I think there's at least one Flunch and one Hippopotamus in or near the Boul. de Sebastopol.

janisj

The Berkeley is across the street from Hyde Park. Hyde Park/Kensington Gardens are huge and you can eat several places in the park

http://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/h...ark-facilities
http://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/k...ark-facilities

Plus the Orangerie next to Kensington Palace

The Diana Memorial playground would be great http://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/k...ial-playground

Also you are close to the Natural History Museum which is great for kids

laurie_ann

You can google the postal code for the hotel in London and use "search nearby" for restaurants. It's a pretty "posh" area but you can have a look for something suitable.

Some family friendly chains in London that are still pretty nice are Pizza Express, Cafe Rouge, Giraffe. You can find their website and check locations.

Museums have cafeterias with quite nice food, in particular the V&A and the British Museum.

Also grocery stores in London usually have very good prepared foods that you can take away to have as a picnic or in your room. I googled the hotel postal code and "grocery" and found a Waitrose (very nice chain grocery) nearby at 27 Motcomb Street, London SW1X 8GG.

And the coffee chains like Starbucks, Cafe Nero and Cafe Costa have sandwiches, etc. and usually seating suitable for families. Other chains like E.A.T. and Pret a Manger have good fresh food but not often a lot of seating.

If you want an English pub the website www.fancyapint.com lets you search by locations, features, etc. Many pubs are family friendly.

If you tell us more what your sightseeing plans are we can probably recommend some other eating options around those areas.

travelchat

Thank you for your amazing replies, so helpful. We'll be going to the Tate Modern, Thames boat excursion, what we call here in the States, the "duck boat/bus", Peter Pan statue, double decker bus tour in London. In Paris, Luxembourg Gardens, Seine boat ride, am and pm.

In Paris, the parents will take the older boys to the Eiffel Tower for lunch at Jules Vern (they could not do the long wait in line, so this is a good alternative) and after lunch a short jaunt through The Louvre. There will be activities suitable for their ages that the little one might be napping through and that's where the babysitter and I come in. I plan to walk some of my favorite neighborhoods with him, take him into the Tulleries (sp?) Garden, into the Marais and around the 8th and 14ar., all areas I have stayed in on previous trips.

Since I'm familiar with Paris, i'm planning to do more exploring of St. Germaintroller the baby in the stroller. The parents will be out for dinner on their own several times, thus my need to be prepared for meals for the boys.

(Difficult to edit on an iPad where I can't get into the whole text, please excuse any redundancies and/or awkward paragraphing.)

I will certainly check out all of the above and, again, thank you for your generous sharing of info.

travelchat

Correction: Should be "exploring St. Germaine with the baby in the stroller" in the third paragraph.

nytraveler

I wold be very hesitant to take a 3.5 and 6 year old to Julles Verne. Are they able to sit still and quiet for the 2 hours the meal will take (very few kids that age I know are able to do that). It's a nice restaurant - but to me kids under 10 or 11 just aren't ready for that type of experience.

StCirq

I agree with nytraveler. A 3.5- and 6-year-old at Jules Verne? That strikes me as a recipe for disaster. And I was the mother of a 3-year-old who sat for almost 4 hours at a pretty posh and VERY quiet, hush-hush restaurant in the Dordogne many years ago. He did amazingly well, and got rave reviews from wait staff and other customers, but the difference was, if he'd acted up, I could have walked him outside in two minutes. NOT possible really at the Eiffel Tower. Also, it was the Dordogne, and I could order him a simple omelette and French fries even if it wasn't on the menu. What are little kids like your grandsons going to order at Jules Verne?

janisj

It almost sounds like the parents are using Jules Verne mainly to get around the long queues for the ET. IMO that is not an appropriate venue for little ones. The 6yo <i>might</i> be used to high end dining and there is a chance it would be OK (I have known a very few 6yo's who would be able pull it off - definitely not typical 6yo's)

But the 3yo - no way, no how.

travelchat

I share the concern about taking the boys to Jules Vern completely! Trust me, I am skeptical about this entire travel experience and hope I can look back fondly on it when all is said and done. I volunteered to go along only because i would be on pins and needles worrying about them the entire time if I were to stay at home. I'm hoping my years of travel experience and extra hands will make this a wonderful family journey.


However, these are the circumstances; my daughter has double hip replacements, and other arthritic complications. She would not be able to stand in the line. I had lunch at Jules Vern in October while in Paris and during lunch an entire family from Brazil with six children were there. They divided the family up in different rooms and I was seated next to one of the families with two boys about my grandsons ages. They were fairly well behaved and must have eaten off the regular menu. It seems to work and the wait staff were great with them. I, too, as a senior with knee replacements, wanted to avoid standing in that long line but am also a foodie, so Jules Vern was a no brainer for me and my one big splurge on that trip.

My daughter and her family travel extensively with the children, going several times a year to New York, California and Florida. The two older boys love it, the baby not so much. I didn't travel with my two children until they were six and older but it's a different world out there today with most parents both working and wanting to spend more time together as a family.

thursdaysd

Maybe you can apply to use the wheelchair access?

See: http://www.sagetraveling.com/Eiffel-Tower-Accessibility

Patty

Not near your hotel but you mentioned St Germain, there's a great creperie called Little Breizh in the area. I've seen families there and I'm sure the kids would be welcomed there.

laurie_ann

If you are around Tate Modern there are several family friendly restaurants. The Real Greek. Pizza Express. Vapiano. Along Southbank to the west of the Tate Modern is a fun walk, lots going on, good view across river to parliament etc.

You can also use the online magazine Time Out (www.timeout.com) It has London and Paris editions with sections for events, museums, restaurants, kids, etc. And you can search for restaurants there by features and/or location and read available reviews.

indy_dad

London may have a faster pace than the rest of the UK, but Pizza Express is anything but express IME. It's good, yes, but not fast. It helps to set expectations when dinning with the kids.

In general, it will take longer (UK vs USA) so be prepared (coloring books, etc.).

Good luck and have fun.

nona1

Rainforest Cafe is a well-known family restaurant in London, great fun, decent food, kids will LOVE it.(I did too).

travelchat

Thank you all for taking the time to provide detailed restaurant info and locations. This is such a great site, everyone so generous with sharing experience and knowledge, quite overwhelming.

Good to have recommendations for pizza and Rainforest Cafe as these are favorites here in the States. Asian food - Sushi, Thai and/or Chinese are necessities at least twice a week for our multi-ethnic family. Any recos in those categories?

As for wheelchair assistance, while we do find it necessary in the mega airports we prefer to be independently mobile otherwise, and pace ourselves accordingly.

BKP

In the UK: Yo Sushi and Wagamama are fairly inexpensive, reliable chains.

After hearing your explanation of the situation I'm impressed. Where there's a will there's a way.

My 6 year old could do a three hour lunch at Jules Verne -- if his ds or the iPad came along! As long as you're prepared to entertain the children, I'm sure you will be fine.

You don't mention the Tower of London on your list. In my opinion, it's essential for a child visiting London!