Planning Our Trip

As we researched places to visit, before we left, we got a LOT of opinions both in person and online about where and where not to go. One of the places that several people had told us was overrated was Paris.

I still had a pull in my soul to go there, I blame my French ancestry- and French is the only language I actually know, so we still planned to do it. We looked around for a discounted flight and found a pretty good one (around $90 RT CAD from Rome) and opted to bring our small overnight bags (Osprey daylite packs) that go under the seat in front of us, so we had 0 luggage fees. This was also convenient as we walked around the city with our bags on days 1 and 3- and everyone was easily able to carry their own (it fits a few pairs of clothes well).

We packed up our Airbnb in Nettuno, so we wouldn’t have to prep anything when we got back- due to a quick turnaround time between our return Paris flight and our flight out of Rome to Turkey. Half of Day 1 and Day 3 we were travelling- but we squished a LOT in our little time there.

Where To Stay in Paris with 4 Kids

We stayed in the cutest little cabins that we found on booking.com, which worked so well with 4 kids, as hotels that fit 6 are hard to find… if you’re headed to Paris and decide to check them out, my only word of advice would be to make sure the shuttle is running, as it is a little far from the train station. If you book with a 3rd party, they can help with any issues you have (we got refunded a portion of our booking because of the shuttle being out while we were there).

It was a cute little cabin in a “campground” right on the Seine. The café/restaurant and shop were fabulous… and you could get fresh croissants and baguettes from the shop every morning (maybe my fave thing about it?!). Our cabin was basically a little tiny-home-trailer-type thing, all made of wood. It stayed nice and warm with heaters in every room- which was great, because it was chilly during our stay. During the summer they have a pool, and I think it would be the cutest place for a summer trip with kids.

The Paris transportation system was something else- trains, metros, busses… not easy to figure out in 3 days- it seemed very disconnected, there wasn't a way to book one card/method that would give you access all over. We ended up managing well enough (with a LOT of walking between stops, and several meltdowns… me included, LOL!). We walked a LOT over our 3-day stay… and were quite tired by the end of our trip.

Our Favourite Paris Sites

We booked tickets to the Louvre early, but got mixed up on the busses that morning, and ended up with only a short time there. The glass pyramid and architecture of the building itself were definitely my favourite part! It was all stunning.

My kids, being a little over museums and “old stuff” could be heard saying “The Mona Lisa was my least favourite painting- why is it so famous?!” and complaining about how huge the building was, and how tired they were from walking. I still think it was worth the trip- but I wouldn’t plan for more than ½ day there unless your kiddos are huge art history buffs (my 17yo could have easily spent the full day there).

Chateau Versailles was incredible! Walking up to it, with the sun shining off of the golden building was a sight to see. The palace itself was lovely- my boys' favourite was the hall of the battles- full of giant paintings of famous battle scenes. Another close favourite was the castle grounds- you can access them behind the building, and they are HUGE! I would love to go back in the summer or fall and spend the day just walking around the gardens. You can rent little golf carts outside too, which would be a fun addition.

Walking around downtown Paris late at night was also SO much fun- we passed lights, rides and a Christmas market… all on the way to the Eiffel Tower. The cost was quite reasonable to go up it- and there was no line at all-, so we went up late at night and took loads of videos and pictures from the top. 10/10 recommend doing that at least once with kids- I loved how much they loved it.

Disneyland Paris: The Best Day Ever!

Our favourite stop was easily Disneyland Paris. None of them remember going to any Disneyland before (we brought the oldest 2 when they were pretty much babies), so it was almost the first time- and it was magical. We downloaded the app, which was very useful, and would go to whichever rides sounded fun, that had the lowest queue time.

A few Disneyland Paris tips with kids: get the app and monitor the wait times, go as soon as they open and get in line for your top rides (as they seem to get busier as the day goes on), break up into single-rider lines if you have older kids that can manage that, and my top tip… skip the parades (unless they REALLY want to go) and pop over to the busiest rides instead- they are basically line-free during the evening shows. And don’t forget the live musical shows too – we went to the Lion King and it was NEXT level! I enjoyed it just as much as the NYC Lion King on Broadway.

Our family favourites were Pirates of the Caribbean (especially good when it was freezing outside, because they heat it to keep the water flowing) and Thunder Mountain (my kids are 7-17 and all of them loved it- not too scary, but just intense enough!). Indiana Jones was a little disappointing- as it was just a regular roller-coaster, and not like the ride in California. We only had one day, so we didn’t head to the other park (it does have a ride unique to Paris- Crush's coaster), but we feel like 1 day was a perfect amount of time to make it to all the rides we wanted to (and then some). We managed to walk around 27,000 steps that day- and at least 1 or 2 kids fell asleep sitting up on the train ride back home.

Our Quick Overnight Trip is Over (but we'll be back)

If you’re considering Paris with kids- I highly recommend it! It felt clean, safe, and full of activities. Many of the places we looked for tickets at would have hugely discounted or free tickets for kids under 18- which was different from a lot of the other high-tourist areas we had been to so far and felt welcoming for big families.

I can’t wait to go back and walk the streets of Paris, not so hurried next time I hope, and steep myself in French culture (and croissants). I’m manifesting a semester abroad in Paris to practice my French!