Paris Days One – Two: Fancy Cars, Twinkly Lights, and 64 Flights of Stairs

I’m back! Here in this online space…and in Canada.

Late Tuesday evening our family returned from an unforgettable spring break trip to Paris. I’m happy to report that it exceeded our expectations!

I’m always aware that trip recaps can be a bit of a snooze fest for others. So, if you’re not into the details, feel free to skip these posts! I get it—someone else’s itinerary doesn’t always make for the most thrilling read.

But I enjoy having a place to document our family adventures, and I love looking back at posts from past trips. (So, I’ll keep sharing detailed recaps is what I’m saying…)

Let’s dive into the first two days of our Parisian adventure.

Day One (Sunday)

Touchdown.

We were officially on French soil, ready to start a 9-day spring break trip to Paris.

Our flights from Nova Scotia to Montreal and then across the Atlantic went smoothly. Nobody slept but glory be we are at a stage of parenting where that’s not really our problem. The kids take themselves to the bathroom whenever the urge strikes, cut their own questionable-looking airplane food, and decide when (and for how long) they will attempt sleep in some horrifically contorted position.

We arrived first thing on Sunday morning and had hours to fill until check-in. We debated doing some touristy things and were even in line at a train station to store our luggage. But with uncertainty about how much time we’d actually have to explore, coupled with the unappealing prospect of spending €5/bag – that would really add up with 4 carry-ons + 4 backpacks! –  we opted to make our way via metro toward our apartment on Rue Spontini. En route, we stopped at a ticket booth to sort out a week-long transit pass. One of John’s work colleagues lives in Paris and she recommended we get a weekly Navigo Découverte card and this ended up being a huge win. For €36.5/person, we were able to get unlimited access to trains, metros, funiculars, trams, and buses (for Zones 1-5). Here are some important details:

• You must have a 3 x 2.5 colour photo to attach to the card. Before leaving Canada we took “headshots” against a neutral background and formatted them to size in a single document. Joy kindly printed that off on regular printer paper (we don’t have a colour printer). I cut them to size and had them at the ready when we arrived at the ticket booth. Alternatively, you can buy photo-booth headshots at many train stations, but that will cost a lot more than printing them off at home.
• Regardless of when you purchase the week-long ticket, it ONLY works from Monday to Sunday. Since we arrived on a Sunday, we purchased a Navigo Découverte for the “following” week. 
• The pass is actually only €31.5/person (the kids each needed their own and there were no discounts because of their age), but there is a €5 fee for the card. If you’re staying in Paris for more than a week, you can simply reload the same card without having to pay the €5 fee.
• This pass DOES work for the RER train to/from the airport. Again, it’s important to note that the weekly pass is not 7 consecutive days, it follows a Monday-Sunday schedule. We arrived on a Sunday and left on a Tuesday so couldn’t make use of the Navigo pass for airport transfers. We ended up using Uber to/from the airport since it worked out to be the same price as buying RER tickets and was a lot more convenient.

By the time we arrived at the metro stop nearest our apartment it was…10:30 am. Check-in was 3 pm. *Sigh*

We did do a quick Google search for near-by luggage storage options but they were all closed (that’s Sunday in Paris for you). In the end we opted to sit on a bench along Avenue Foch which leads directly into the roundabout at the Arc de Triomphe.

Out of all the things we did in Paris, this time spent at Avenue Foch ranked second in Indy’s highlights. Why, one might reasonably ask? Because our favourite ten-year-old spent two hours looking for/identifying fancy cars! Thank goodness it was warm and the forecasted rain didn’t materialize. Every time he spotted a Ferrari or an Aston Martin or a Bentley or a Porche he was like a kid on Christmas morning.

Eventually the rest of us started to tire of car watching and wandered toward our apartment, stopping at a small grocery store en route to get some picnic/breakfast supplies. While John and the kids went in search of a bathroom, I sat with our bags on the stoop of the building. At 2 pm, we finally got the all-clear. It was such a relief to change out of travel clothes! We spent an hour or so unpacking and organizing our home-away-from-home and then it was time to explore! 

Our first stop was Avenue de Camoëns for what was purported to be some of the best views of the Eiffel Tower in the city. There were all sorts of photographers taking pictures at the top of the staircase by the monument to Luís de Camões. The view was fine but it was fairly crowded and the views from Rue de Longchamp were equally good!

We kept strolling toward the river until we reached Pont de Bir-Hakeim (Pont = Bridge). This bridge offers nice views of the tower and the weather was perfection. This was the only time all week that I could walk around without a coat and it felt glorious.

We didn’t have any scheduled plans for Sunday since we didn’t know how long it would take to get situated at the AirBnB. That gave us the rest of the day to wander and it seems fitting we ended up at the base of the Eiffel Tower.

I think the kids were both surprised by the true scale of the Eiffel Tower (over 1,000 feet!). In need of bathrooms we popped back across the Seine and stopped in at Musee d’Art Moderne Paris. Entry to the museum is free but it was nearly closing time so we didn’t look at much beyond La Fée Electricité (a giant mural that was both interesting and impressive) and a handful of Matisse pieces. Mostly we appreciated access to free, clean bathrooms. (Special thanks to Daria – I’d never heard of this museum until I read the recap posts from her trip to Paris trip last year!)

It was starting to mist and the kids energy levels were fading. We stopped at a Pret a Manger for salad (me), quiche (John), and classic Parisian baguette sandwiches for the kids. To keep morale high we stopped at the next patisserie that crossed our path – Sophie Lebreully. We all chose different treats, and they were all delicious. My coffee mousse cake ended up being one of my favourite sweets from the entire trip.

We had debated getting tickets to climb to the top of the Arc de Triomphe but wisely decided to wait for another night. Everyone was tired and ready for hot showers, comfortable pajamas, and recumbent beds instead of airplane seats.

On the walk back to our apartment Indy managed to squeeze in just a bit more bench time – in full view of one of the most recognizable landmarks in the world, he only had eyes for sports cars.

Day Two (Monday)

With no alarms to wake us up – we had opted for a purposefully unscheduled first full day – the kids were more than happy to sleep in. Eventually we roused them (about 11 am?), and after everyone had done their morning ablutions, we headed off for a day of adventuring.

My biggest “regret” from my first trip to Paris was not spending more time in Montmartre. It’s a uniquely magical part of the city, so we headed there first.

There was some light rain when we left the apartment, but thankfully it never developed into anything major. (I was feeling very pessimistic when I looked out on the street and saw all the cars were using their windshield wipers at full speed, but the rain had mostly stopped by the time we got going for the day.)

Our metro stop was directly across from Moulin Rouge which is looking rather barren since the windmill toppled in a storm last year. After getting the kids some breakfast – a pain au chocolat – we headed to 54 Rue Lepic which was Theo and Vincent van Gogh’s apartment in Paris. John is a huge fan of van Gogh and it was a fun stop for our family, but it is a just a blue door and a plaque so don’t be expecting too much if you go out of your way to visit it! 

We had to take the kids to Le Passe-Muraille, a cheeky statue that brings to life a French short story (by Marcel Aymé) about a man who can walk through walls, opts to use this ability for nefarious purposes, and receives his comeuppance when exiting a compromising situation and losing his supernatural ability mid-stride.

We strolled up Rue de l’Abreuvoir, one of the most picturesque streets in Paris, and stopped to admire La Maison Rose. It wasn’t open when we were there, so it was easy to get a picture of this quaint little pink cafe.

We passed by Vigne du Clos Montmartre (the only vineyard within Paris – it is tiny!), and Au Lapin Agile Cabaret (a popular spot for artists like van Gogh and Picasso throughout the years).

The kids were understandably hungry so we stopped at a cafe for savoury crepes, some strong café au lait (for the adults and Indy) and a hot chocolate for Belle. With full bellies we headed to Sacré-Cœur. Visiting this basilica was such a highlight of our 2019 trip and we wanted the kids to have the opportunity to experience the same birds-eye views of Paris. Since the line for dome access was deserted (entry to the basilica is free, but you have to pay to climb to the top of the dome), we started there. I worried the kids would complain about the very tight, very twisty, borderline claustrophobic 292 stairs it takes to reach the top but they contented themselves with counting the steps.

What a beautiful landscape view of Paris! We had the various viewing platform mostly to ourselves. This was one of those “pinch me – am I dreaming?” moments of the trip.

There was a scale model of the basilica and look at what Indy honed in on…the miniature cars. FYI, I can let you in on a little secret – you’ll find a mini Audi jaunting down one of these tiny streets.

We walked through the interior of Sacré-Cœur, and then headed to the park directly behind the the basilica (Parc Marcel Bleustein). It was a great spot to stop, sit, and rest for a few minutes.

Indy enjoyed a climbing wall at a nearby playground and then we took the funicular down (and then back up again – it’s included in the Navigo pass!), which made quick work of the steep hill.

Of course we had to see the “sinking house of Montmartre” (Rue Maurice Utrillo/Rue Lamark).

And then…we wandered!

Wandering is such a delight in this part of Paris. There are adorable cafes everywhere you look and in Montmartre the street art is plentiful which kept the kids surprisingly well entertained.

Moulin de la Galette – this spot was most famously immortalized in Renoir’s Bal du moulin de la Galette (which we got to see a few days later!).

What wasn’t a surprise was the wall of “I Love You” (Le mur des le t’aime), which is covered in the phrase I love you in 250 languages. Any hint of physical and verbal PDA is unthinkably awful at this stage in her teens, so Belle was not impressed with this stop. We found the phrase in English, snapped a few pictures and hurried along 😉

Our last stop was for Indy – a colourful basketball court in Pigalle. I was hoping to find someone had left behind a ball; with none to be found, the kids decided cartwheels were in order. They really enjoyed hanging out at this spot.

Eventually we navigated to a free washroom (it always felt like a miracle when we did indeed find elusive free toilets), and then took a metro to the Latin Quarter.

Our first stop was a Canadian bookstore (The Abbey Bookshop); we made note of both the name and the maple leaf flag hanging above the door. The kids had a lot more energy than their mother and Indy was happy to expend some playing various rounds of hopscotch.

We stopped for sustenance at Odette, a tiny patisserie that only sells cream puffs and has an adorable exterior. The pistachio and coffee choux (the flavours I tried) were divine, and the rest of the family declared their flavours (caramel, chocolate) equally delicious. We ate them in Square René Viviani, a tiny park that overlooks Notre Dame. It all felt like a dream.

Thankfully it wasn’t a dream and we moved on to Shakespeare and Company. The line to get in was long and the kids didn’t give two hoots. So we crossed the river to Île de la Cité and took the requisite pictures of Notre Dame, before wandering on to Collège des Bernardins, a medieval building from the 13th century. There’s not a lot to see, but it’s free, they have clean washrooms in the basement, and there is a little cafe so you can stop for a bite to eat (we didn’t, just throwing that out there).

The kids spotted some recessed nooks and requested a photo shoot. It appears as though “statue poses” are a new travel tradition (they did the same thing last year in Barcelona)?

Next we stopped at Church of Saint-Étienne-du-Mont, which I added to the list because I thought the spiral staircase flanking the altar looked beautiful. It was even lovelier in person.

We skipped by the Pantheon (it costs to go inside and we didn’t bother), and ended up at the Medici Fountain inside Luxembourg Gardens. I regret not getting back to this spot during the day as it’s a beautiful green space in the heart of the city. I had some snacks in my purse which I doled out to the kids, and we made our way (via metro) to the Arc de Triumph.

Since the weather was nice and it was nearing sunset, why not try to get tickets for the top? We could not have scripted the evening better if we had tried. The weather was still mild, the setting sun was gorgeous, and we arrived mere minutes before the Eiffel Tower turned on for the night. I captured the moment on video and it was one of my favourite experiences of the entire trip. Pure magic. 

…and Indy looked for cars. Seriously. That was it. I don’t think he gave a single, fleeting glance in the direction of the Eiffel Tower. Fair enough; to each their own.

It was a short walk home from the Arc and we made sandwiches with supplies we had picked up at a nearby grocery store. By this point in the day we had climbed 56 flights of stairs and everyone collapsed into bed exhausted but content.

Distance Walked (Days 1-2): 30.02 km | 41,880 steps | 64 flights

Your turn. What’s the best dessert you’ve enjoyed so far in 2025? How would you fill two hours spent on a roadside bench?