We are off to France this summer driving down to the Dordogne, but the kids have requested we go to Paris to go up the Eiffel Tower, and Euro Disney. Has anyone stayed anywhere (hotel) reasonable in Central Paris with kids that they could recommend please? Not staying at Disneyland as it’s awful!

Driving into Paris????

Good luck

I would probably look to stay on the outskirts at a French equivalent of a Travelodge etc (there are loads) and metro it in. Public transport is easy to navigate. Parking at a hotel in the centre is going to be almost non-existent. And the hotels in the centre that aren’t mega expensive would be a pretty tight fit for families (I imagine anyway…).

Hmmm, good point! Maybe I need a rethink, maybe stay near Disney land and get tgv into Paris?

Bercey Park is lovely, loads of hotels, great parks for kids of all ages and subway into town. I took my bike, got up at 5am and had an awesome ride around the empty streets of Paris.

OP, I have no idea about Disney I’m afraid. I’m not even sure where it is from Paris tbh.

We are going in May for three night (first foreign city break with the kids, 6 and 8) and we are staying in Novotel Paris les Halles. Kids on a sofa bed in the room. Not cheap though.

Due to the fact that Air France* are a bunch of utter ****knuckles, we spent the first night of our honeymoon at Disneyland Paris (Not intended, was meant to be in Mauritius). The service was impeccable, the staff were friendly and helpful beyond belief, and the hotel, while not what we’d been aiming for that night, was clean, comfortable and very well set up overall.

*I will NEVER NEVER fly with them again. EVER.

Beyond that, Paris is a great city for tottering around in. The tower is great fun, the Louvre packed with good stuff, Notre Dame is stunning beyond compare, and you can have lunch at http://www.leclosbourguignon.com What’s not to like?

Thanks fatmax useful info!

the OH used to live there. she always reccomends near montparnasse; far enough out that it’s not too expensive (all relative), close to good metro & bus links, lots of good – non touristy – bars and restaurants.

montparnasse tower also has a great view – it’s paris’ ugliest building so get up it and see all the others!

With satnav driving in/around Paris is as easy as anywhere else – just book somewhere off one of the backroads around the Champs-Élysées, and do the Arc and the Tower; think you may need to book.

We went for 3 nights in May for wife’s 40th, with 2 kids (9 & 11).
Struggled to find a central hotel with family room which wasn’t ridiculously priced.

We eventually went for an apartment through these guys Paris

You’ll get a much nicer place for a fraction of the hotel prices.

Or from Legoman’s post, maybe AirBnB might be worth a look?

Excellent stuff Legoman, ta

We camped east of the city for a few nights last summer on the way to Biarritz. Easy to get the train into the city. Kids loved the Eiffel Tower. Picnicked in the surrounding park. Would have liked to have done some galleries but we just looked round the city, river and parks. Disney was awful. Our kids thought it was middling too. Perhaps they were a bit old (9/11/13). I definitely was. Alton Towers is much better. Long waits for rides that were Ok but not spectacular. Lots of filler and quite tacky. We gave up mid afternoon at the prospect of another 90 min stand. They advertise tickets that let you come back at an allotted time but in reality this system was abandoned before lunch. We visited in July so not even their prime holiday season.

Ps good idea to pre- book you tickets for the Eiffel Tour. You’ll still have a bit of queuing to get up to the higher levels, but much better than just turning up…. especially if you’ve got small people with you.

Also worth a walk along the river to the love bridge, take a felt tip pen, buy a couple of cheap locks from one of the sidewalk vendors & get kids to write their names on them… for some reason ours both loved this!