Some suggested Venues for Kids in Paris

Paris is a wonderful place for children. Many enticing activities are coordinated around school schedules and are in high gear on Wednesday afternoons, as French children are out of school early. Many attractions offer children’s rates with the usual break at age 12, but ultimately it does vary from place to place.  Many museums are free on Sunday and others allow children under 18 free at all times.  Cribs and baby carriages can be rented from babysitting agencies to make your sightseeing more enjoyable.

There are a variety of museums geared for children, ranging from science themes to doll museums as well as cafe-theaters with productions catering to youngsters. The Musée de la Marine covers maritime France and includes scale models of ships.

The best children’s park within Paris is the Jardin d’Acclimatation, though it is expensive and best visited on Wednesday. Don’t forget about the zoos. The largest is at Bois de Vincennes, and perhaps the most appealing of the zoos is the small Ménagerie. 

Paris has many supervised entertainment centers for children. Of course, there is Disneyland Paris, spread across 1,500 acres, which is always a child pleaser. Another somewhat adventurous endeavor for kids of all ages is a tour along the Seine River. This will give your children a great overview of the city and let them see many of the sights. Visits to these places will to them seem like going to see an old friend. Even young children can enjoy a visit to Notre Dame, if solely for its size and beauty.

On the Right Bank stroll through the Jardin de Tuileries for donkey rides, ice cream and marionette shows. On the Left Bank, go to Jardin du Luxembourg for the same type of fun.  Puppet shows are a great tradition in Paris and you can usually catch a puppet show in any of the parks.

There is a great wax museum in Musée Grévin on Montmartre; it is known as Paris’ number-one waxworks. There also are many children’s fashion shops and many of the fashion houses of Paris have children’s branches so the little ones can be well dressed too.