21 things to do in Paris with children

The best family-friendly activities on offer in the city.

Ding ding ding! It’s Monday and that means we’ve just dropped another new podcast episode of The Earful Tower, and this one is all about family time in Paris.

I’ve been wanting to tackle this episode for about 8 years, I’m not even kidding. But I’ve always thought it was too specific, and too irrelevant for people travelling without kids. So I waited until we’d had two kids, started to see the city with fresh eyes, and then started jotting down some notes.

And then we made the episode in a way that’s hopefully great for people with children, but also relevant for people travelling without kids too!

Wondering if you’ll enjoy it? The first listener comment, from Jodee Boehm, was as follows: “Our kids are now in their 30s, but I can still appreciate a wonderfully curated list of things to do in Paris with kids. Well done, Oliver and Lina!” Thanks Jodee.

For the full list of things to do, you can just scroll down and read the bullet points. For a much deeper dive into the list, read this blog post, full of links and details.

And for the most enjoyable version, press play on the pod below.

The podcast episode

The episode is available on the embedded link below, or wherever you get your podcasts. At the end, you’ll hear about the ultimate day trip outside of Paris, according to Bertrand from My Private Paris. (Spoiler alert - it’s Versailles and there’s plenty to keep the kids entertained, too.)

Here are the 21 things we covered, in bullet points:

Indoor fun for children in Paris

Atelier des Lumières, Palais de Tokyo, The Paris Aquarium, Musée de la Chasse & de la Nature, Deyrolle taxidermy.

Jardin des Plantes area

Museum of Natural History, The (small) Paris zoo, The Greenhouses, the Maze, the Museum of Natural Science. (Incidentally, I went there yesterday - it was brilliant).

Outdoor fun for kids in Paris

Bateaux Mouches boats, Pony Riding at the big parks, Jardin d’Acclimatation theme park, The Vincennes Paris Zoo, Ice Skating at the Grand Palais.

Food & Drink for children

Ground Control (plenty of space and food stands), Le Comptoir Général (great atmosphere), crèpes on the go (like a real Parisian).

Shopping with kids

Pain d’Épices toyshop, Red Wheelbarrow bookshop, Le Bon Marché department store.

And that’s it! In other news: I’m off to Versailles tomorrow for my second day-trip out of Paris (the first was Champagne). A reminder that this whole season of The Earful Tower is brought to you by the award-winning travel company My Private Paris, which specializes in tours in Paris, day trips outside Paris, and travel itineraries. See what they offer here.

And lastly, today I recorded our third video in our new YouTube series of Walk Shows. Here’s a screenshot. I wonder if anyone can guess where we are….?

To keep you up to date, I’ll leave you with the last two videos we made. Have a great week! Oliver