Planning a trip around the world with kids can seem daunting. To say the LEAST. What if they don’t like the food? Will they be bored? “It will be so much work,” crossed my mind more than once.  You are spending so much money and gosh darn it, you want to see/eat/ enjoy it all!

Having the boys with us as we traveled was the BEST part of traveling and a few simple tweaks to my mindset made that possible!

1. Don’t try to conquer it all

One of our absolute fave sites was the Louvre! So, many travel tips recommended skipping this all together as it was “too big” for young kids. No way! The Mona Lisa was on our minds but instead of experiencing FOMO that we wouldn’t see it all, we picked the top 5 things we definitely had to see. Hit those and skipped the rest or enjoyed them at leisure until the kids had hit their limit.  

Mona Lisa. Check. (Luke was disappointed in the crowds- see picture). Michelangelo’s Dying Slave. Check. Venus de Milo. Check. Check.

Everyone left with smiles and a heart full of memories. Bonus- read up on some of the exciting facts about a museum or the pieces in it while you wait in line. We had about an hour wait to get into the Louvre. This time was spent retelling the story of how the Louvre was robbed several times and what goodies were stolen. I literally googled it as we were waiting and read it from my phone. The boys were fascinated! That’s a mom-win in my book. 

2. Put together a “Best of” taste test

Paris is known for their macaroons so we devoted an entire day to taste testing five different macaroon spots around the city.  We walked over seven miles, leisurely strolling from spot to spot, cookies in hand,  getting sidetracked as we discovered hidden alleyways and smaller art galleries and museums around the city with no agenda. BTW- Lauderee was a landslide win.

 3. Be a local

Once you arrive in a new city, you can quickly pick up on the local culture. Do most stores open at noon and close at midnight? If so, you probably have a late night culture. What are some of the main items at the local markets? Pick those up and try them. Where are people heading after work gets out? We noticed that the Seine River wasn’t just for tourist boats and pictures. The locals actually enjoy its beauty with picnic dinners made of baguettes, cheese and accompaniments. Everyone waves at the boats as they sip their wine. We did just that!

Au Revoir Paris.

xoxo- Jess