London and Paris with a 4-Month-Old: Tower Bridge, the Eiffel Tower and Versailles

Five weeks in Europe with a four-month-old started with the two cities everyone told us would be hardest with a baby. They were wrong. London and Paris turned out to be some of the easiest days of the whole trip, because both cities are built for walking, and a baby who naps in a stroller doesn’t care how many miles you put on.

This is part one of our 5 weeks in Europe with a baby series. Jack stayed home for this one, so it’s just the three of us.

Route

St. Louis → London → Eurostar to Paris → Versailles

How long

5 days: 2 in London, 3 in Paris

Who came

Colin, me and Andi (4 months). Friends met us in Paris.

Getting around

Walking, the stroller, and the Eurostar from St. Pancras

Best for

First-time Europe with a baby. Short distances, lots of parks.

Flying to London with a baby

We flew overnight from St. Louis and landed at Heathrow Terminal 5 on the 21st. If you’re flying long haul with an infant, ask your airline about a bassinet seat when you book. They’re limited and they go fast.

We stayed around King’s Cross and St. Pancras, which I’d recommend to anyone doing London and Paris back to back. You can walk to the Eurostar, and Coal Drops Yard next door is full of places to eat.

London: Tower Bridge and a long lunch

Our one full day in London was simple: push the stroller along the Thames to Tower Bridge, cross it, and find lunch. Tower Bridge is completely stroller friendly, and the riverside walk around it is flat and wide.

Then we had the kind of long, lazy London lunch where you order one more drink because the baby is happy. Andi was all smiles, Colin was all smiles, and I had a spritz. We called it a successful first day of Europe.

The Eurostar to Paris with a baby

On the 23rd we took the Eurostar from St. Pancras to Paris. It’s the easiest way to get between the two cities with a baby: no airport, and you’re in central Paris in a couple of hours.

Paris with a stroller

Paris is more stroller friendly than its reputation, as long as you stick to the big open spaces. We spent two days doing long loops: the Seine and Notre-Dame, the Panthéon, the Louvre courtyard, and up to the Arc de Triomphe.

The trick with Paris is accepting that you’ll be out late. In late May it doesn’t get dark until almost 10pm, and the Eiffel Tower only sparkles after dark, for a few minutes at the top of each hour. We kept Andi out for it, and it was worth every minute.

A day at Versailles

On the 25th we went out to the Palace of Versailles with friends. It’s an easy train ride from central Paris, and it was one of the best days of the trip. The Hall of Mirrors with a baby on your hip is a very specific kind of happy.

The palace gets crowded, so I’d bring a carrier for inside and save the stroller for the gardens. The gardens are huge, so plan for a lot of walking.

The Eiffel Tower picnic

We got back from Versailles in time for the thing I’d been daydreaming about since we booked the trip: a picnic on the Champ de Mars under the Eiffel Tower. We spread out blankets with our friends, opened some wine, and watched the light change on the tower until it sparkled.

Andi did her Eiffel Tower pop-up, and we stayed out until well past any reasonable bedtime.

London and Paris with a baby: what worked

• Stay near the Eurostar. A King’s Cross base made the London-to-Paris day stress free.
• Bring a stroller and a carrier. The stroller covers long city walks. The carrier covers trains, security and crowds.
• Let the baby nap on the go. A stroller that reclines means naps can happen on long walks instead of back at the hotel.
• Plan for late nights. Paris doesn’t get going until dark in summer. Skip it, or nap late and enjoy it.
• Pack a beret. Not required. Highly recommended.

Next stop: Montenegro

From Paris we flew to Tivat, Montenegro, and spent a week on the Bay of Kotor. That’s the next part of the series: the Bay of Kotor with a baby.