Discovering Paris with our kids

We departured early morning from Brussels Midi using the ultra-rapid Thalys train. It was a dream for Bernard to ride this train and we couldn’t do otherwise. He loved every detail of it and was gleeming with joy.

We arrived at Paris Nord around 10 AM and took the RER to Saint Michel. The aim was to start showing the kids Paris from where it all started – the island on the river Seine. Our first point was the famous Notre Dame cathedral. We saw it from the inside and outside. Little did we know that we were ultra-lucky, cause two weeks later one of the most important symbols of gothic architecture will be destroyed by fire and closed for several years for renovation.

After seeing the Notre Dame, we strolled along the banks of the Seine, profiting from the marvelous sunny weather. While walking through the iconic scenery, we stopped at the bouquinistes where the kids bought their first Parisian souvenirs. We passed next to the Louvre, so that they could see its immense scale and could learn the first few things that are to be discovered there.

We went for lunch to a nice creperie near Trocadero which served delicious French crepes. From there we had a pleasant stroll downwards through the Trocadero Gardens towards the Eiffel Tower. The views were the most Parisian you can ever imagine.
We did not have enough time to climb the Tower this time, but we promised the kids to go there during one of our future trips to this marvelous city.

We continued our walk through the Mars Fields looking at the beauty of spring in Paris. After passing the Ecole Militaire, we bought delicious ice cream and went towards our next distination – Hotel des Invalides. Our goal was to see the tomb of Napoleon. Napoleon became Bernards new superhero. He got a T-shirt and a book about him and they became his most precious treasures.

We wanted to include something for the adults too, so we went to the Rodin Museum which is just next to the Hotel des Invalides. Michal took the kids to the gardens of this splendid manor, while Gosia enjoyed a few moments for herself walking through the interior of the museum.

Late in the afternoon we took another metro and reached the Etoile. When we climbed out of the underground, the kids could marvel at another symbol of Paris – the Triumph Arch and the Champs Elysees. We walked a bit downhill the Champs, but the kids were a bit tired and overwhelmed, so it was high time to wind up the trip and head back the train station. We took the Thalys back to Brussels.

The kids loved this day-trip and Paris became their favourite city destination. We hope your kids enjoy it too!