Eiffel Tower, Seine cruise, and crêpes
Book summit tickets weeks ahead — timed entry. 7,300 tons of iron, 2.5 million rivets, built in 2 years for the 1889 World's Fair. Parisians hated it at first. Now it's the most visited paid monument on Earth.
Rooftop terrace has the best view in Paris — you can see the Eiffel Tower FROM here (unlike from the Eiffel Tower itself). 284 steps, or elevator. The Champs-Élysées radiates outward in both directions.
1.2 miles of the world's most famous avenue. From the Arc to Place de la Concorde. Flagship stores, cinemas, cafés. Tourist-heavy but still impressive for the sheer scale.
Bateaux Mouches — 1 hour, departs from Pont de l'Alma. ~€15/adult, €7/child. Go at sunset for the best experience: every bridge, monument, and building lit up along the river.
Formal French garden between the Louvre and Place de la Concorde. Carousel for the kids, fountains, chairs by the octagonal pond. Free. The Louvre glass pyramid glows at the far end.
Rue de la Huchette and surrounding streets. Nutella and banana crêpe: €5. Galette complète (ham, cheese, egg): €7. This is a non-negotiable Paris experience.
You wake up on the overnight train and the conductor says 'Paris Austerlitz' and the kids press their faces to the window and — there it is. Even if you've seen it before, Paris arriving through a train window hits different.
Morning: check bags at the hotel (or Nannybag/Bounce luggage storage), coffee and croissant from a boulangerie (not a chain — a real boulangerie with a line out the door). Then: the Eiffel Tower. Book summit tickets in advance. The elevator ride, the view, the vertigo. Stephanie will calculate the structural loads. Emily will wave at all of Paris.
Afternoon: walk the Champs-Élysées to the Arc de Triomphe. Climb to the rooftop (284 steps or elevator). This is the view — the Eiffel Tower framed between Haussmann rooftops, the twelve avenues radiating like a star.
Evening: Seine river cruise at sunset. One hour. Every bridge, every monument, every building lit golden on the water. Then crêpes from a street vendor in the Latin Quarter. Nutella and banana. Non-negotiable.
Ricki and Maritza on the Seine cruise: they'll sit at the back of the boat with wine and the city floating past. This is what they came for.
Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Marais, or near Opéra
Two nights. Central location essential. Budget €250–450/night. Métro access within 5 min walk.
The Eiffel Tower: 7,300 tons of iron, 2.5 million rivets, 18,038 pieces of wrought iron, assembled by 300 workers in 2 years. Gustave Eiffel's apartment at the summit had a fireplace and a piano.
Crêpes from a street vendor! The Tuileries carousel! Waving from the top of the Eiffel Tower! Macarons in every color from Ladurée (21 flavors, she'll want to try them all).
The Seine cruise is the ultimate Ricki-and-Maritza activity — sit down, float past every monument, glass of wine in hand. The Arc de Triomphe has an elevator. For dinner, a classic bistro in Saint-Germain: Le Bouillon Racine or Le Comptoir du Panthéon.