July 14 (Bastille Day) in Paris with kids

Crowds won’t be huge, but there will be a lot of tourists, like right now. Many locals will be out of town. Yes, there are the dances at the firehouses on the 13th. The 14th has always been a bit slow, as people like to sleep late after the dances. There aren’t celebrations everywhere during the day, the Champs Elysée military parade, some local commemorations, and evening fireworks. The French are very family friendly and family oriented. So go where the French will be having a picnic or enjoying the outdoors. You might want to avoid places the tourists want to be on the 14th: Champs Elysee, Champs de Mars fireworks. I won’t go near either.

I’ll be in Paris with my 9 year old granddaughter on those dates, too. I’ll take her to a dance even though they start late; she’ll let off steam and meet lots of other kids. We might stay in town and do Paris Plage on the 14th, Jardin des Plantes, maybe lunch somewhere, or a picnic. Or, maybe we’ll take a train an hour out of town: Chartres, St. Germain-en-Lay, Chantilly, chateau de Sceaux, a forest or the village where her great-grandparents lived-though that can be really boring. There are plenty of places to go and things to do.

Actually, I think it’s great planning on your part.

If you want a fun destination outside of the center (19e) but within an easy metro ride I might suggest the Paris Plage at the Bassin de La Villette which is extremely family friendly and the nearby hilly Parc Butte Chaumont. Families will be playing games, dancing, kid activities, a zip line over the Bassin for kids. Get a picnic organized from the natural grocery store or a boulangerie and go up to the park to look down at the city from the grassy slopes. There will be a lot of Parisians enjoying a leisure day around you but not shoulder to shoulder masses.

I'll just add that the French don't refer to it as "Bastille Day." It is called either "Fête nationale" (formally Fête nationale française), or simply "Quatorze juillet" (July 14th).

Thanks PharmerPhil, I recently learned the French don’t call it Bastille Day and will make sure not to call it that when we are there. I only added it to the subject line to differentiate it from some random date.