3 Days in Paris With the Family

There’s something truly magical about visiting the city of lights, and if you’re looking for a family-friendly 3 day Paris itinerary, then we think this trip might be perfect for you!

With an all-inclusive Tour of Paris, stops at the Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Pompidou Museum, Vincennes Zoo, Disneyland Paris Resort, and the National Museum of Natural History you’ll enjoy a full schedule of family-friendly sites, with enough time to relax at a Parisian cafe, and stroll along the banks of the river Seine.

About This 3 Day Paris Itinerary

This Paris itinerary is meant to serve as a rough guide, allowing you the freedom to customize your trip, substitute destinations that would be more interesting to you and your family, and craft a family-friendly Paris itinerary to make the most of your time in Paris, France.

Paris 3 Day Trip Summary

Experience the sights, sounds, flavors, and culture of France’s capital city during your magical 3 days in Paris.

Here’s a quick summary of what each family-friendly day in Paris entails:

• Day 1: Pompidou Museum, Paris Bus Tour, Louvre, Eiffel Tower
• Day 2: Disneyland Paris
• Day 3: Natural History Museum, Vincennes Zoo

Day 1 in Paris

We recommend booking a flight to arrive in Paris at the end of the day. This allows you time to get a good night’s rest and start fresh the following morning.

When you wake early to begin your 3 days in Paris, enjoy a hearty breakfast in your hotel, or at a Parisian cafe within walking distance. After breakfast it’s time to head out for your “Paris With The Family” adventure.

Explore Pompidou Museum

​Your first stop will be at the Pompidou Museum which opens at 11 a.m. every day, except for Tuesdays.

The Centre Pompidou is considered by many to be of the most unique and extravagant buildings in Paris; it is compared to the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. And, the Pompidou Museum is massive, with six floors of over 80,000 square feet each! The fourth and fifth floor are fully dedicated to contemporary art and modern art from the 1900s through today. You can opt to check out each floor on your own time or jump into a guided tour of the whole museum. If it’s your first time, we recommend the guided tour so you can finish the rest of your trip in a timely manner – don’t forget to eat something before you leave.

Hop-On / Hop-Off Bus Tour of Paris

Next, it’s time to jump on a bus ride as you see all of Paris. But, you aren’t going to get on just any bus – you’re going to get on a double-decker bus so you can see Paris from a different perspective. There are a lot of options to choose from, but The Paris Pass has plenty of 1-day passes that are affordable with great vantage points. In fact, the Paris Pass has a hop-on/hop-off option that allows you to stop where you want, visit for a little while, and then jump back on as you continue to explore Paris. This is a great feature, and it’s the bus pass we recommend for your trip.

Some of the places where you can hop-on/hop-off include the Eiffel Tower, the Champs de Mars, the Louvre Museum, Notre Dame, Orsay Museum, and even the Grand Palais. In fact, The Paris Pass is perfect as it will take you to your next stop, the Louvre where you can hop-off for another fun-filled experience. This itinerary is flexible, though, so if you’d prefer another attraction that’s a better fit for your family, change it up and skip the Louvre … you’re free to make this trip your own!

Visit The Louvre

Once at the Louvre, you’ll have plenty of options to choose from as it’s another massive building full of art and history. You can follow “visitor trails” that focus on specific themes such as:

• Thematic
• Decorative Arts
• Egyptian Antiquities
• Islamic Art
• Prints and Drawings
• Sculptures
• And so much more!

Most of the trails (“tours”) take between one to three hours, so plan accordingly. For instance, The Da Vinci Code (a thematic trail) will take approximately one and a half hours to complete. But the From Palace To Museum (another thematic trail) will take approximately three hours to complete. There are so many trails to choose from, you honestly will need to come back again. Remember, you probably need to get a snack while you’re here as you’ll be back on the bus soon and will get some steps in at one of the most famous Paris landmarks before dinner.

The Eiffel Tower Before & After Dinner

After you’ve finished your tour of the Louvre, it’s time to hop back on your bus and take a trip across the Seine River to the Eiffel Tower.

The Eiffel Tower was completed in 1889 and was built to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution. It was also built to show how advanced France was at architectural design. There are four levels to the Eiffel Tower:

• The Esplanade
• The First Floor
• The Second Floor
• The Top

The first floor has a breathtaking glass floor that lets you look down over the Esplanade, giving you chill bumps. They have an adventure “seek-and-find” game that you can complete on this floor for an action-packed, kid-engaging, family-bonding time.

The second floor is packed with food, buffets, gift shops, and so much more. Here, you’ll get a chance to take some spectacular pictures with the family and load up on some food, but beware if you’re scared of heights – you might want to hold off on the food until the way down.

And finally, it’s time to scale the Eiffel Tower. You’ll end up 900 feet above the rest of Paris, but you can see everything. The perspective from the top is amazing, but the experience is one-of-a-kind. You’ll have an open-view access to everything Paris has to offer while feeling the whisk of wind and the sun’s touch on your face.

Enjoy dinner at a restaurant with views of the tower, so when you head back to the hotel you’ll be able to see the famous tower on display at night.

Day 2 in Paris

After a busy day touring some of the most famous sites in Paris, Day 2 is about having fun with the family. After breakfast take the train to Disneyland Paris!

No family vacation or trip to Paris is complete until you’ve visited the European iteration of Disneyland, and this 3 day Paris itinerary for families allows you to spend an entire day at this magical amusement park.

There are numerous guides on the web that will tell you exactly how to squeeze the most enjoyment out of a full day at Disneyland Paris, so we’ll leave the details to you.

But if you’re traveling to Paris with kids, we think balancing culture and fun is important.

You’ll find plenty fun, food, and excitement at this classic amusement park just outside the city of Paris.

Once you’ve had your fill for the day, it’s time to head back to your hotel to rest up for your final day in beautiful Paris with the family.

Day 3 in Paris

Spend the Morning at the Natural History Museum

​Make sure you’ve filled your bellies because it’s time to head off to the Natural History Museum in Paris. Here, your family will get a chance to see all types of wildlife from giant animals to skeletons. They have three museums built into one with four floors of awe-inspiring models and information to look at. Make sure to use one of the guided tours to stay on task, but don’t forget to enjoy yourselves too.

Plan to spend the morning at this fantastic museum, and eat some lunch before heading to your final stop of your 3 day Paris itinerary.

Spend the Afternoon at the Vincennes Zoo

And, wrapping everything up, it’s time to head over to the Vincennes Zoo to see one of the highest artificial mountains at a towering 213 feet high. While here, you can see all kinds of animals and wildlife and get up-close and personal with them. Here are just a few of the animals and wildlife you can see:

• The Radiated Tortoise
• The Madagascar Tree Boa
• The Common Woolly Monkey
• The Iberian Wolf
• The Eurasian Lynx
• The White Rhinoceros
• The West African Giraffe

If your kids have ever watched Madagascar, they’ll love this part of the trip. Plus, the zoo has more than 36 acres to explore so you won’t be at a loss for things to see and do.

Visiting the zoo is a great activity for the final day of your trip, because it allows you to be flexible with your schedule, and your family will get plenty of exercise walking around. This way, when you board your evening flight home at Charles de Gaulle airport (the last step in our 3 day Paris itinerary), the kids will be worn out, and ready to sleep the entire flight home.

On the return flight, order a glass of wine (French of course!) to share with your spouse while the kids sleep, and chat quietly about the wonderful family memories that you made during your 3 magical days in Paris.