aztrix55

We are looking to travel august 2014 with 3 adults and 3 children aged 6, 4.5 and 3 years.
We will be flying into Paris. We plan to stay 3 nights/ 4 days. We wish to just see the main sights and take the kids to Disneyland for 1 day. Since we do not wish to do long hauls of walking with the kids, we wish to do a tour bus like hop on hop off. We think this way we can get our bearings of where all the major sights are without having to drag the children around for hours by foot. We plan to visit the Eiffel Tower and take our pick of other sights when we are there.

Can anyone suggest a serviced apartment in Central Paris that will accommodate us on a tight budget? Somewhere right in the middle of the hustle and bustle, close to amenities, shops food etc.

What's the best way to get to Disneyland and in particular on return when we will have very tired children and will need to get back to our accommodation ASAP.

I have heard there is a pass that can be purchased where we do not need to wait in line for the Eiffel Tower, where would would I find this information.

We would like to do some shopping but we are not interested in the high end labels or generic brands that can be found globally. It would be great find see some French designs. Any suggestions?

Next we will be flying to Verona to catch up with family. We will be only staying two days in which we then plan to hire an SUV or similar. We have heard that there is an option of either hiring a car or buying the car and selling back to the company after use. Anyone used the second option before? Did it work out much cheaper? We plan to keep the car for about 3 weeks.

From Verona we will be driving down to Pescara. There will be a stop on the way. Yet to be determined.

From pescara we plan to stay again in a serviced apartment for about 5 days just to soak up the sun and catch up with family. Can anyone recommend accommodation right on the beach close to amenities?

From Pescara we will be going to puglia. We will be staying with family here for about 10 days.

From puglia we would like to go to Sorrento. The plan is find accommodation in sorrento and stay for about 4 days. In this time we wish to visit Naples, Positano and maybe Capri.

From sorrento we will be driving to Calabria. We wish again to find suitable accommodation maybe in Reggio. Plan to stay 3 days.

From Calabria we will be returning to Rome. Not sure if we should drive or train. We plan to stay 4 days maybe do something similar like Paris. Hop on hop off bus and some shopping! Any suggestions again for accommodation right in the heart on a budget and shopping?

Any suggestions on accommodation and tips to make our trip easier with the kids would be greatly appreciated.

evecolorado

Do a search of the Fodor's Europe/France Forums with the words "Eiffel Tower tickets" and another search with "Disneyland Paris".

Also:

http://ticket.toureiffel.fr/letter-c...ne-pg3001.html

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum...de_France.html

Can't help you with serviced apartments or your Italy questions.

nytraveler

I think your trip is extremely ambitious for so many people - esp when 3 of them are small children.

I really urge you to try to simplify this itinerary - recognizing and that you will need to set aside time every day for the kids to just run around in a park or similar.

I would not do a HoHo bus - which would be VERY expensive for 6 - and totally boring for little kids. Do recognize that when you get off the bus you may well have to wait for 30 minutes for another to come along when you want to get back on. As for the time on the bus - little kids don't want to look at the outside of the Loire or other monuments or even charming parisian neighborhoods.

You will eithr have to take turns doiing kid days while the othr adults see sights - or just dial everythng back - going to individual activities (boat ride on the Seine) or single activities that the kids may enjoy (they MIGHT like looking at Egyptian section in the Louvre if they are interested i mummies - or a short visit to Notre Dame if you can shos them a bunch of gargoyles etc) then visit Luxembuorg garden.

The plan you have now will just give you 3 very tired out/ cranky children who will make life very difficult for the adults around them - including other tourists on the bus. (There is a reason kids of 3 and 4 are not in school all day - they don;t have a long enough attention span - and need constant breaks for play and amusement.)

thursdaysd

Unfotunately, "serviced apartment in Central Paris" and "tight budget" do not belong in the same sentence, at least if your definition of "tight budget" is the same as mine. What is your actual target price?

Are you sure you want to drive a large vehicle round the Amalfi Coast?

Pegontheroad

With all due respect, I do not understand bringing children this young on a European trip where few activities would be gauged for children.

thursdaysd

Pegontheroad - but it can be done, with the right kids and the right itinerary - see: http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ng-the-way.cfm and the following TRs. Sounded like a train wreck in the planning, and didn't start out so well, but seemed to work out OK on the road.

janisj

>>We plan to stay 3 nights/ 4 days<<

You are figuring incorrectly. 3 nights does not net you 4 days - more like 2.5 days.

IMO much of the plan is overly ambitious for a group that size.

KL467

For information about traveling with young children, I recommend reading the recent trip reports (there are several) from Crazyfamilyof4.

thursdaysd

KL467 - that is what I just linked...

janisj

aztrix: Just how tight is your budget? How much do you want to spend per night? And Disneyland is definitely NOT a budget destination.

(Do you really think it is great idea to send folks traveling on a 'tight budget' to crazy families threads. They spent an absolute fortune. )

StCirq

I am probably one of the world's biggest proponents of traveling with children, no matter what their ages, but this just sounds like a completely hare-brained scheme.

Disneyland costs bundles. The HOHO bus is a terrible idea. An SUV could be a real PITA in some of those Italy locations. You're not doing the math properly to figure out the time you'll actually have in Paris. And so forth....

And I agree that crazyfamily's trip wasn't even remotely on a budget. I'd hate to think how much she squandered on that adventure.

But what, exactly, is your budget?

surfmom

I love to travel with my kids - get my needs to go to Europe met and we get to explore somewhere fun together. They have totally been brainwashed and are great travelers : ) (well, most of the time, they ARE kids after all).

However, I will caution you that your itinerary seems really aggressive. Generally, my rule of thumb when moving from one location to another is that it takes about a day. Even London - Paris which is *only* a 2 hr. train ride. Break it down into components:
9am Eurostar from London - Paris, means:
- be at terminal 45 min. early - 8:15am - give myself a few extra minutes because I'm dealing with kids - aim for 8am.
- depart hotel about 30 min. , but morning traffic - leave about 7:15am.
- get checked out and get cab - leave room about 7am
- last minute packing of overnight stuff, shower stuff, electronics (charging overnight) - awake about 6am.
------------------
arrive Paris about 12noon (lose an hour due to time change)
- get everyone off train and to car service/cab - 15 - 30 min, (includes getting cash in station)
- 30 - 45 min. to get to central apartment and get inside and organized
- drop bags, etc. and go out for lunch - 1:00pm +

by the time we've done everything, it is about 2:00 - 3:00pm and you need a "short afternoon" activity. Of course, lots of things to do, but not a full day. Remember you got up at 6am and still have to unpack and get organized - (we stay at apartments, so a visit to the grocery store is required sometime today).

That is just an example - but when doing it with kids, you tend to move slower, things are more difficult and even cabs are more of a hassle, since not all accommodate 5 people.

colduphere

Hopefully turnsoutshewasntcrazy will see this. She's the expert.

KL467

I suggested the Crazyfamilyof4 trip reports solely for ideas of how to travel with young children. The amount of money spent on other things is irrelevant.

StCirq

Yes, of course, but it's not irrelevant for a poster who claims to be on a really tight budget. If the world is your oyster and you can spend anything you want on those kids while traveling, that is a very different scenario from that of someone who has to watch every euro that is spent. Crazyfamily went wild shopping for the kids all over Europe and taking them with private drivers to expensive destinations. This OP is clearly not in that category, so I'm not sure much of anything in Crazyfamily's trip reports would be relevant. General ideas for what kids enjoy? Sure. Logistics and budget? Not so much.

janisj

>>I suggested the Crazyfamilyof4 trip reports solely for ideas of how to travel with young children. The amount of money spent on other things is irrelevant.<<

It wasn't 'other things' . . . They spent a fortune on everything from accommodations, to excursions, to entry fees, to you name it. There is very little in any of those gargantuan threads (hundreds of posts each) that would be helpful to budget travelers. Plus some of their decisions were beyond convoluted.

They did have a great time -- but it was two months of over the top excess IMO . . .

Christina

I don't think Disneyland is a terrible idea if that's what you want to do and you'd do it anyway. Disneyland is expensive in the US, also, and lots of people go there with their kids, after all. It definitely isn't cheap, though, anywhere, but you must know that, don't you? I think tickets cost around 50-60 euro per person per day. So that one day trip will cost you probably around 300 euro. So you'd better really want to do that. The easiest way is probably their own bus, the Disneyland Paris Express which leaves from several locations in central paris (eg, Gare du Nord, Madeleine, Opera). http://disneylandparis-express.com

I think they combine the bus fare with the entry fare as it is around 82 euro for adults and 65 euro for children, total. That's not bad given the entry fare is so high anyway. You have to reserve in advance at least one day.

I don't really think the hop-off/on bus is a bad idea, either, as the 3 yr old will be free and there are reduced prices for children aged 4-11. I wouldn't bet that a 6 yr old will hate being in an open-air bus driving around or that it will be really boring for children. I took one of those one day in Paris and did not ever wait 30 minutes for a bus to show up, they run more frequently than that, every 7-15 minutes in high season, which includes August. There are a few companies that do this, Foxity (which I think runs the Disneyland Express), Les Cars Rouges and l'Opentour. I think Cars Rouges is cheaper, not sure.

http://www.parislopentour.com
http://www.carsrouges.com
http://foxity.com


As for shopping but not wanting high end stuff and also not wanting global or chain store brands but wanting something special that is really French made? I'd forget it. This seems pretty impossible to me, such stuff won't be cheap. Unless you want candles or something, of course. You'd have to be more specific as to exactly what you are looking for.

And serviced apartments are not cheap, either. But maybe your idea of cheap isn't mine, I suspect so since you are looking for French designers. Citadines is a big chain of serviced apartments, there are various configurations, and several locations, but some may not have 2 BR apts suitable for you. The ones at Gare de Lyon and Opera Vendome do, though (have 2 BR apartments), and both have AC which you will likely want in August. Those 2 BR apts cost around 300 euro per day, however, but maybe that is okay with you. A lot of serviced apartments are for business people and may not have the space you want.
http://www.citadines.com

There is another chain called Adagio Aparthotels. Most of theirs are not in very convenient locations, but they have one in the 15th arrondisement that isn't bad (called Tour Eiffel location). It has AC also and seems to be around 350 euro for a 2 BR.
http://www.adagio-city.com


So those may or may not be expensive to you, you can certainly find a cheaper unserviced apartment without AC, but for 6 people, that isn't going to be that cheap either, in a good location.

thursdaysd

@janisj - I suggested the crazyfamily reports because I remembered that their kids seemed OK with the HOHO buses (I think they went to sleep). And I seem to remember references to parks, which are free.

janisj

>>@janisj - I suggested the crazyfamily reports because I remembered that their kids seemed OK with the HOHO buses (I think they went to sleep). And I seem to remember references to parks, which are free.<<

Yeah -- unfortunately one would have to read many thousands of words to find the park and H-o-H-o bits

There is some good information buried in those loooooooooong threads interspersed w/ tons of flotsam/jetsam/stuff.

trvlgirlmq

I'll jump in!

Try Vacation In Paris for an apartment rental. Although not a hotel or serviced it is a US-based company renting apartments which may suit your needs. Many have a 5 night minimum however you can pay a small surcharge for shorter stay. I find their prices to be very fair for Paris.
www.vacationinparis.com

If you want to visit Disney and you can plan ahead on date you can purchase discounted tickets online. You then take your voucher to a FNAC store to pick up the actual tickets. It saves a bit of money so you can then afford to eat in the park.
www.ticketnet.fr

If you want to see the outside of some main sites while sitting down then a cruise on the Seine is a good idea. You can also pre-purchase tickets and get a bit of a discount for doing so.
www.vedettesdupontneuf.com

As others have stated you can also reserve a time for the Eiffel Tower on their website. I thing someone has already given the link or just Google.

There are many playgrounds that kids love. My own enjoyed Luxembourg (small fee) and Tuileries (free).

I've never been to Italy so can't assist.

Good luck.