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Paris • Disneyland Paris

Conciergerie

The Conciergerie located on the Ile de la Cite was the last home of Marie Antoinette and many other famous names belonging to the French Revolution. The Museum is probably most valuable for the history lesson it provides of that Revolution. There are samples of letters writtin by Robes Pierre and others, unfortunately for us without an English translation. We bought the combined ticket for the Conciergerie and St. Chapelle which are right next to each other. This allows you to skip the ticket line but not the security line which is still lengthy for St. Chapelle. The attraction is a bit sterile for young kids with few visuals to interest them. Our teenagers were nonetheless interested in the historical explanations. It did not take us more than an hour to tour. There are clean restrooms available with little wait at this location. Admission is Free for kids under 18. www.conciergerie.monuments-nationaux.fr

St. Chapelle

Magnifique! Beautiful 13th centry chapel with gorgeous gothic style stain glass windows -- lots of blue. Holy Relics including the "crown of thorns" were kept here at one time. There are also a number of examples of medieval statuary lining the chapel. A combined ticket can be purchased at the Conciergerie next door. This will allow you to skip the ticket line that is located beyond the security line which is the first queue of people you will see snaking out from the entry. It does not take long to visit this sight once you are past security etc. Again, children are Free. The website www.sainte-chapelle.monuments-nationaux.fr has a number of beautiful photographs of the chapel.

Louvre

Big, . . .Very Big. Our family went to the Louvre on a Free Sunday. We arrived early; stood in the security line with the masses. The line was surprisingly quick. Once in, it is a free-for-all for the Louvre map guides. The guides written in English were especially hard to come by. Needless to say we were not able to see the Louvre in one visit but we did see quite a bit. Most families have a threshold for museums of that size. I suggest you figure out how many hours that is before hand, make a list of must sees and then don't worry about covering the rest. Our teenagers particulary enjoyed Napoleon III's Apartments, Venus de Milo, looking at the crowd looking at the Mona Lisa, Winged Victory and the Raft of Medusa. Eating in the Louvre (and one must eat) is a pricey event. There are a number of cafeterias/restaurants and sandwich stands located primarily under the Pyramid. The restrooms have the longest lines near the food locations. We found no wait at all at the restrooms located on the second floor, Richelieu Hall amongst the Dutch painters. The Louvre has a great website at www.louvre.fr.