Vacations Blog

Over spring break, my husband and I took our kids, age 5 and 7, to London and Paris for a 12 day family adventure. I have many stories to tell, and I will focus this post on the highlights of our trip. The best is that we did the whole trip with just carry-ons - each person had their own rolly suitcase and a backpack, even my son, whose arm was in a cast! Our trip began on a Wednesday in March, as we picked the kids up from school and drove straight to the airport for our overnight flight….

Instead of staying in hotels, we rented apartments, through VRBO and Arbitel. We did this because it would help our budget (apartments being slightly less than hotels); the extra space would be helpful for two active kids; we could avoid eating out every meal; and we could have an experience more akin to living in the city, rather than just visiting it. Our apartment in Nottinghill London included two bedrooms, a nice living/dining room and useful kitchen. It was around the corner from Portobello Road and Holland Park Avenue, two nice shopping areas. And, right across the street was a private park, only accessible to residents within 200meters of the door.

In Paris, we stayed in a smaller apartment on the 6th floor of an original building in the 7th arrondissenemtn. While not as physically attractive as the Notting Hill apartment, it nevertheless fulfilled our requirements - a bed for everyone, close to shops and attractions and culturally rich. The elevator had been installed in the middle of the stairwell and was just big enough for one person and our luggage. Everyone else took the stairs! Across the street was a boulangerie for fresh morning baguettes and the pain au chocolate my kids insisted upon. Around the corner were several brasseries for easy dinners and markets to stock up on essentials.

In London, we went to the newsagent on the corner and bought two Oyster cards. These transportation cards can be refilled at many places in town and allow you to save money on public transportation. We took double decker buses everywhere and as we got on board, we would just flash our card in front of the reader and it would deduct the amount of the bus trip. The kids loved climbing to the top of the bus and sitting right in front. Great way to see the city.

Other highlights in London included a trip on the London Eye, a ginormous ferris wheel-type attraction; several visits to Kensington Gardens; lunch at Tamarind; and seeing the Lion King at the Lyceum Theater.

Paris was different for us, not the least of which because everyone spoke French. My kids spent a lot of time wondering about the language thing, and were endlessly fascinated that I could order in a restaurant in French. Highlights here included visiting the Eiffel Tower on a clear day, starting at 6pm as the sun was going down and reaching the top at 7:30pm, when the city was dark and the lights were all a twinkle. We walked everywhere, stopping often for treats or to view some important sight. And on the last day, we visited the puppet show in Luxembourg Gardens - even though my kids could not understand anything, they were happy to be around other kids.

When friends ask about our museum experience, I tell them we ran the gamut - British Modern for the really old stuff, The Louvre for the Masters, The Musee D’Orsay for the Impressionists and the Tate Modern in London for the current stuff. We also threw in a visit to the Natural History Museum for a little dinosaur excitement. In London, the museums are free (special exhibits cost extra), which made our decision to visit easy. In Paris, kids are free as most museums, and my husband and I decided we would be fine if we stayed for an hour or 1/2 a day.

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