Esprit de france - le blog

Visiting Paris with your family can be a fantastic experience providing that you choose an adapted program. Here are some recommendations from the Esprit de France hotels in Paris to make a success of your visit with children.

The Louvre Museum is a must-do, but a visit of this massive museum can be tiring for children. This is why it is important to select specific sections that can be enjoyed by a young public. The section featuring Egyptian Art is a very good choice, offering a compromise between art and civilization. The museum organizes 90 minutes guided tours during which the speaker adapts his presentation to his audience. You can also opt for family tours taking place on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Guided tours of the Louvre museum

A stone’s throw from the Louvre, the Jeu de Paume Museum, dedicated to photography, organizes “Family rendez-vous” for the 7-to-11 year-old for 8,50€ per adult and free for children. A speaker analyses a selection of pictures in the exhibition space and focuses on reflection and exchanges with the group. On Saturdays, the free workshop “Children first” offers photographic workshops aiming at discovering the current exhibition followed by a digital photo editing initiation on a selected theme.

Children first at the Jeu de Paume Museum

Les rendez-vous en famille at the Jeu de Paume Museum

The Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie in la Villette is dedicated to the initiation of children to sciences and techniques through an interactive discovering of exhibition spaces. The program? “The ocean, the climate and us” or “The incredible Gauls” presenting the Gallic civilization. The “Cité” offers a wide range of activities (movies, exhibitions, Explora workshops, library…), which are edutainment and suitable for children from 2 to 12 years old.

La Cité des Sciences de Paris

Situated near the Eiffel Tower, (which is also worth a visit, but it is imperative to pre-book your tour), the Musée du Quai Branly is dedicated to primitive arts and 90 minutes narrated visits (6€), workshops (magic objects, African masks, puppets) and itineraries during which children and adults help a guide solve riddles linked to objects from four continents, many activities to learn art in a entertaining way.

Finally, a cruise on the River Seine is a must-do that will leave children and adults with unforgettable memories. It is a unique opportunity to discover the City of Lights from a completely different point of view and is a perfect way to relax and enjoy the scenery after a long day spent exploring the city by foot.

La Fête de la danse by Blanca Li
Grand Palais
From September 23rd to 25th 2011

It is amazing to see how the Grand Palais easily becomes the theater of various events, from a carnival (Jours de Fête) to a fashion show, from a prestigious horse show (Le Saut Hermès) to an outstanding installation of contemporary art (Monumenta).

From the 23rd to the 25th of September, this is dance that surrounds the space with La Fête de la Danse of Bianca Li. During 3 days, the Grand Palais will turn into a giant dance studio, where visitors will have the opportunity to learn the basics of different styles of dance. Bianca Li shares her world with us with this festive and interactive event easily accessible to ordinary dancers.

For the opening, get prepared and take part to the flash mob that will take place Friday 23rd at 7 P.M.!

La Fête de la danse by Blanca Li
From September 23rd to 25th 2011
Admission 1 day: 12 €
Grand Palais
3 Avenue du Général Eisenhower
75008 Paris
Tél : +33 (0)1 44 13 17 30
www.blancali.com

The 14th of July is the national day in France. This day is a public holiday and many traditional events take place on this occasion. Here are three of them you should not miss…

The military parade and review of troops by the French president will begin at 10 a.m. on the Champs Elysees. The air forces open the parade, what is always very impressive. Then come the army corps including the Republican guards cavalry. This year, the overseas French areas take the place of honor of the parade.

After a break in the afternoon, continue your day of festivities with a free concert on the Champ de Mars (by the foot of the Eiffel Tower) from 6 p.m.

The day will end by the traditional fireworks display. It will take place from 11 p.m. at the Trocarédo on the “Boadway musicals” classics such as My Fair Lady, Chicago or West Side Story.

Festivities of the 14^th of July in Paris
Military Parade
Champs Elysées
From 10 a.m. to 12 a.m.

Concert for equality
6 p.m.
Metro station: Ecole militaire

Fireworks display
Trocadéro
11 p.m.

Recommended metro stations to attend the fireworks:
- line 8 : La Motte-Piquet
- line 6 : Dupleix, Cambronne
- line 10 : Emile Zola, La Motte-Piquet, Ségur
- line 13 : St-François-Xavier, Varenne
- RER : Javel, Invalides et Austerlitz

More information on the Paris website

If you do not know Vogueo, you should hurry to experience this original Parisian mean of transportation before the service definitely ends on the 5th of June.

What is Vogueo? It is a boat service offered by the Paris public transportation. One of the 4 catamarans of Vogueo will bring you in 30 minutes from the Austerlitz station to Maison Alfort during an atypical cruise out of the beaten track.

On the banks, you will see the industrial Paris from the 19th century and nice walk ideas. And on the way back, why not stop at the Parc de Bercy station to discover this charming park and visit the French Film Institute?

Voguéo
Until the 5th of June, 2011
Price: included in the Pass Navigo or 3€ for a one way ticket
www.vogueo.fr

On foot or on a bike, take the time to discover the streets and neighbourhoods that are filled with charm and that will tell you the history of Paris.

Between the Hotel des Saints Pères in Saint-Germain-des-Prés, and the Hotel du Parc Saint-Séverin in the heart of the Latin Quarter, discover some of the famous Parisian sites…

The neighbourhood of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, bordered by the river Seine, the Luxembourg garden, the boulevard Saint-Michel and the rue des Saints Pères, owes its name to the nearby church the earliest stone of which dates back to 557. Today, the neighbourhood is made up of a maze of old streets full of art, books and fashion.

The Place Furstenberg

Le Café de Flore, les Deux Magots and the Brasserie Lipp, make up the golden triangle of the boulevard and the place Saint-Germain, which was once the hotspot for intellectuals such as, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Paul Eluard and André Breton; it has since become a historical location.

If you return up the rue Bonaparte, you will reach place Saint Sulpice, where the church, famous for its Eugène Delacroix frescoes and its chancel adorned with statues by Pigalle, was the main setting for Dan Brown’s novel, The Da Vinci Code.

From there, go down the rue Servandoni all the way to the Luxembourg Palace and its gardens. Commissioned by Queen Catherine de Medicis, the Palace still houses the Senate, whereas the gardens welcome temporary art expositions.

Leave the gardens by way of the boulevard Saint-Michel, you’ll be minutes away from the famous Panthéon and the rue Mouffetard and its typical Parisian market. If you go back up the boulevard Saint-Michel, you will find yourself near the Sorbonne and the Cluny Museum, the window of the history and art of the Middle Ages.

Behind the Hotel du Parc Saint-Séverin, nestled in the pedestrian area of the Latin Quarter, you’ll be next to the Ile Saint-Louis, Notre Dame, the Ile de la Cité and the Sainte Chapelle.