Single mom w/ 8 mo baby traveling to Paris and London
Jan 21st, 2017, 01:20 PM
#41
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Well if OP goes from 2500 $ for 4 weeks to 3200 $ for 3 weeks, it now means 150 $ a day.
Good !
But the more I read the less I can help. Airbnb, kids who don't walk so needn't be in a safe environment, Aulnay instead of PAris, not seeing the fine prints.
All this reeks of potential disaster.
Good !
But the more I read the less I can help. Airbnb, kids who don't walk so needn't be in a safe environment, Aulnay instead of PAris, not seeing the fine prints.
All this reeks of potential disaster.
Jan 21st, 2017, 01:35 PM
#42
"All this reeks of potential disaster."
Not to mention that the OP is planning to travel in three weeks.
She is woefully unprepared, and would be better off rescheduling for three months out. That would at least allow time for some proper research. And better weather - no way would I be heading for northern Europe in February if I had any choice in the matter (and I grew up in England).
Not to mention that the OP is planning to travel in three weeks.
She is woefully unprepared, and would be better off rescheduling for three months out. That would at least allow time for some proper research. And better weather - no way would I be heading for northern Europe in February if I had any choice in the matter (and I grew up in England).
Jan 21st, 2017, 04:15 PM
#44
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My main piece of advice is ask up front about everything and always say that you have a baby with you. Do not assume anything.
Key things to think through, imo:
A plan for getting from your point of arrival (airport or train station) to your lodging and on to next location. These are the only times you will have to manage all your gear and the baby at once. Plan carefully or budget for a taxi.
Luggage carts should be free in all London and Paris airport arrival areas. If you plan to take the Underground or RER directly from the airports, there will be a barrier beyond which you have to carry your luggage into the passenger car. People are usually kind and helpful but depending on timing the cars can be standing room only.
Train stations are not as predictable about carts, typically there are very few carts (the English call them trolleys) and there is often a 1-2€ or £ charge for which you will need coins. I would budget for a taxi or airport pick-up service in London and taxi in Paris.
You will be fine on baby needs, these are huge cosmopolitan cities. As a courtesy, I would have a stash of old plastic grocery bags for diaper disposal and dirty clothes, they come in handy and weigh nothing. France has gone virtually plastic bag free, you might still be able to beg a few, the groceries do use them for clothes and packaged meat or you can buy a reusable grocery tote for 50 cents or bring your own. Tap water is drinkable, restaurants wll put a carafe of water on your table in Paris, you may need to ask in London. Store brands of bottled water are cheap and much cheaper than on the train or in a café.
Our son does air bnb in central London, Primrose Hill. He gets £700-800 a week, private room, shared entrance and kitchen, can't remember if it's a shared bath, I haven't seen it. Not recommending him at all, just giving you the info for reference.
Depending on your interests, sights and museum fees can add up. Plan ahead, fees are on the websites as are any free days or evenings. No charge of course for the baby.
Good luck, you can do this just be realistic.
Key things to think through, imo:
A plan for getting from your point of arrival (airport or train station) to your lodging and on to next location. These are the only times you will have to manage all your gear and the baby at once. Plan carefully or budget for a taxi.
Luggage carts should be free in all London and Paris airport arrival areas. If you plan to take the Underground or RER directly from the airports, there will be a barrier beyond which you have to carry your luggage into the passenger car. People are usually kind and helpful but depending on timing the cars can be standing room only.
Train stations are not as predictable about carts, typically there are very few carts (the English call them trolleys) and there is often a 1-2€ or £ charge for which you will need coins. I would budget for a taxi or airport pick-up service in London and taxi in Paris.
You will be fine on baby needs, these are huge cosmopolitan cities. As a courtesy, I would have a stash of old plastic grocery bags for diaper disposal and dirty clothes, they come in handy and weigh nothing. France has gone virtually plastic bag free, you might still be able to beg a few, the groceries do use them for clothes and packaged meat or you can buy a reusable grocery tote for 50 cents or bring your own. Tap water is drinkable, restaurants wll put a carafe of water on your table in Paris, you may need to ask in London. Store brands of bottled water are cheap and much cheaper than on the train or in a café.
Our son does air bnb in central London, Primrose Hill. He gets £700-800 a week, private room, shared entrance and kitchen, can't remember if it's a shared bath, I haven't seen it. Not recommending him at all, just giving you the info for reference.
Depending on your interests, sights and museum fees can add up. Plan ahead, fees are on the websites as are any free days or evenings. No charge of course for the baby.
Good luck, you can do this just be realistic.
Jan 21st, 2017, 04:45 PM
#45
To give you and idea >>He gets £700-800 a week, private room, shared entrance and kitchen, can't remember if it's a shared bath,<<
is approx $750-$850 and that is just one week so you can see how small your budget is.
>>I just went to Hawaii for two weeks and didn't buy one diaper i packed them in the luggage<<
There is one heck of a difference between a two week trip and a full month. That would require one boatload of diapers.
>>I'm not planing to eat at expensive places, I'm planning on eating sandwiches and stuff at local eateries.<<
Not eating at expensive places is a given. But you would really need a kitchen/kitchenette to make your budget work (even your increased budget) because you won't have spare money to eat a lot of meals out -- that is if you plan on doing any sight seeing.
The Tower of London costs $30±, Westminster Abbey $25, a week's transport in London $40+, the train between London and Paris between about $75 and $300, the Louvre $16, Musee d'Orsay $13 etc etc . . .
is approx $750-$850 and that is just one week so you can see how small your budget is.
>>I just went to Hawaii for two weeks and didn't buy one diaper i packed them in the luggage<<
There is one heck of a difference between a two week trip and a full month. That would require one boatload of diapers.
>>I'm not planing to eat at expensive places, I'm planning on eating sandwiches and stuff at local eateries.<<
Not eating at expensive places is a given. But you would really need a kitchen/kitchenette to make your budget work (even your increased budget) because you won't have spare money to eat a lot of meals out -- that is if you plan on doing any sight seeing.
The Tower of London costs $30±, Westminster Abbey $25, a week's transport in London $40+, the train between London and Paris between about $75 and $300, the Louvre $16, Musee d'Orsay $13 etc etc . . .
Jan 21st, 2017, 08:47 PM
#46
The baby will be sleeping with you, right? Some of the 2 & 3 star hotels we stayed in had either a crib or a portable cot that was set up for him when we got there. So helpful.
On diapers, bring what you can fit. My recollection is that diapers cost more (at least in France) than in the U.S. Caveat: figure out how much your little one weighs in kilos. As good as I was with conversion from lbs to kilos, we still got it wrong when we ran out of diapers, and the diapers were so large they went up to my son's armpits.
Check out 1 & 2 star hotels in the 14th arrondisement. At this time of year, you can get some really good rates.
On diapers, bring what you can fit. My recollection is that diapers cost more (at least in France) than in the U.S. Caveat: figure out how much your little one weighs in kilos. As good as I was with conversion from lbs to kilos, we still got it wrong when we ran out of diapers, and the diapers were so large they went up to my son's armpits.
Check out 1 & 2 star hotels in the 14th arrondisement. At this time of year, you can get some really good rates.
Jan 21st, 2017, 09:03 PM
#47
Couple of ideas for Paris:
The Ibis Budget hotel at metro Laumière costs 54 euros a night.
The Yves Robert hostel at metro Marx Dormoy costs 55 euros for a private room including breakfast and also has laundry facilities.
If you accept to go more rustic, the basic hotels around metro Marx Dormoy (which happens to be where I live, so I pass these places every day) have rooms for 30-40 euros, and yes, tourists do stay in them. I can feel some of our other Parisian posters shuddering as they read this.
The Ibis Budget hotel at metro Laumière costs 54 euros a night.
The Yves Robert hostel at metro Marx Dormoy costs 55 euros for a private room including breakfast and also has laundry facilities.
If you accept to go more rustic, the basic hotels around metro Marx Dormoy (which happens to be where I live, so I pass these places every day) have rooms for 30-40 euros, and yes, tourists do stay in them. I can feel some of our other Parisian posters shuddering as they read this.
Jan 21st, 2017, 09:14 PM
#48
>>The Yves Robert hostel at metro Marx Dormoy costs 55 euros for a private room <<
That €55 = nearly $60 so IF the OP can raise her budget to $3000 she would have a grand total of €35 per day for EVERYTHING else. Now, breakfast would be included so if she pocketed all the breads and meat to make lunch out of breakfast leftovers, and didn't do much sightseeing . . . She 'could' eke it out.
Manageable for 3 or 4 days maybe -- but not day after day for a month.
I just think we are doing her a disservice suggesting she can do a month on $2500 or $3000. Living on a shoe string and couch surfing is fine for a backpacker, but not with an infant.
That €55 = nearly $60 so IF the OP can raise her budget to $3000 she would have a grand total of €35 per day for EVERYTHING else. Now, breakfast would be included so if she pocketed all the breads and meat to make lunch out of breakfast leftovers, and didn't do much sightseeing . . . She 'could' eke it out.
Manageable for 3 or 4 days maybe -- but not day after day for a month.
I just think we are doing her a disservice suggesting she can do a month on $2500 or $3000. Living on a shoe string and couch surfing is fine for a backpacker, but not with an infant.
Jan 21st, 2017, 09:46 PM
#49
I am not obsessing about her day by day budget like some of you are. On some of my trips in the past, I used to document every penny spent in a notebook -- transportation, accommodations, food, entry fees, groceries, even postcards and stamps. I had some $100 days and I had some $5 days. Some of you sound like people go around distributing money the same way every day. If you buy a 1-week transportation pass somewhere, it means that you are spending nothing on transportation the following days, just as a small example.
Jan 22nd, 2017, 01:38 AM
#50
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Indeed Kerouac and I pointed out there were 58 hotels/places to sleep under 50 €/night but they start to be full.
And she has a child, so she should pay double care to the palces she goes to.
One cannot do as many bad choices when one has a child in tow. With a kid I organize better, alone I know I can cope.
And she has a child, so she should pay double care to the palces she goes to.
One cannot do as many bad choices when one has a child in tow. With a kid I organize better, alone I know I can cope.
Jan 22nd, 2017, 04:16 AM
#51
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The rate of exchange for EU to USD is 1 EU = 1.07 USD.
So someone made a mistake in arithmetic.
Wherever the OP ends up staying, she will have to add up not only the room rate, but the taxe de sejour - which will range from 83 centimes for a 1 or no-star hotel or apartment to a whopping 99 centimes for a 2 star hotel. These charges will be added on a per diem basis, and both you and your baby will be charged.
If you have one of those vacuum bags, a whole month's worth of diapers could be easily managed.
When I travel, I'm usually content to go to the supermarket and buy a can of tuna, a piece of fruit and a demi-baguette from a boulangerie and eat in my room. The cost for this is around 2 to 3 EU, if you buy the store brand tuna.
So someone made a mistake in arithmetic.
Wherever the OP ends up staying, she will have to add up not only the room rate, but the taxe de sejour - which will range from 83 centimes for a 1 or no-star hotel or apartment to a whopping 99 centimes for a 2 star hotel. These charges will be added on a per diem basis, and both you and your baby will be charged.
If you have one of those vacuum bags, a whole month's worth of diapers could be easily managed.
When I travel, I'm usually content to go to the supermarket and buy a can of tuna, a piece of fruit and a demi-baguette from a boulangerie and eat in my room. The cost for this is around 2 to 3 EU, if you buy the store brand tuna.
Jan 22nd, 2017, 01:39 PM
#54
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Sassafrrass:<i> Take clothes for very cold weather. This winter is expected to be the coldest in Europe in 100 years. </i>
Expected by whom ? No serious weather forecast service will predict the weather beyond 2 weeks, March can be rainy, dry, mild or cold.
Expected by whom ? No serious weather forecast service will predict the weather beyond 2 weeks, March can be rainy, dry, mild or cold.
Jan 22nd, 2017, 01:57 PM
#55
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Jan 22nd, 2017, 02:05 PM
#56
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http://principia-scientific.org/euro...est-100-years/
The OP plans to arrive mid-Feb.
Still think some kind of cover for a stroller is good, even if, or especially if, it is just rainy. Pushing a stroller in wind isn't fun either.
Stand by the advice that going with a baby would be a lot easier in warmer, sunny weather.
The OP plans to arrive mid-Feb.
Still think some kind of cover for a stroller is good, even if, or especially if, it is just rainy. Pushing a stroller in wind isn't fun either.
Stand by the advice that going with a baby would be a lot easier in warmer, sunny weather.
Jan 22nd, 2017, 02:21 PM
#57
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This site predicts warm and wet winter in western Europe.
They must be right since they came first, before principia nr 2 and iceage a mere 5th when I goodgled 'predictoin winter 2017 Europe'
http://www.accuweather.com/en/weathe...rmany/60378723
They must be right since they came first, before principia nr 2 and iceage a mere 5th when I goodgled 'predictoin winter 2017 Europe'
http://www.accuweather.com/en/weathe...rmany/60378723
Jan 22nd, 2017, 05:15 PM
#59
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I have just a few comments. First, I agree that $2500 is too little for a month in London and Paris. Food costs can be managed by just avoiding cafes, restaurants and the like for food bought in a market. Would be helpful to find a place to stay with access to a kitchen and laundry. Have no idea how little that might cost in central London and Paris. I pay about $150 for something similar. i suspect $50 plus/day. Weather is going to be cold with about a 50% chance of precipitation. This means that most of your day time activities will be geared to the indoors. What is it that you plan on doing with your time? Many museums in London are free but that is not the case for Paris. Many other attractions have a fee. Walking around both cities is fun when the weather cooperates but given the cold and damp it is nice to stop in Cafes, Pubs etc for hot beverages or lunch which would be difficult given your budget. Would be a much better trip in the spring/summer or fall or with significantly more money.
Jan 22nd, 2017, 08:46 PM
#60
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Ok so thanks for most of the info! Feel like some people are downright rude but that's ok but most everyone is helpful. I appreciate it!! I would budget for airport transfers! I wouldn't want to carry my luggage in public transportation except when I take the train to London.
As for the baby, I think some are making it a bigger issue than it is. I msgd an Airbnb person about a room and told them about baby and they said it was fine no biggie for no more than 40 some odd US dollars a day. There's no room tax and stuff as it's not a hotel. I am trying to go on a budget at cheapest but of course will have a credit card if I need more money, not like I'm gonna go there with no back up plan. I've schlepped across five states with a then 3 month old baby, a 12 year old and a 78 year old, (my dad) drove myself and did it all by my self! I am a pretty strong independent person so I'm not to worried about running around once I get settled. Again needed advice about places to stay, places to avoid and what weather would be like and for the most part I got that. Thanks
As for the baby, I think some are making it a bigger issue than it is. I msgd an Airbnb person about a room and told them about baby and they said it was fine no biggie for no more than 40 some odd US dollars a day. There's no room tax and stuff as it's not a hotel. I am trying to go on a budget at cheapest but of course will have a credit card if I need more money, not like I'm gonna go there with no back up plan. I've schlepped across five states with a then 3 month old baby, a 12 year old and a 78 year old, (my dad) drove myself and did it all by my self! I am a pretty strong independent person so I'm not to worried about running around once I get settled. Again needed advice about places to stay, places to avoid and what weather would be like and for the most part I got that. Thanks
