which is the best places to visit in paris for kids ?
May 6th, 2015, 10:32 PM
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which is the best places to visit in paris for kids ?
Hi,
Please share some entertaining places for kids.I am planning a summer trip to Paris. Which places should we visit to spend great time there?
Any advice or precaution during traveling in Paris would be appreciate.
Please share some entertaining places for kids.I am planning a summer trip to Paris. Which places should we visit to spend great time there?
Any advice or precaution during traveling in Paris would be appreciate.
May 6th, 2015, 10:34 PM
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May 6th, 2015, 10:40 PM
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Luxembourg Gardens - there is a children's play area, and puppet show; this may be weekends only, I think. Also Tuileries Gardens - on the lake there children can rent tiny yachts and sail them.
It would be helpful for us to know the ages of your children, and what their interests are. Di
It would be helpful for us to know the ages of your children, and what their interests are. Di
May 7th, 2015, 12:12 AM
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If they are younger, 12 and under, I should think they would enjoy the Jadin d´Acclimatation:
http://www.jardindacclimatation.fr/
If they are a bit older, they would like the National Museum of Natural History:
https://www.mnhn.fr/
http://www.jardindacclimatation.fr/
If they are a bit older, they would like the National Museum of Natural History:
https://www.mnhn.fr/
May 7th, 2015, 05:41 AM
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Ages would help. I'm guessing on our last trip ours were roughly 6 and 10? We hit many of the main sites. They of course found different things amusing. For example, walking down from the 2nd platform to the first at the Eiffel, walking and counting the stairs in the Arc, and the human conveyor belt between Metro stations, riding the funicular.
We didn't do catacombs (been there without them and thought it might be a little overwhelming/scary).
I had planned out playgrounds but didn't use them. Plenty of other types of activity/fun.
The Louvre has plenty of things of interest to young minds. Just don't spend hours and hours there. L'Orangerie probably was a bit of a miss. The Rodin and Invalides worked. (Again, not spending too much time in any one place). Skipped the d'orsay this time. Pompidou was engaging (including the area and fountain nearby). However, there are some exhibits that may be considered more adult/explicit.
The parent's attitude is a big part of the experience: Engage them. Point out the gargoyles and the flying bishops on the Notre dame, etc.
One thing that we sought out and really enjoyed was the castle and grounds of Vincennes. Highly recommend to children and adults alike.
Food was our biggest concession. We mostly ate at places that were informal and could cater to my kids limited tastes, including once at Hippopotumus (or something like that; think Applebees with a kid emphasis). At least one of the kids learned to enjoy Croque Monsiuer or madame (can't recall) but pizza and gelato went a long way.
I do remember that I thought they would do better than me upon immediate arrival and that wasn't the case. Even the older one needed rest.
Finally (for now) on a previous trip I planned the cheapest way into the city from the airport (RER-metro). I'm still kicking myself for that. This last time we arranged for a transportation service and, albeit more expensive, was efficient and required no brain cells.
We didn't do catacombs (been there without them and thought it might be a little overwhelming/scary).
I had planned out playgrounds but didn't use them. Plenty of other types of activity/fun.
The Louvre has plenty of things of interest to young minds. Just don't spend hours and hours there. L'Orangerie probably was a bit of a miss. The Rodin and Invalides worked. (Again, not spending too much time in any one place). Skipped the d'orsay this time. Pompidou was engaging (including the area and fountain nearby). However, there are some exhibits that may be considered more adult/explicit.
The parent's attitude is a big part of the experience: Engage them. Point out the gargoyles and the flying bishops on the Notre dame, etc.
One thing that we sought out and really enjoyed was the castle and grounds of Vincennes. Highly recommend to children and adults alike.
Food was our biggest concession. We mostly ate at places that were informal and could cater to my kids limited tastes, including once at Hippopotumus (or something like that; think Applebees with a kid emphasis). At least one of the kids learned to enjoy Croque Monsiuer or madame (can't recall) but pizza and gelato went a long way.
I do remember that I thought they would do better than me upon immediate arrival and that wasn't the case. Even the older one needed rest.
Finally (for now) on a previous trip I planned the cheapest way into the city from the airport (RER-metro). I'm still kicking myself for that. This last time we arranged for a transportation service and, albeit more expensive, was efficient and required no brain cells.
May 7th, 2015, 07:04 AM
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Tuileries Gardens fountain pool where kids can rent their own boats and motor them remote control around the basin - an iconic thing for Parisian kids - my kid at about 10 loved it don't know how old yours are.
May 7th, 2015, 01:10 PM
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The kids ages and genders would be helpful. I have 2 girls, now 12 and 9. We went to Paris 2 years ago (for 12 days; 10 of which rained), and we are incredibly lucky to be returning to France again this June. Both girls begged for *more days* back in Paris.
The kids really loved:
-The Louvre (they want to explore more this coming trip)
-The Musee D'Orsay (we went twice)
-Musee de L'Armee in Invalides (this was an incredible shocker... this is *the* place they absolutely want to return to first thing, after buying their favorite pastries
-The Orangerie
-the Batobus (we bought a 2 day pass, so we could take boat rides at different times of the day. It's not intended as a fast way of transportation, but it sure is lovely right at dusk)
-La Tour Eiffel from the top. We kept watch on the weather, and grabbed our first sunny afternoon and got in line.
-La Tour Eiffel at night, from the ground, watching it sparkle. On the hour after dark for about 5 minutes. It *never* got old for them.
-Stopping at almost every single chocolate shop we saw in the 6th and 7th and sampling at least one chocolate.
-One day they needed to blow off some steam and we took them to the children's playground in Luxembourg gardens. The younger one (at the time 7) had a blast in there.
-I gave each girl a chance to spend about an hour shopping for a couple items of clothing. The younger girl found a cute outfit at Sergent Major (a bit like "The Gap"). The older girl found some great tops at BHV.
-One girl really loved (and the rest of us enjoyed) the Musee des Arts et Metiers
They were "meh" about:
-The Musee Rodin (which is absolutely my favorite museum in Paris; not so much for the kids)
-nothing else. They loved Paris.
On our upcoming trip they want to see:
-The Louvre (again; the older child is now learning about Ancient Greece and Egypt in school)
-The Musee Cluny (in particular, the Lady and the Unicorn Tapestries, which were off display 2 years ago)
-Ride the Batobus again, assuming the river isn't at flood stage still
We didn't go to the Centre Pompidou... none of us is very interested in modern art or the buskers outside. But that might be of interest is you like modern art.
In 12 days, we barely scratched the surface of what Paris has to offer. My husband and I have been to Paris 6 or 7 times, and I'm still enchanted when I get down to the Seine and see Notre Dame, or wander through the Tuileries, or see the Eiffel Tower sparkling at midnight. Paris is truly truly enchanting.
We also carved plenty of time out for relaxation. The kids each brought a book to read at bedtime. They each had a box of colored pencils so they could draw and color. We downloaded a couple movies for them to watch when they were exhausted and fighting jetlag. We cooked many of our dinners in the apartment, though we did go out to several great places for lunch. (Avoid any place with menus in 5 languages.) The kids enjoyed traditional french fare such as Duck Confit and Bouef Bourguignon.
One piece of advice is to let the kids have a say in what you do. Show them pictures of Paris. See what interests them. There are literally dozens (or hundreds) of posts here about what to do with kids in Paris. It really depends on your travel style, the kids ages, your interests, etc.
Another piece of advice is give each kid a camera (if they're old enough). We took 2 cheap-ish CanonA4000s (and used our iPhones for our cameras). I carried them around for them until they wanted to take pictures. And yes, we probably got duplicates of many shots, but it gave them a feeling of "seeing" and "capturing" the Paris that they saw. One of my kids took dozens (and dozens and dozens) of pictures of the gargoyles at Notre Dame. The other child was obsessed with taking pictures of the shields and swords and suits of armor at Invalides.
Good luck. You'll have a great time, no matter what you do!
The kids really loved:
-The Louvre (they want to explore more this coming trip)
-The Musee D'Orsay (we went twice)
-Musee de L'Armee in Invalides (this was an incredible shocker... this is *the* place they absolutely want to return to first thing, after buying their favorite pastries
-The Orangerie
-the Batobus (we bought a 2 day pass, so we could take boat rides at different times of the day. It's not intended as a fast way of transportation, but it sure is lovely right at dusk)
-La Tour Eiffel from the top. We kept watch on the weather, and grabbed our first sunny afternoon and got in line.
-La Tour Eiffel at night, from the ground, watching it sparkle. On the hour after dark for about 5 minutes. It *never* got old for them.
-Stopping at almost every single chocolate shop we saw in the 6th and 7th and sampling at least one chocolate.
-One day they needed to blow off some steam and we took them to the children's playground in Luxembourg gardens. The younger one (at the time 7) had a blast in there.
-I gave each girl a chance to spend about an hour shopping for a couple items of clothing. The younger girl found a cute outfit at Sergent Major (a bit like "The Gap"). The older girl found some great tops at BHV.
-One girl really loved (and the rest of us enjoyed) the Musee des Arts et Metiers
They were "meh" about:
-The Musee Rodin (which is absolutely my favorite museum in Paris; not so much for the kids)
-nothing else. They loved Paris.
On our upcoming trip they want to see:
-The Louvre (again; the older child is now learning about Ancient Greece and Egypt in school)
-The Musee Cluny (in particular, the Lady and the Unicorn Tapestries, which were off display 2 years ago)
-Ride the Batobus again, assuming the river isn't at flood stage still
We didn't go to the Centre Pompidou... none of us is very interested in modern art or the buskers outside. But that might be of interest is you like modern art.
In 12 days, we barely scratched the surface of what Paris has to offer. My husband and I have been to Paris 6 or 7 times, and I'm still enchanted when I get down to the Seine and see Notre Dame, or wander through the Tuileries, or see the Eiffel Tower sparkling at midnight. Paris is truly truly enchanting.
We also carved plenty of time out for relaxation. The kids each brought a book to read at bedtime. They each had a box of colored pencils so they could draw and color. We downloaded a couple movies for them to watch when they were exhausted and fighting jetlag. We cooked many of our dinners in the apartment, though we did go out to several great places for lunch. (Avoid any place with menus in 5 languages.) The kids enjoyed traditional french fare such as Duck Confit and Bouef Bourguignon.
One piece of advice is to let the kids have a say in what you do. Show them pictures of Paris. See what interests them. There are literally dozens (or hundreds) of posts here about what to do with kids in Paris. It really depends on your travel style, the kids ages, your interests, etc.
Another piece of advice is give each kid a camera (if they're old enough). We took 2 cheap-ish CanonA4000s (and used our iPhones for our cameras). I carried them around for them until they wanted to take pictures. And yes, we probably got duplicates of many shots, but it gave them a feeling of "seeing" and "capturing" the Paris that they saw. One of my kids took dozens (and dozens and dozens) of pictures of the gargoyles at Notre Dame. The other child was obsessed with taking pictures of the shields and swords and suits of armor at Invalides.
Good luck. You'll have a great time, no matter what you do!
