Last month I headed back to Europe, this time with my youngest daughter Hadley,age 14, by my side. We spent 9 days between London and Paris, two of my favorite cities in the world. This was Hadley’s first time to both destinations so I wanted to make this experience super special for her. I created a modern day, classic itinerary that hit all the must city highlights and paired them with chic dining options and bought tickets to the hottest museum exhibits in town. It was such a gift to have this alone time with my baby girl. I spend so much time planning our family holidays that I forget to carve out time for one on one trips. I am so glad I finally did and have these memories to always look back on. Below I share some of the snaps and trip highlights xx Elisa
Hotel: A Terrace Suite at Claridges.
*Mapps is a partner with Maybourne Hotels. Complimentary daily breakfast, hotel credits and VIP priority upgrade.
Top 3 Eats: Fallow, Rovi and Coal Office.
Afternoon Tea: The Lanesbourough who has a special “Bridgerton” menu.
Museum Exhibit: Kusama Infinity Mirrors at Tate Modern.
Private Tour: Small Car, Big City Mini Cooper Tour.
Hadley’s Fav Moments: The Changing of The Guard, shopping at Selfridges and the spicy cauliflower tacos at Bourough Market.
Hotel: A Prestige Suite at Plaza Athenee ( I wanted her to have a true Emily in Paris moment )
*Mapps is a partner with Dorchester Hotels. Upgraded at time of booking, complimentary daily breakfast and hotel credits.
Top 3 Eats: Mokonuts, Girafe and our lunch at Lou Lou’s in the garden of the Louvre.
Afternoon Tea: Ritz Paris
Museum Exhibits: The new Dior Museum was AMAZING, Thierry Mugler, Love Brings Love Alber Elbaz and YSL Tribute at The Louvre.
Private Tour: Food tour in St. Germain and a Side Car City Highlights Tour with the team at Retro Tours.
Hadley’s Fave Moments: Shopping on Rue de Montaigne, boat ride on the Seine River, seeing the Eiffel Tower sparkle, the macaroons at Laduree and the ice cream at Kith.
WHAT TO KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
Getting Here: We flew to London Heathrow Airport and then took the Eurostar Train to Paris which took under 2.5 hours. We flew home from Charles De Gaulle Airport in Paris.
Ideal Planning Lead Time: 6 weeks
Travel Requirements: England and France have dropped all the testing requirements and paperwork to enter the country if you are vaccinated.
Elisa’s Notes: London and Paris were jammed packed. I was so happy we had a buttoned up itinerary that included skip the line tickets. The lines to enter most museums were an hour long or same day tickets were sold out. Traffic right now in both cities was pretty hectic, so having an itinerary that focuses on one area of the city at a time is key.