Playing in Paris with Little Ones: What Local Families Know

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Bonjour les amis! We've been back from France for four months now and I'm feeling the distance. It's been nice to send and receive new year's cards this month (as the French do so throughout the month of January), but a completely unreasonable part of me wishes we could have stayed for the whole school year! Some of you are hoping to take your children to Paris someday soon just as my husband and I did. If you go, you should know about these two lesser-known family-oriented places that will give your children opportunities to play and speak in French:

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Responding to the November 13th Paris Attacks: What Syria's Got to Do with It

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Oh it was a heartbreaking weekend, wasn’t it?! The news of the Paris attacks was just shocking and sickening; to learn of Parisians being targeted with such intentional cruelty brings us all to a standstill. During my time in Paris this last July, my husband, children and I stayed just blocks from the Bataclan—it’s in an area of Paris that has been gaining popularity with its up and coming restaurants, not far from the iconic Place de la République. On Friday night, Facebook’s safety check system was quick to show that my friends in and around Paris were safe, but the unraveling news stories still cut to my heart as it became apparent that young people were targeted and that French culture itself was attacked.

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Making Travel (in France) with Toddlers Easier: Taming the Ts

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Last week I received a request for tips for traveling in France with very young children, and how to avoid stressful moments with them when possible. As I look back on our three months in France (and especially our two weeks in Paris), here's what I learned that made our family vacation and travel times easier:

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An Interview with Kim Horton Levesque, Author of Paris with Children (plus a book giveaway!)

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Les amis, I'm delighted to share this interview featuring Kim Horton Levesque, whose sweet and informative guidebook Paris with Children was published in 2013. Actually, the full title is The Little Bookroom Guide to Paris with Children: Play, Eat, Shop, Stay. A dear friend sent me this book before our current stay in France, and I couldn't have been more thrilled! Kim's informative, pocket-sized guide is a mama's dream guide to Paris, listing kid-friendly cafés, children's shops, favorite family parks, and more. Even better, you can win a signed copy of her book by leaving a comment on this blog post (details below). Without further ado, here's my interview with Kim:


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Two Weeks in Paris: Our 14 Days of Family Activities

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Our two-week stay in Paris flew by--probably because we did so much more than I expected. We could have easily enjoyed staying longer if our budget and schedule allowed it, but we have French friends to visit as well, so I'm now writing you from the lovely stone home of my distant relatives in Bretagne. But before I jump too far ahead, here's where we went and what we did in Paris, starting with the most family-friendly and descending to the least family-friendly, in my opinion: 


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Celebrating Le 14 Juillet in Paris: Our Family's Experience (& Tips for Tourists)

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As a passionate Francophile, I'm thrilled that my family's stay in Paris this month coincided with Bastille Day. (The French always call it Le 14 juillet, but the day is in memory of the storming of the Bastille in 1789.) my husband and I had heard about the military parade on the Champs-Elysées and the unforgettable fireworks at the Eiffel Tower, but we didn't know exactly where to go for the best views or how to escape the crowd afterwards. Here's what we learned:

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A Family Visit to Paris' Jardin des Plantes & Ménagerie

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The top tourist sites in Paris are its museums and monuments, but Le Jardin des Plantes is an excellent choice for families looking for a peaceful, educational, and fun destination within walking distance from Notre Dame de Paris. (I suggest taking the Metro, though, if you have little ones in tow.) This garden is France's main botanical garden, and it houses a zoo, a carousel, an amazing animal display (La Grand Gallerie de l'Evolution), and several other museums focused on natural history.

 
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Visiting the Louvre & Jardin des Tuileries with Kids

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Many people might not consider taking their children to France's museums but even young children can appreciate the Louvre's incredible treasures in its opulent palace setting. You can pique your child's interest with the Louvre's own interactive site for children or printing out their treasure hunts for families (select parcours-jeux on their family page).

On the first Sunday of the month, many museums in France offer free admission. We'd planned to take advantage of this offer to visit the Louvre (the world's most visited museum), but instead we went the following day, thinking that it would be less crowded if most people had come the day before. Perhaps this was true, but in summer there are such hoards of tourists that any dip in attendance was imperceptible! You can try to avoid the crowds by arriving early or when the Louvre is open very late on Wednesdays or Fridays. (Kids under 18 enter free everyday.) 


 
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