We absolutely love Paris with kids and without. It’s such a magical city and while Paris as a family destination isn’t stereotypically the best, we have had a wonderful experience every time we’ve gone. Still, it can still feel a … Read More
Google Maps just may be our most used app and we’ve found tons of Google Maps hacks for travel that have made our lives much easier. It’s especially helpful for trip planning, but we also use these tips all the … Read More
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Our family absolutely loves visiting Paris with kids and recently enjoyed a family weekend in Paris. Now that we’re living in London, it feels like a dream to be able to go just for a couple of days! Here’s everything … Read More
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When I was pregnant with our 3rd kiddo, Dan and I were looking for a home in the DC area. We’d been living there for about 5 years in a darling, tiny little place, but were definitely outgrowing it with … Read More
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After 13.5 years and 6 kids over literally hundreds of flights, I’ve really streamlined what I take on board when flying with an infant. Here are all the mom travel essentials I take for myself when flying with a baby … Read More
To me, new year’s goals are for overarching changes in habits and lifestyle to make my life more of what I want it to be. I love and feel very grateful for my life, and want to make it more … Read More
If you’re looking for a fun way to both encourage and document family adventures big and small, near and far this year, pop in your email below and this free printable log will come right to your inbox! The end … Read More
We absolutely love Paris with kids and without. It’s such a magical city and while Paris as a family destination isn’t stereotypically the best, we have had a wonderful experience every time we’ve gone. Still, it can still feel a bit complicated to find family-friendly places to stay in Paris.
Figuring out where to stay in Paris with kids can feel a bit overwhelming so here are some ideas for the best areas to stay in Paris with family!
We go back and forth on what type of accommodations work best for our family – sometimes we love hotels, and other times, a home or apartment rental works much better, especially with a lot of kids.
We’ve chosen multiple different kinds of accommodations in Paris with different numbers of family members, lengths of stay, and seasons of life. In general, if we have all our 6 kids with us, we prefer to do some sort of home or apartment stay in Paris. While you can find 4-person hotel rooms in Paris, many of them are limited to 3 or even 2 people. This makes it really difficult to fit our whole family (not to mention expensive). Plus, the hotels tend to be very cozy and don’t often have lots of extra space for things like a baby cot or luggage. Because of that, we typically choose an apartment or home rental in Paris with kids.
We’ve also done a Paris home exchange for families and that worked really well for us. We loved the extra space, feeling like we could settle into a more residential neighborhood a bit, and having amenities like baby equipment, a full kitchen, extra bedding, and more. My parents were even able to come stay with us! You can read more about our Paris family home exchange HERE.
Finally, we have also stayed in several Paris hotels with kids. There are some excellent options out there, and even more so now. It’s lovely seeing the city become even more family-friendly! Especially if you have a smaller group traveling, would like specific hotel amenities, or prefer the feel of a hotel, this might be a great option. And for small groups, this is often the cheaper way to go.
Paris is divided into a series of 20 areas (arrondissements) that spiral outward from the center. In general, I love several of the single digit arrondissements, especially if it’s a relatively short Paris family trip. If you’re wondering where is the best area of Paris with kids, here are some of my favorites:
The 1er (short for “premier” or “1st”) arrondissement is right in the center of things and near the Louvre. It’s a really excellent location for where to stay in Paris with family. It’s easy to get to lots of activities by foot or Metro, and is centrally located so your transit time home will never bee too long.
It does, however, have fewer restaurant options and the vibe isn’t quite as charming as some of the other areas of Paris. It’s definitely a less residential area that is more focused on tourist sites and daytime businesses (like museums). If you’re wondering where to stay in Paris with kids and want something that has really easy access to most of the main tourist sites, but aren’t concerned with tons and tons of restaurant options right next door, the 1st arrondissement is what I would recommend. (And if you would like a slightly nicer dinner out in the 1st, we’ve loved Juveniles! It’s tiny so best for a date night if you can swing it.)
Here are some great places to stay in the 1st arrondissement with kids:
The 2nd arrondissement (2eme) in Paris is home to Rue Montorgueil, a charming pedestrian area with shops and food. It’s also the financial center of the city. This means that like the 1st, it tends to be a little quieter quieter but with great access to other parts of the city, but has the added bonus of lots of quaint, lovely restaurants, too. If you’re wondering which arrondissement to stay in Paris with kids, this is a great choice if you want to be close to everything and quieter evenings, with still some good access to shops and food. (Frenchie is a cute and yummy place we like!)
The 3rd & 4th Arrondissements in Paris comprise an area known as Le Marais, one of the most lively areas of Paris and centrally located to lots of activities. It has lots of great (and often inexpensive) food, shopping, green space, and is walkable to many museums and tourist sites. This is definitely a best area to stay in Paris with family.
The 6th Arrondissement (St-Germain-des-Pres) is one of the nicest neighborhoods in Paris. It’s historically the artsy student area, but has turned into a luxury district. It may not be the first to come to mind for where to stay in Paris with kids, but it has excellent access to attractions like Luxembourg Gardens, is easily walkable to the big museums, and has terrific food and shopping. It’s also a really lovely area to wander for small shops, chocolate, patisseries, and more.
While the 18th Arrondissement (Montmartre) is a bit further out of the center of the city, it’s a great option for families as it’s close to Sacre Coeur Basilica and the other attractions in the Montmartre neighborhood. It’s also well connected to the rest of the city and close to Gare du Nord if you’re taking the train to and from Paris, and tends to be quite a bit less expensive than staying in the center. It’s artsy and fun, although quite hilly!
The 12th, 19th, & 20th Arrondissements are all further out of the heart of the city but close to bigger green spaces, like Bois de Vincennes, Parc de la Vilette, Pere Lachaise Cemetiere, etc. I’d recommend these areas if you’re spending a longer time in Paris (at least 5+ days).
