My family of 6 is planning a June trip to France-England...we have been monitoring airfare and are ready to purchase our tickets. Between concentrating on the airfare and dealing with the holidays, we really haven't begun planning in earnest! Am I going to go crazy trying to plan a 14-day trip in four months? We have connections in London and I lived there for a short period of time years ago, so we aren't too concerned about the England part of the trip, but I'm not sure where to begin for the France part of the trip. We anticipate 7-9 days overall in France, 2-3 of which will be in Paris. We would like to avoid hotel hopping every night once we leave Paris, preferring to spend several days in one area over trying to see everything. We do have general ideas of things we would like to do (Giverny and Versailles are on the list, thinking about Tours and Loire Valley, or possibly up to Normandy for some WWII history). My biggest concern at this point is accommodations for 2 adults and 4 children (ages 16, 13, 9, 5). I guess I don't have a specific question, just looking for reassurance that securing accommodations is indeed possible this late in the game. Suggestions, too, for places that can house 6...I've already been researching apartment rentals in Paris. Thank you!
Posted by
Corvallis OR
7025 posts
Are you planning to rent a car in France outside of Paris? If not, my suggestion would be to drop Normandy and get an apartment in Paris for a week. You can do Giverny, Versailles, and Tours (Loire Valley chateaux) as day trips. Versailles would take a day and the Loire Valley would take a day, Giverny is more of a 1/2 day tour so you would still have 4 days in Paris which I think you need. I'm sure each of the children has their own 'must sees' and you want to get to those if possible.
If you're going to get a car, then you might do 4 nights in Paris, 2 in the Loire Valley, and 2 in Normandy. Then stop at Giverny on the way back to Paris, drop the car and take the Eurostar (or budget flight) to London.
I don't have any experience with housing 6, but I know on here a lot of people recommend Gites de France, however in June they may want at least 3 nights minimum. I'm sure someone else here will give you some suggestions.
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16893 posts
The good news is that you are now ready to start planning in earnest and you really only need to secure lodging at a few locations. There's no deadline and four months ahead sounds like as good a time as any to do this.
Posted by
Florida (previously California)
3685 posts
June is a very busy time in Paris but in terms of reassurance that you will find accommodations for six -- of course you can but it will take some effort. It also depends on your budget. I suggest just putting your dates in booking.com to see what is available and then if you have questions about available hotels ask on this or another travel forum. If you are planning to go to Versailles and Giverny that will be two day trips out of your 2 to 3 days in Paris so I would probably do at least 5 days there. Are you purchasing open jaw tickets? I hope so. That way you will not have to backtrack to London. If you stick with the original plan of 2 to 3 days in Paris, please note that this may limit your apartment choices unless you are willing to pay for a full week because many rentals have a one week minimum. Having said that ParisAutrement.com is a good rental agency that has rentals for as little as 2 days. Take a look at the Citadines Trocadero, the Citadines Gare de Lyon, the Helzear properties if you are interested in apart-hotels that have single units for six people. There is also Residence Henri IV where you would need 2 or more rooms, but they may already be fully booked for June. Finally, I do not want to overstate the current state of play with respect to enforcement of the laws on short-term rentals in Paris but take a look at http://www.myfrenchlife.org/2013/02/05/is-paris-short-term-rental-market-under-threat/ which, I think gives a pretty even-handed description of what is going on in the vacation rental market. Although one thing that is not mentioned in the link is that permanent residents of Paris can legally rent out their space for a maximum of 3 or 4 months. I am not saying that you should not rent an apartment but instead just making sure that you have background knowledge.
Posted by
OP
Hagerstown, MD, USA
39 posts
Thank you, everyone, for all this wonderful information. I went ahead and took the plunge yesterday, purchasing our plane tickets for June 6-19. Flying into London, flying home from Paris. I feel like I got a decent airfare, just a few hundred dollars more than we paid when we took our family to Italy 3.5 years ago. Have been looking at VRBO (we have rented US properties through there and also found our short-term Rome rental through there) and Six Suitcase Travel, plus other hotel sites. I'm unfamiliar with Paris, as it has been 20 years since I was there and it was only a short visit. Can someone recommend a favorite arrondissement? It would be very cool if we could have a view of the Eiffel Tower, but I realize that may be cost-prohibitive. Still, favorite walking-distance areas for major attractions? I wasn't thinking of Giverny and Versailles as day trips form Paris, but you're absolutely right, they would be. So a week-long rental would probably make sense, followed by a few days somewhere else. I'm so excited to introduce France and England to our kids...they already have laundry lists of things they would like to see/do! (As do I!)
Posted by
victoria, Canada
11507 posts
Try to time it so you are in Paris on June 21st.. its Fete De la Music.. ( since its the first day of summer and longest day of year).. music and concerts everywhere.. in parks on the streets etc.. lots of fun.
Personally I really think you should get cracking.. unlike some I think finding accomadations for six in June in Paris will not be a walk in the park ,, ,hope you have money..
I will suggest the 5th or 6th.. easy to walk to many sites , good transport links, and there is Luxembourg park, great place to take kids for an afternoon picnic and play time.
I also am going to suggest Versailles Palace ( the palace itself ,, not the grounds and gardens) will be a crowded nightmare for the kids.. most especially the 5 yr old who will likely not enjoy seeing backs, elbows and being jostled about .. so just mentally prepare him/her for that.. and GO BEFORE IT OPENS.. then spend majority of time enjoying the grounds and gardens and do not miss Marie Antionettes Hamlet .. ( MA's pretend farm village,, cute ) . You can also rent bikes.. I let my 13 yr old rent a bike for an hour and just circle the canal on his own to run off some steam.. very safe and fun for the older kids I think.
I would then consider taking a train ( to avoid driving in Paris) to Tours or Amboise as a base for visiting the Loire Valley.. rent a car there and tour about for 2-3 days.. a nice change from your big city sightseeing in both London and Paris.