Hello
I have been reading the paris forum for a couple of months in preparation for a %26quot;once in a lifetime trip%26quot; (hopefully not) to Europe with my 8 year old daughter in July. We will be flying into London to stay with family and then taking the Eurostar to Paris. I plan on having 4 full days in Paris before we go to Germany to stay with friends. This is my first trip to Europe and am overwhelmed with excitement to be visiting Paris. Family has recommended The Hotel Nicolo in the 16th. Does anybody know if this hotel is a good/easy location for the metro. Also any helpful hints about traveling with a child would be much appreciated.
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I am sure the hotel Nicolo is good (it%26#39;s in a nice area) but for first time visitors, I might recommend you find a hotel in either the 5th or 6th arrondissements which are much closer to the principal tourist destinations.
Here is a list of activities which might interest you and your daughter:
http://www.museedelapoupeeparis.com/
http://www.cirque-diana-moreno.com/
http://www.jardindacclimatation.fr/
http://www.aquarium-portedoree.fr/
http://www.playmobil.com/index.html
http://www.bateauxparisiens.com/
www.cite-sciences.fr/francais/indexFLASH.htm
http://www.ambafrance-us.org/kids/
infoparks.com/flashfr/…index.htm
Either of these restaurants, though not inexpensive, would be a lot of fun for a child:
http://www.lesergentrecruteur.com/
http://www.nosancetreslesgaulois.com/FR/
Restaurants in France generally open at 7:30 pm and making a reservation (even if it%26#39;s the same day) is highly recommended.
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How exciting,, I took my 12 yr old this past summer, it was her first trip to Europe( not mine) and she loved it.
That hotel really looks lovely, and price is great. I guess my only quibble would be that I impagine you will find the area very quiet. It is mostly residnental, but metro is not too far away.. I just know that with my dd I found it was nice to be somewhere closer to alot of cafes and sites,places within 5 or 10 minutes walk max. Sometimes after a full day we would just want to go somewhere close for a bite and then have an early night. Plus , after a full day of sightseeing having to get on the metro again when a child is tired, and maybe grumpy is a bit of work,.. but , that hotel really looks lovely , so if your daughter is a fairly sturdy type, not a complainer etc, I would stay there and commute to sites..
Paris is a wonderful place for moms and daughters.. ( and no, we are not shoppers) there are places everywhere to stop for tea and pastries, crepes stands near parks, window shopping( we loved laughing at the displays that showed outfits for toddlers that cost hundreds of euros,, are people really insane enougt to buy a 2 yr old a 300 euro sweater?)
My daughter enjoyed the Eiffel Tower, the Arc De Triomphe( go to top) , the Towers at Notre Dame,, the boat ride , St Chapelle( try to get there on a sunny day, it is amazing then) , and she also loved the Musee D%26#39;Orsay. She liked the Louvre too, but was more selective of the areas, do take daughter to see Napoleons Apartments there and crown jewels..
Have a wonderful time.. we certainly did, and dd longs to go back,, but,, that wil be a few more years.
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The Hotel Nicolo looks great and I think it would be a wonderful neighborhood for a mother/daughter adventure. It is calm and chic at the same time. A short walk will take you to the Trocadero for the best view of the Eiffel tower.
The hotel is close to line 6 which will take you to l%26#39;arc de triomphe and l’avenue des Champs-Élysées and also connect you to line one, which will allow you to go anywhere in Paris.
Have a wonderful time.
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I have been travelling to France for years with my kids. We always try to have a varied itinerary with the %26quot;kids picks%26quot; in the afternoon--something to look forward too. Other lures to keep the kids going include daily trips to a patisserie and/or an ice cream vendor (especially near the Jardin de Luxembourg).
My kids%26#39; all time favorites in Paris:
Eiffel Tower (let%26#39;s go to the top, Dad!)
Bateaux Mouches (Evening is best)
Montmartre (getting a portrait done)
Walking from the Louvre to Ch. Elysees (great parks and vistas)
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What ever else you do, hand your daughter a guide book for each city and let her pick out two or three things that really interest her. She may surprise you with what she most wants to do.
Be sure to ask her to run sets of adhesive N%26amp;A labels for post cards - once you get your N%26amp;A files onto your computer it%26#39;s easy peasy and it saves loads of time.
Additionally, get French and German phrase books with good food sections for her so she can help you choose cafes. Bills of fare are always posted outside so there%26#39;s no way you%26#39;ll be blindsided, and she should get some good laughs over organ meats and offal dishes -- eeeewwww gross!!!.
BTW, Coka Cola generally is more expensive than wine or beer overseas. If she really has to have some, buy it at the market and drink it at home after dinner - it%26#39;s the same old story - anything local is cheaper than anything imported.
The only reason to drink bottled water is that you don%26#39;t like the flavour out of the tap - tap water is at least as clean and wholesome as what comes out of your faucet at home. I don%26#39;t mind the flavour in Paris, so I don%26#39;t buy bottled stuff there - on the other hand I can%26#39;t stand the flavour in NYC or LA - so I drink the expensive stuff when I%26#39;m there.
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With and 8 year old, I would rather stay somewhere close to the Luxembourg gardens (5th/6th) than the 16th for two reasons:
1) The gardens are a great place to hang with a kid.
2) The location is very central for visiting the rest of the city, where as the 16th is a bit removed.
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BCTraveler, I wouldn%26#39;t encourage a child to laugh at other peoples cuisine.
And it would seem that an 8 year old might like to choose between places suggested to her, rather than be handed a guide book.
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Thank you so much for all the helpful suggestions so far. I will start looking the the 5th/6th as well for hotels. I am a pastry chef by trade and cannot wait to eat in Paris. I suspect that me and my daughter will be sharing lots of pastries!
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I took my daughter the first time when she was 10. I second many of the suggestions here - crown jewels at the Louvre, top of the Arc, Eiffel Tower, etc. For the boat ride, we prefer the Vedettes du Pont Neuf - smaller boats/smaller crowds, and less expensive, I think. You can print discount coupons off their website. We went after dark to see everything lit up and that was cool.
re: coca cola - yes, it%26#39;s expensive in cafes, but it was priceless in my opinion. When my daughter would start to wear out, we%26#39;d plop down at a cafe for a brief rest, I%26#39;d buy her a Coke and a few minutes later, she was revived and ready for more sightseeing. With only 4 days in Paris, you%26#39;ve got to keep moving! Plus, my daughter doesn%26#39;t get sodas at home, so it was a real treat.
Probably her favorite thing was a fashion show (free) at Printemps. They used to be Tuesday mornings at 10:00 am. I%26#39;m not sure if they still have them. Post-show, a visit to the amazing shoe department was fabulous too. Of course, my dd is a fashionista (doesn%26#39;t get it from me!), so if yours isn%26#39;t into fashion, skip this one. Have fun!
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I posted a very similar question a couple of weeks ago as I am going to Paris with my 9 year old daughter. I also got some great suggestions -- check tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g187147-i14-k24318…
I also got the idea from this site to book a walking tour with a photographer. This will help us get oriented and guarantee we will have some great photos of us in Paris. Here was the post about the photographers -- tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g187147-i14-k22877…
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