5 Tips on Booking Paris With Kids

Now 13, my oldest daughter has lots of sway when it comes to determining where we’ll head on our next family vacation. When we deliberated where to travel this past summer, Paris was at the top of her list, as was a trip to South Korea or Japan.

I’d been to Paris just once myself, long before I had kids or the funds to do all that much — and my friends and I recount the trip often, especially the rotisserie chicken and cheese dinner we had on a budget so tight that toilet paper strips acted as napkins. 

All this to say, I looked forward to a redo, and I knew I wanted to enlist the guidance of a travel advisor. So, we planned an FIT trip for six — two grandparents, two adult children and my own two kids — with the help of Megan Halberstadt of MH Custom Travel.

There were pitfalls and highlights across our weeklong stay, of course, and once we returned home and debriefed, we saw clear takeaways from our experience. Here are a few tips from Halberstadt — and my own family — on how to best tackle Paris with kids.

1. Plan By Neighborhood

My family and I were in Paris in early July; unsurprisingly, at least three of the days were extremely hot. Had we attempted to stroll around Montmarte then cross the city to tour the Eiffel Tower on the same boiling day, no child, adult or senior would have been smiling by dinner. 

Anticipating uncomfortable temperatures (and the flagging spirits they can bring), Halberstadt helped us organize our itinerary by neighborhood as much as possible. For example, our first full day included sandwiches in the Jardin des Tuileries, where my youngest could wiggle and play at the playground and jump on the trampolines, then a 10-minute walk to the Louvre for a tour with a private and kid-friendly guide. Next, we cooled off in the Smith&Son bookshop adjacent the park (it has an adorable upstairs children’s section) before taking an eight-minute taxi ride to our hotel, the Hyatt Paris Madeline.

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Over the next few days, we had (geographically) small adventures in Montmarte, the 12th arrondissement and 7th arrondissement (home to the Eiffel Tower). By midday, naps were in order, and easy dinners near our hotel followed.

2. Book Guided Tours

With little to no French language skills and a 5-year-old in tow, we wanted to ease our Parisian travels with help from kid-friendly tours. Ironically, these bookings (Halberstadt utilized Context Tours) were huge hits with the grown-ups. Knowledgeable, English-speaking local guides made overwhelming sites engaging for all of us.

At the Louvre, Context guide Cecile led us to artwork she knew would catch 5-year-old Lottie’s attention. Once in front of a given piece, Cecile posed questions and pointed out features that drew us all in — and that we never would have learned or gathered without her. A favorite moment came when Cecile stopped at an enchanting self-portrait by Elisabeth Louise Vigee Le Brun, which depicts the artist embracing her young daughter, Julie. Cecile told us that it was the only painting in that expansive section of the Louvre made by a woman, which led to a larger conversation on access and women in the arts. Similarly, conversations around marble sculpting took place in front of incredible works by Michaelangelo.   

On a different day, we headed to the 12th arrondissement for a kid-friendly market tour, which Halberstadt arranged via Context. Our guide, Rhona, brought us to several incredible patisseries and boulangeries, plus neighboring markets Marche d’Aligre and Marche Beauvau. We shopped for a picnic as we bopped from shop to shop. Nearly all purchases — berries, baguettes, gaufres from Maison Meert, local cheeses and the like — were part of our tour, though I did go rouge and buy extras here and there. Rhona interfaced with shopkeepers in French while we “oohed” and “ahhed” at glass cases full of treats. At the end of our tour, we laid all our edible treasures out on a table in Square Trousseau — Rhona had even packed a table cloth — and had a very French feast.

3. Remain Flexible

In pre-trip calls, Halberstadt listened to our Paris wish lists. Then, she designed our days, booked (refundable) tickets and tours and reminded us that we could alter things if needed. 

And we did need to.

The heat was not our friend; we ended up canceling our visit to the Jardin d’Acclimatation theme park, for example, to avoid the sweltering sun. When our last full day rolled around, we also canceled a hands-on baking class, because much of our party was just too tired for an early-morning event. And we abandoned nearly every 7 p.m. dinner we had reserved in advance because, as we promptly remembered once in Paris, the French like to dine for hours, and the kids and seniors in our group could not manage that. 

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On the upside, opening up slots of time led to unexpected and personalized fun. I took my oldest daughter and my mother-in-law to the very trendy Merci for some shopping. Lottie ran amok with local kids at the Square Marcel Pagnol playground and rode the carousel at Parc Monceau, and my husband went for a couple of runs. I ordered iced coffee all over the city — the best spot to caffeinate was Cafe Fino, which has an outpost right by Hyatt Paris Madeline. And one morning, two of us slept in while the other four walked to the famous Angelina for breakfast and cups of thick and creamy hot chocolate. 

4. Don’t Try to Do It All

Can travelers go to the Louvre at 9 a.m., stroll the Jardin du Luxembourg at noon, take a boat tour on the Seine at 3 p.m. and visit the Eiffel Tower at 5:30 p.m.? Yes. Would it be enjoyable? Probably not.

A big red flag for me is when people think they can be in Paris for two or three nights and hit everything. Slowing down is important. I think five to seven nights in Paris is a really good starting point for families.

“A big red flag for me is when people think they can be in Paris for two or three nights and hit everything,” Halberstadt said. “Slowing down is important. I think five to seven nights in Paris is a really good starting point for families.” 

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My family learned as we went, canceling things we had high hopes of doing. Through that, I saw Halberstadt’s point, and I will stick to her guideline on future family trips, particularly when in big urban centers.

“Especially with kids, it’s a good idea to set one big goal per day,” Halberstadt said. “Maybe one day that's a market tour, which is two to three hours long. And then, if the kids are tired and they want to rest, cool. Or if they want to go to a park and play, great. Having a short list of unticketed things you’d love to tack on is a good idea."

5. Do Your Research — Even If You Haven’t Booked a Client Trip Yet

Halberstadt was selling cruises and Disney before she began booking Europe, but she aimed to have Europe clients in the near future. Her tips for advisors in a similar position? Imagine the trip you would want to build for that clientele, even going so far as to study maps of the destination your clients will explore.

There are so many smart ways to use your social media to attract an audience, even if you aren't booking that trip yet.

“Knowing the logistics of a place is huge,” she said. “You can go in and book a tour, but you also need to understand the geography of the city and how the client is getting from point A to point B. I would create a mock itinerary, then promote it. There are so many smart ways to use your social media to attract an audience, even if you aren't booking that trip yet.”

Halberstadt is among those advisors using AI in their workflows — she notes that it’s certainly a great research tool, but that triple-checking its “work” is absolutely necessary.

“I still go to Google to make sure a suggestion is real, and to make sure it's open,” Halberstadt said. “But asking ChatGPT is a good starting place.”