Paris for two days with SEVEN kids and one adult

I would arrange a mental health check-up when you return to the States ( Just a joke). You are very courageous or ? For taking this on. If you plan on doing E. Tower, it may be to late to get reservations. Normally I would say train, but it may be to late for good prices, by going on line. Plus many of us have had trouble getting French train website to accept our credit cards. Flying via Easy Jet might be an economical alternative if children aren't taking a lot of luggage. Think about giving us a trip report when/if you survive!

For lodging, I would say APARTMENT! Many many folks here will have excellent recommendations for websites and other resources. Am sure it will be cheaper in the long run, not just because it will cost way less than a hotel suite or multiple rooms, but you will be able to cook and eat some meals in. Kids will probably love the crazy exhibits at the Carnavalet Museum (http://www.carnavalet.paris.fr/en/museum-carnavalet) They have Napolean's death mask, a model of the Bastille, interestingly rude political cartoons, mastodon teeth, Roman relics, street signs, cool swords, coins - there's a lot of quirky stuff that should pique their interest. And it is FREE. The Pompidou Center also has excellent resources for kids. Their website isn't all that informative, but weirdly, there is a Disney website that is! http://family.go.com/travel/things-to-do/france/paris/poi-654879-centre-georges-pompidou/ Random: across the street from the Eiffel Tower there is a marvelous little carousel - great for a photo op, and it's a fun ride! And here's what David Lebovitz has to say about things to do with kids: http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2009/04/ten-great-things-to-do-with-kids/ What an adventure! Hold onto your hat!

Hi Christine, An apartment is the way to go. We rented through VRBO and had great luck. Going to Versailles is an all day affair. Long lines and lots of people. We enjoyed it, but not sure I would have with 7 kids in tow! I think the kids would enjoy The Arc de Triomphe if you can't do the Eiffel Tower, a river cruise would be good, and maybe Luxenburg Gardens. Have fun and good luck!
BTW, we are almost neighbors!

Hello Christine, An apartment is DEFINITELY the way to go - with that many people it will give you significantly more space and allow you to do breakfast and even a dinner or two which will definitely save you money. For what it's worth, I vote for taking the train - not sure of proximity of train station to where you are staying in Geneva but in general, the train stations are not as far out as airports - thus cheaper to get to and total travel times can be less. I checked on the Rail Europe site and it appears there are some fairly reasonable fares to be had. I've booked train tickets through that site and have never had a problem. After booking you can print your tickets out at home and just bring them with you - definitely saves time and confusion! Couple of tips to pass along: Make up small cards for each child listing the address of where you are staying and a cell phone number for you.That way, if they manage to get lost, they can contact you and/or get back to where you are staying. Second tip - for each place you visit (park, museum, etc., etc.) agree upon a meeting place if you get separated. We would pick a well known landmark - such as the large pond at Luxemburg gardens - the plan is that if you get separated, everyone heads for that landmark and stays there!
Lots to interest kids in Paris - my kids liked the Musee de Armee, the d'Orsay and the Louvre. Definitely recommend taking one the the cruises on the Seine as well! Versailles will be warm and crowded in August but it is quite large so you can escape the crowds by going outside and heading to other parts of Versailles. Good Luck!!

The train only takes about 3 hours. You arrive at Gare-de-Lyon. I suggest you buy your tickets on the Swiss rail site, SBB.ch. They are very good about taking your credit card and the site is very easy to use. The one hitch is that you can only purchase 5 tickets at a time (and you aren't enough people to qualify for a group). So you will have to do one set with the adult and the 4 youngest children, and then right away another with the 3 older kids. I just checked and for mid-August, assuming ages of adult plus 17, 16, 15, 12, 10, 8 and 8, it came up with a total price of 463 CHF for everyone, uning "Piccolo" fares and child fares. That is an average of 58 CHF per person which is not bad. "Maybe" you could fly for less, but it would be a lot more trouble and take longer. You will definitely want an apartment. Check Vacation in Paris and Air BnB for apartments hthat have only a 3-night minimum. I hope the older kids will be helpful with the younger ones.

You can see the Eiffel without going up it. It is wonderful at night with picnicing families and the twinkling lights. If the kids are strong and really want to go up you can get there early and get tickets to walk up. Pair up the children and it will be a great adventure. Enjoy the trip!

- Go to the back of Versailles by the Grand Canal, rent bikes and ride around the grounds. - Take them to the zoo at the Chateau du Thoiry west of Paris...beautiful private zoo surrounding a pretty chateau with lots to see and great exhibits...sunken glass/plexiglass tunnel through the lion exhibit - the lions are at eye level...go at feeding time - it's an experience. http://www.thoiry.net/fr - Take them through the catacombs (the parts that are full of bones!) or take a tour of the parts of the catacombs that are part of the Paris "underground" counterculture. - Spend time at the Paris plage...they create a beach along the Seine during the summer with lots to do. Games, dancing, etc. - Go get ice cream at Berthillon on the Isle St. Louis right behind Notre Dame. - On the same street as Berthillon is a great shop selling meteorites, fossils, and other fun things that kids love. Could hardly get my son out of there when he was a kid! - The Pompidou is great with kids of all ages...and the fountain outside is fun to watch too. - Go to Luxembourg Gardens and rent the little sailboats that you can send sailing across the fountain. - Around sunset and in the evening there tend to be a lot of street performers around Notre Dame. - For lodging I would look into airbnb.com. Lots of rentals that could easily accommodate your crew and you'd all be under one roof.
Good luck to you and I think sainthood is in order! :) Have fun!

Eight people is an apartment. I also vote for walking up the ET,my son ( who was 13) and I did it and I am not in shape, lol but you can go slowly and people can pass you, and at this point you are not going to get 8 advance tickets so taking the elevator could mean waiting for HOURS, so take the stairs. Cost is 5 euros. View from second level is great. Versailles is great IF you focus less on palace and more on grounds, taking a nice big picnic, renting bikes and riding around canals and of course visting Marie Antionettes Hamlet. There are some great parks in Paris, and the Ferris wheel in Tuilleries Gardens gives a fun view. Also, if you plan on one museum, or if you have some boys in group over 10 -12 and they like weapons, medival battle axes, samuri swords, horse armour, muskets, swords, the Invalids Army museum is great, even my 11 yr old daughter enjoyed it, ( and its never crowded). Make sure older kids bring id out with them daily as museums are usually free for under 18s. ( ET is not free though)

If you can grab two more people, you'll qualify as a group and can stay at some of the youth hostel places that only allow groups LOL! With that many people, and not wanting to stay in a bunch of hotel rooms, your options are really limited. An apartment will likely be your best bet, but you may have to stay 3 nights minimum. As for things to do/see - Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame (my kids love climbing the tower, but you have to get there before opening or the line gets crazy), Rodin Sculpture Garden, Eat a crepe from a street vendor, climb the Arc de Triomphe and then walk down the Champs-Elysees (the car dealerships are cool). Take a Seine river cruise. Souvenir shop in the Latin Quarter (and grab cheap gyro sandwiches) If you bribe them with ice cream (or guilt them by pointing out the sacrifices you're making bringing them to Paris) you might get them in the Louvre to see the Mona Lisa. It's such an iconic Paris thing, that it seems sad you'd have to miss it. Allow a full day to get that many people around Versailles. Go only if they really want to. And with such limited time in Paris, I would say to skip things like the zoo or any place/activity that you could do at home. I'd also suggest skipping a crowded market (too hard to keep track of everyone). And have a plan for what to do when you get separated on the Metro or anywhere else. Bon courage!

Definitely an apartment is the way to go. I use vrbo.com and homeaway.com to find rentals. In France you must report the exact number of people who will be with you, no matter their age or size. An apartment for 8 may be a challenge, so I would start looking NOW! I doubt there would be the option to find a single hotel room for 8 and in Europe they don't typically do adjoining rooms. The exception could be an American style hotel, but as I've never stayed in one I don't really know. There is a program called Paris Greeters. It is free, though they do accept donations. A volunteer will take you on a previously agreed upon walking tour. You submit an application a few weeks before you go stating your preferences and they will try to match you up with someone. I did it the last time I was in Paris and it was great!

Wow! We just got back from Europe this past week. We started in Paris and stayed for a week. We are a family of 5 (kids ages 9, 13, 16), and I most definitely recommend an apartment. The kids loved Berthillon on Ile St. Louis. Eiffel Tower was a hit, but the lines were crazy, even to climb to the 2nd level. Go in the later afternoon or evening would be my suggestion. Versailles also had long, long lines to get through security, and the Palace itself was very crowded, but we rented bikes in the gardens and went to the Hamlet afterwards, which was a highlight of the trip. They tell you where you can and can't bike. Very fun! The Louvre is open late on Fridays. We went then and there were no lines at all. But, we were there at the beginning of May. Kids are free up to 18, so that was nice! Only went to see the highlights, which my kids really enjoyed. Another highlight was climbing the Arc de Trimophe. Almost as good as the Eiffel Tower; not nearly as many people. We also really enjoyed the Cluny Museum, which is very close to Luxembourg Gardens. Crepes are a must! My kids enjoyed just walking around...Notre Dame in the evening is beautiful. We also took a ride on the Seine at around 9:30p, which was a fun way to see the city. Good luck! It sounds like quite an adventure. Becky