Paris is a city that needs no introduction. We arrived in Paris after taking the bullet train from Switzerland, spent the afternoon near the iconic Eiffel Tower, took an evening cruise on River Seine and then toured the city in the evening through a Paris Illuminations Tour.
The Bullet Train experience
We arrived in Paris on a TGV bullet train from Berne, Switzerland. It was our family’s first bullet train ride and all of us loved it! Upon arrival at Gare Lyon station in Paris, we took a cab to our hotel.
Finding family accommodations in Paris
We decided to stay near Montparnasse as it had a major train interchange with many lines passing through it. There were also a lot of eateries around the area. There are many accommodations with subway access. Here is a listing of accommodations near Gare Montparnasse (train station).
The Paris Metro
The train station at Montparnasse is really huge. To get from one track to another, we had to walk quite a distance, walked on several travelators and went up and down multiple staircases. It was not exactly stroller-friendly and it was especially tiring for my mom and kids.
Trocadero
Our first stop was Trocadero which is a great place to take pictures of the Eiffel Tower in full view.
Eiffel Tower
After Trocadero, we took a leisurely stroll towards the Eiffel Tower for a closeup view.
There were three levels on the Eiffel Tower that were opened to visitors. When we were there, the ticket queues were extremely long. I found out later that there was a Skip-the-line Eiffel Tower tour where visitors could go up the Eiffel Tower without queuing.
River Seine Evening Cruise
We took an evening cruise along River Seine. Paris was really beautiful in the evening. The Eiffel Tower twinkled, the Notre Dame and other buildings illuminated. It was really cold in the evening, even near summer.
Paris Illumination Tour
After the cruise, we took a Paris Illumination tour by minivan to see the Paris lights at night. Paris was really beautiful at night. Two of the sights we saw was the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower.
The Eiffel Tower twinkled on the hour every hour after the sun set. It was a lovely sight to see. With the cool breeze, and illuminations all around, it was no wonder why millions fall in love with Paris.
NEXT DAY: We spent the whole day Sightseeing in Paris.
This trip was part of our 10-day Switzerland and Paris adventures which included Disneyland Paris, the medieval city of Bern, a scenic train ride to Zermatt, going up the Matterhorn and Jungfraujoch, a castle in Montreux, and fabulous alpine scenery in Murren and Lauterbrunnen. Find out how you could plan a family vacation to Switzerland and Paris.
Tips
- The TGV bullet train from Switzerland leaves Berne in the morning at around 7.30am and arrives in Gare Lyon station in Paris at around 1pm. Depending on where you stay in Paris, you could either get to your hotel by train or just grab a taxi from Gare Lyon station.
- There are different river cruises available. The one we took in the evening was popular as it was reasonably priced. However, it was extremely crowded. When we travelled in June, the cruise had many teenagers on school trips, so it was very loud and noisy. There were other river cruises that were less crowded, included dinner and music and looked extremely romantic. You have to pay a lot more for such cruises though.
- The one we took was a package which included a river cruise and illumination tour by van with pick-up and drop-off at our hotel. It was very convenient especially when travelling with young kids.
- The illumination tour might not be suitable in summer because the tour operator might start the tour early before the sun sets, thus you cannot see much of the illumination effect. In June, the illumination tour starts after sunset at around 9pm, so kids might be too tired to enjoy it.
