Traveling to Paris with kids? Here's an insider guide for what to do and where to go, tested by us and proven to be kid-friendly and cool.
Ladurée Macarons
I really could not decide what to recommend as my Parisian try and buy’. It was such a tough choice but in the end I reckon the macarons from Ladurée win!
They are a must try, not only because they are so delicious; but also because they are delicate, beautiful, retro and soo Parisian. You can get imitation macarons in patisseries all over Paris but none of them compare to their Ladurée competitor.
The delicate pastries are made out of 2 crispy macarons sandwiched together with a ganache filling. In other words they are made out of a concoction of eggs, sugar and almonds and a couple of secret ingredients which are only known to the Ladurée pastry chef. The flavours range from the simple vanilla, chocolate and pistachio ones to the unusual Lily of the Valley and Java Pepper flavours. Every season Ladurée invents a new flavour. If you are in Paris in the next couple of months I strongly suggest you try this season’s creation: Mango Jasmin!
There are several Ladurée locations in which these little treats are sold. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do…
- Emilie
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Lilli Bulle
Several of our Babyccino readers have already requested I write a post about this shop and I was waiting for the right moment to give it the attention it deserves. Lilli Bulle is worthy of being the kids’ clothes shop featured in our theme week!
It is actually one of these places I have to stop myself from going, as I always come out having spent a fortune. Not because my kids needed anything but because I am the one who really, really can’t resist!
Lilli Bulle stocks a great mixture of beautiful basics, funky one-offs and wonderful accessorizes. The shop is tiny and crammed full of lovely stuff, from Petit Demons rattles, Miniseri’s satchels, beautiful Pepe kids’ shoes, hair clips, hats, little toys, and the list goes on and on.
For everyone who does not make it down to its shop off the rue du Faubourg St Antoine, there is also an online shop and a great blog, which keeps fans up to date with new arrivals!
- Emilie
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Luxembourg Gardens
It might be the best-known park in Paris, but it is one of our favourite places to go. You cannot get a more Parisian park than the Luxembourg Gardens.
It is so much fun, even as an adult, to rent one of the little sailboats in the main fountain of the garden and push it around with a stick. Most of the time it capsizes or collides with another boat, but that is part of the fun! (You can rent the sailboats on Wednesdays and on weekends.)
I reckon the playground is the best in Paris and is actually relatively empty as it is the only playground I know of in the centre of the city that charges an entrance fee. There are also pony rides (Wednesdays and on weekends) and swings. The ubiquitous Manege is a beautiful older style wooden affair, run by a lovely lady who does not mind kids taking their time to decide on which wooden animal to ride.
Last but not least, and though I hate being so practical, the Luxembourg Gardens is one of the only places in Paris I have found in which the toilets have a changing table and cute, clean, kid-sized toilets with little hand-washing basins.
- Emilie
(Image found here)
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Niou
I love, love, love the Villlage St. Paul, which is a great place to know about if you are in Paris for the weekend, as it is one of the few areas open on a Sunday. Sandwiched between the rue St Antoine and the Seine in the 4th, The Village consists of several little courtyards which are all interlinked and filled with little shops. Most of them are antique dealers, but you can also find Niou there, a lovely little toy shop.
It is the best place for me to go if I am looking for a present and want to find something unique and fun.
Niou stocks the Wheely Bugs , PlaySam, Automoblox and lots of other toys we have reviewed here on Babyccino.
The other day I was having a browse around the shop and I was listening to the owner show a friend of his the new stock he had received. He was excited like a kid to have all these great new things in his shop. For me that was the best advertisement for Niou; it is the kind of place in which you feel that the shopkeeper has hand-picked every single item and loves what he does.
-Emilie
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L’Apriori tea room
In Paris there are very few obvious kid-friendly restaurants. However, when you start scratching the surface a little bit, there a lots of little places tucked away that are first and foremost friendly; and so, by default, good for kids.
One of such places is the L’Apriori lunch and tea room in the Galerie Vivienne — a beautiful, glass covered Gallery off rue Vivienne in the 1st arrondissement (thanks to Marie from LFG for introducing me to this gem). It is super close to the Musee en Herbe, and is a little oasis of calm in the middle of frenetic Paris.
It is run by a lovely American lady and the food is amazing. Scones, crumbles and tarts are all presented in a old-world style. Another wonderful thing, and very unusual for here in Paris, is that they offer half potions of all their divine cakes, crumbles and scones… perfect for small and yet hungry stomachs! I have also heard that the brunch is divine, though I myself have not tried it. (more…)
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Berry’s Berry
When the girls were in Paris, Esther and I were chatting about the different perceptions we had about Japanese design. Esther, coming from a background in architecture views Japanese style as clean, minimalist, muted colours and general zen-ess, whilst, with my background in animation, I think of Japanese style as bright, funky and crazy. Japan seems to be one of these countries where both of these extremes can exist in perfect harmony.
In the elegant St. Germain I found a little Japanese kids’ clothing shop called Berry’s Berry which definitely reflects more my idea of Japanese style than Esther’s. It could never be described as understated and minimalist! Flanked on the one side by elegant Serendipity, a kids furniture shop and Talc an understated wonderful French kids’ clothes shop, Berry’s Berry is cheap, bright and very cheerful with an twist! (more…)
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Tags for School
Having a child at the Maternelle means that I have been spending my precious evenings occupying myself with a generation-old task. Like my grandmother and I am sure my great-grandmother before me, I have been sewing name tags into every jumper, coat, bag, spare pair of trousers etc. that might be taken to school and then lost! NOT my idea of a fun-filled evening!
Since starting this labourious task I have found that my favourite haberdashery shop Entree Des Fournisseurs has solved my problem! They sell beautiful cotton woven etiquettes that can be ironed on!
Entree Des Fournisseurs actually merits its own post, but for now I am just going to sing the praises of its online shop and name tags. The iron-on function is just an added bonus; I would have gotten my name tags there anyway, as the ribbons and colours to choose from are really nice, or at least as nice as name tags can humanly possibly get…
The website is in English and in French and they do deliver internationally!
-Emilie
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Sweden in Paris
While the girls were in Paris this past weekend I dragged them to one of my favourite kid-friendly eateries in Paris, and I realised: I had not blogged about it yet!
The café in the Centre Culturel Suedois, based in a Hotel Particuler on rue Payenne in the heart of the Marais, is a little gem. In the middle of Paris the Swedes have managed to create a piece of Sweden (at least, this is what I imagine Sweden to be like)! The tables are covered in checked fresh-coloured table cloths, the furniture is made out of light wood or painted in fresh light colours, and it serves lovely sandwiches, tea and coffee at a reasonable price. The food is very un-French: carrot cakes, open Swedish sandwiches, meatballs, and so on. It is such a nice change after having eaten innumerable baguettes!
But the main attraction for me is the outside space — a big courtyard great for kids to run around in and a world away from the crowded sidewalk tables you find at most cafés in this city!
- Emilie
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Ice Cream Island
In our family the Ile St Louis is known as ‘ice cream island’. Nestled between the Ile de la Cite and the right and left bank of the Seine, the Ile St Louis has none of the famous buildings that inhabit its bigger brother but instead has a definite attraction for kids and grown ups alike: it is covered in ice cream shops!
The most famous is Berthillon, with its main café on rue Saint Louis en l’Ile. (The photo above is actually of Courtney’s son enjoying a Berthillon ice cream when they came to visit us! How happy does he look!?!?!)
The Berthillon ice creams are sold in lots of other venues, one of which is the Brasserie de l’Ile Saint Louis a cafe right by the pont Saint Louis, which has a terrace overlooking Notre Dame and the Seine. The terrace is usually packed to the brim but you can always pick up an ice cream and sit on the bank of the river and enjoy the view. If the queue is too long, don’t fret – there are lots of ice cream shops all over the island, mostly on the rue Saint Louis en Ile.
Now, I would never try to compare french ice cream to the Italian cream, but a stop on the island for a treat is a great way to take a breather from site sighting in the centre of the city!
- Emilie
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