17 Authentically French & Kid-Friendly Things to Do in Paris, Paris, France

The most important thing to know about my family’s Paris vacation is that we did a home swap. We got to pretend we were local Parisians for ten days. As a result, we found fun, local things to do that we probably would not have if we’d stuck strictly to the touristy neighborhoods.

We did hit some of the essential sights, like the Louvre and Notre Dame. We took day trips to Chartres, Versailles and Reims.

We ate at Brasserie Lipp and shopped for books at Shakespeare & Co. This Shakespeare is not the one that published Ulysses in the 1920. But it is a very good English-language bookstore and a good stop for vacation reads, books on Paris and books by and about the American expat Literati that frequented it in the 1950s.

We also discovered public pools and local parks and got to make the most of Paris’ amazing green markets.

Here are some of the best things to do in Paris with kids, both on and off the beaten tourist track.

I appreciate that not everyone wants to swap their home with a stranger as part of their vacation plan. But I would encourage people visiting Paris with kids to consider a vacation rental.

We had a roomy two-bedroom apartment in the residential 15thArrondissement, a bit more than a mile from the Eiffel Tower. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).