Travel to Paris with 2 and 4 y/o

[trebleme]

Hi all. My husband is traveling to Paris in mid-late january and we have the chance to come along for the trip. I know very little about Paris and would love to know your thoughts on being there on my own with my 2 girls, ages 2 and 4. My Dh will be in meetings literally ALL day so I would truly be on my own.

2 questions in particular, in addition to do you think this is doable or a good idea :

1) My older DD has a life-threatening nut allergy. We carry an epi-pen and benadryl and closely watch her diet. I am definitely a "foodie" and know a great deal about ingredients in recipes, but do you think this will be particularly challenging in Paris? I took 3 years of French about 20 years ago, but will have a dictionary with me to decipher ingredients in packaged foods. Will we have problems communicating in cafes?

2) My younger DD is still in diapers. She wears a size 5 in the US Pampers (I know, we don't do cloth ) ) Will I be able to find dipes to fit her or will I need to bring them?

I welcome any advice, tips, ideas of places to go and things to do. I do not know where we will be staying in Paris yet, but would love recommendations for that as well, if you feel there are areas that are more family friendly. I am embarrassed to admit that I am not well-traveled and have never even been to Europe (Israel twice, but never Europe) so my knowledge of local customs, etc. is seriously lacking. Your patience with my ignorance is greatly appreciated!

Thanks!
Sharon

[IsaFrench]

in paris with kids

hi, was in the states for 3 years now back in France & in Paris for 5 days recently with my children ... be prepared, public bathrooms are few and far between compared with facilites in the big town I was living in in Virginia !
I was ashamed of my own country !
you know what, it's my 3rd child but have only noticed NOW that there are sizes on Diapers ("les couches") my youngest is on size 4 and she's quite small so I'm pretty sure that we too have a size 5 here ! and the brand you mentioned is familiar here too (although a lot of supermarkets have their own brands)
strollers and the underground = not so good, a lot of carrying up and down the stairs but I did it anyway & also took the bus during naptime so that she could carry on sleeping without being disturbed (at least 3 spaces for strollers in each bus)
have you tried typing something like "visiting Paris with children" on the net ? found some english speaking people's account of their trips and must do list & what to avoid etc ....

[IsaFrench]

diapers size 5

just checked in my regular supermarket; Pampers size 5 here is from 24 to 55 lb (11 to 25 kilos)
but other brands have different weights; Huggies's size 5 is from 24 to 42 lb only (11 to 19 kg)

[ewe+lamb]

Yes i think it's doable - as in the USA all products are listed with nut products/factories etc so I guess it's the same sort of thing. I second the don't bother with strollers - they really are a nightmare, a good baby carrier and look up the buses - children of under 4 do not pay for transport, so depending on the size of your 4 year old you may not have to pay for her. For travelling buy a 'carnet' of tickets that are valid for buses, metro and trams, a pack of 10 is 11.40 euros for adults and half price for kids, the kids tickets you can only buy in the 'carnet' form, they are valid for the whole journey within Paris on the metro; on the bus from the first bus you get on then valid for an hour and half thereafter on any bus - I found that out after being here for 3 years!! No one ever tells you these things!!!

Depending on when your dates are you could come to our LLL meeting if you are still nursing your toddler - kids can play, you can chat away - if you want I can send a schedule when we have the dates fixed (you'll need to email me). There are loads of parks for kids which you'll probably spend most of your time in!!! Let me know if I can help you with anything else.

[IsaFrench]

for transportation we used the 5 days Paris Visite which is 27 euros and some cents for an adult, that one at that price is good on metro as well as buses on zone 1 to 3

honestly, I would be cautious in restaurants about allergies, some people just don't get it that it's life threatening but buying one's food , yes, it's just a question of scanning the very small print, down to the last lines of "fabriqué dans un atelier qui utilise;soja, lait,noisette " (or whatever ..)

for accommodation, do you have any choice or are you put up by your husband's company at a location of their choice? A lot of hotel rooms are NOT like in America with a little kitchette and convenience in mind ... for that you need rather an "appart-hotel" .... for that last trip I looked them up too late so didn't get anything for my dates in my price range but was considering a chain called CITEA that had a location on an end line of a metro line which could have worked for us.

Where is your husband going to be commuting to for his work ?

[ewe+lamb]

I would agree about being cautious about restaurants - allergies is really just becoming recognised here - on the tv etc, and some folk just don't get it unless you go to a restaurant that would be organic - that may be worth looking into, there's one out where we live but it's not central Paris!!; they are called 'bio', you may also want organic shops, Naturalia is one of the main ones in Paris and then there are other small shops, in the supermarket things will be marked with 'AB' which is the symbol for organic products.

[Vick]

My husband and I are planning a 2-3 week vacation in Paris in June with our two kids, age 2 (almost 3) and 6 (almost 7). I just bought two books about traveling Paris with children--one by Frommers and one by Fodors. It sounds like there is much to do with kids! This will be our second trip there, first with kids. We are interested in a home exchange or renting an apartment. I'd love to know if anyone has nay recommendations. It would also be fun to have someone to meet up with once we get there. I am still nursing our 2 year old but don't know where we'll be at that point. A LLL meeting would be fun! What is the climate of breastfeeding in Paris? Should I be quite discreet? We have a child with a food allergy, too (milk) and plan on cooking many of our meals because of it. We will be traveling with our teenage babysitter who is already brushing up on her french! I better get started!

[ewe+lamb]

As regards bfing in Paris most folk are getting to be quite accepting of it - but as in everywhere there are always one or two, breasts are very well thought of here so don't get too concerned about covering up - it's acceptable to see a bit of skin and such, bring a good wrap and you'll be fine, don't know anything about house swap but our LLL meeting should be the first thursday for the baby and second for the toddlers in the month but do check with me later on and I'll be able to send you the meeting schedule!!