Here is what I did as a single mom traveling with two small children.
I packed a carryon for EACH kid and just rented a trolly to carry them at the air port (about $1 or $2). The littlest kid could sit on top of the bags as we rolled along through the airport.
Getting on/off the plane is a bit of a pain, but just wait for everyone to get off and then tackle it. I did as one other posted suggested and tied two of the carryon's together since the younger kid wasn't able to pull their own.
Carry a backpack for yourself and little ones for the kiddos.

I bought a super cheap umbrella stroller at Walmart ($15). For a four year old, they are just climbing in when they are tired. It will greatly expand your options for getting around and seeing things in Paris.

Good luck and enjoy your trip.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I booked tickets to the 2nd floor of the Eiffel Tower that was $35 total.

My 7yo asked if we can go to a thrift store and find fancy dresses and have a "Paris picnic" by the Eiffel Tower.

Parc des Buttes-Chaumont
Jardin d'Acclimatation
Jardin du Luxembourg

Pastries

Walking along the river / exploring bridges

The Plages- free swimming "beaches" they have in the summer

Place du tertre to see the painters, then meander around Montmartre

Mussee Rodin is free for kids and they have a kids art studio where they can draw and sculpt with clay

Pretty old carousels

Street performers

Markets

Ice cream

We travel via home exchanges so we are doing that for accommodations. It's free and comes with lots of perks- they're leaving their bikes for us, kitchen for cooking so we don't spend too much eating out, laundry, etc. The flat has a view of the river so honestly even sitting on the balcony in the mornings sipping coffee and people watching while the kids play with all the "new" toys in the flat is a big treat for me.

If your DCs are into the show Miraculous, the main character's bakery is based off one in Montmartre. It looks exactly the same as the cartoon.

No stroller, because it just won't be useful and more of a pain. Plan to use the metro instead of long walks. I'd do backpacks for everyone and carry-ons for you and the 7 year old.

So OP, no food/coffee out, parks and gardens, doing laundry/dishes, concrete beaches (I get that if you live in Paris)…I can see where the trip is favorable for an adult. But with young kids, what is the point? They won’t remember, aren’t doing some spectacular event, etc. Coupled with the airport/metro/someone else’s apartment

Have you been to Paris? Even with these "limitations" as you infer, OP/kids will have a marvelous time and ABSOLUTELY feel like they're in Paris, not back home. Parks, gardens, grocery shopping/cooking in a Paris flat is EXTREMELY different to doing all those things in the US.

Yes, I have been. It doesn’t change my mind. Kids these ages won’t think “how wonderful to cook in a Paris flat.”

If the OP isn't open to spending $200 to check a bag, then I'm unclear why anyone is suggesting they purchase rolling luggage or anything they do not currently own. The correct and only answer is if you insist on not checking luggage, your children will put their goods in the bags they currently have that fit them and the same goes for you. There is no other way. If you're going out and purchasing new luggage for them, just check a bag instead of hoping your children will be able to manage their own luggage.

A four year old is certainly capable of wearing a toddler backpack through the airport (my DS is nearly 4 and exceptionally well-traveled so that is my frame of reference), but a rolling piece of luggage on top of a backpack may be too much for them if they are inexperienced travelers. On the question of a rolling suitcase for the 4 year old, consider if your child is given the tiny shopping cart at a grocery store, how do they handle it? If they carefully push it along and mind it at all times, maybe they're ready. If they go careening down the aisles, running into shelves and get distracted to the point of leaving it behind, they're likely not ready for a rolling suitcase. I also don't recommend a stroller, the hassle is not worth it, but be prepared to take a lot of breaks for the younger child or be prepared to throw them up on your shoulders for a ride (even more reason not to overburden a young child with more luggage than they could handle).

Anonymous wrote:Each kid wears a backpack that holds a change of clothes, snacks, water bottle, coloring book/fidgets. You pack as much as you can in your rolling carryon. One pair of sneakers for everyone wears on the plane, pack flip flops. Everyone wears a hoodie on the plane as your top layer. Minimal clothes, plenty of underwear because it packs small. Use toiletries where you’re staying or pick some up there, don’t pack.

This! Plus I would also do one small duffle bag (carry on) that can fit on top of the roller bag when you're going through the airport and from the taxi. If your roller bag doesn't have a strap to attach a duffle, you get get them online for a few dollars.

Also, I would skip the stroller - European sidewalks aren't super stroller friendly, unless you think your 4 year old will REALLY need it.

I haven't read the entire thread but I went to Portugal solo with my 7 y/o and 4 y/o.

We each had a backpack: I had a big one with a basic change of clothes for each of us, secret snack stash, refillable water bottle, meds (including dramamine for them, to help sleep on the redeye over if nothing else), notepad and pens, my makeup bag/toiletries, socks, flip-flops, whatever else I needed access to in transit or if checked bag got lost. I could additionally stuff my purse in here if/when needed, so also purse contents, including passports.

Their backpacks had small toys (probably Barbies and such), a couple lightweight books, coloring book/paper/crayons, a refillable water bottle each, headphones (noise-canceling set for my younger kid, which we lost at some point), a stuffed animal, chapstick, toothbrushes/toothpaste, hair brush, a pair of underwear and socks, eye masks (because they didn't believe me that they'd get some on the plane, lol). And probably other small items they smuggled in.

We did check one bag, mostly because we were going to a black-tie wedding and had to schlep formal wear to Europe. We carried on the small roller they shared with their regular clothes and more smuggled kid stuff; we checked the bigger roller I took that could reasonably accommodate our dresses and shoes in addition to my regular clothes, a laundry bag, more toiletries, adapters, chargers, etc.

We didn't even have a stroller at that point so it was moot, but my goal was for them to be running around and worn out anyway. Had the formal wear not been required, I would have done a smaller roller for myself and probably would have checked both if it was free. My older kid pulled their shared roller, which worked well because the 4 y/o did a lot of melting down that required me to have free hands.

It was a great trip! (Even with the meltdowns, ha.) Have a great time!

1 carry on if you’re sure your 7 year old would help ( in case you have to carry or push stroller for your 4 year old, and has a hand to hold your 7 year old, or child wrist leash), plus 2 regular sized backpack ( jansport big student backpack or high sierra loop backpack etc), for your and your 7 yo, a smaller one for your 4yo, and your crossbody bag purse. If you need more than 1 carry on, get something to connect like https://a.co/d/aGnPiv8 , I used when I carry my baby plus 4 checked luggage. I would also suggest duck tape, in the worse case you can seal your carryon without needing a scissor or nail clipper. Put all liquid and batteries in your purse, wear a safety pouch under your clothes for passport/wallet, plus cell phone lanyard.

Anonymous wrote:Two wheeled carry-ons for you and 7 year old and 3 backpacks.
If you can afford it, one of the wheeled carry-ons is one that the 4 year could sit on as you pull it through the airport.

This past weekend, I saw motorized wheeled carry-on that a big kid was riding on his own, flying back from.Hong Kong. His mom didn't even have to pull it.

My five year old rides through airports on a normal 4 wheel carryon. No need to purchase anything fancy for that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I booked tickets to the 2nd floor of the Eiffel Tower that was $35 total.

My 7yo asked if we can go to a thrift store and find fancy dresses and have a "Paris picnic" by the Eiffel Tower.

Parc des Buttes-Chaumont
Jardin d'Acclimatation
Jardin du Luxembourg

Pastries

Walking along the river / exploring bridges

The Plages- free swimming "beaches" they have in the summer

Place du tertre to see the painters, then meander around Montmartre

Mussee Rodin is free for kids and they have a kids art studio where they can draw and sculpt with clay

Pretty old carousels

Street performers

Markets

Ice cream

We travel via home exchanges so we are doing that for accommodations. It's free and comes with lots of perks- they're leaving their bikes for us, kitchen for cooking so we don't spend too much eating out, laundry, etc. The flat has a view of the river so honestly even sitting on the balcony in the mornings sipping coffee and people watching while the kids play with all the "new" toys in the flat is a big treat for me.

If your DCs are into the show Miraculous, the main character's bakery is based off one in Montmartre. It looks exactly the same as the cartoon.

No stroller, because it just won't be useful and more of a pain. Plan to use the metro instead of long walks. I'd do backpacks for everyone and carry-ons for you and the 7 year old.

Agree with most of PP, but I would take the bus over the metro. The bus system is clean, reliable and very safe. It's an excellent, cheap way to see the city without all the walking.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I booked tickets to the 2nd floor of the Eiffel Tower that was $35 total.

My 7yo asked if we can go to a thrift store and find fancy dresses and have a "Paris picnic" by the Eiffel Tower.

Parc des Buttes-Chaumont
Jardin d'Acclimatation
Jardin du Luxembourg

Pastries

Walking along the river / exploring bridges

The Plages- free swimming "beaches" they have in the summer

Place du tertre to see the painters, then meander around Montmartre

Mussee Rodin is free for kids and they have a kids art studio where they can draw and sculpt with clay

Pretty old carousels

Street performers

Markets

Ice cream

We travel via home exchanges so we are doing that for accommodations. It's free and comes with lots of perks- they're leaving their bikes for us, kitchen for cooking so we don't spend too much eating out, laundry, etc. The flat has a view of the river so honestly even sitting on the balcony in the mornings sipping coffee and people watching while the kids play with all the "new" toys in the flat is a big treat for me.

If your DCs are into the show Miraculous, the main character's bakery is based off one in Montmartre. It looks exactly the same as the cartoon.

No stroller, because it just won't be useful and more of a pain. Plan to use the metro instead of long walks. I'd do backpacks for everyone and carry-ons for you and the 7 year old.

So OP, no food/coffee out, parks and gardens, doing laundry/dishes, concrete beaches (I get that if you live in Paris)…I can see where the trip is favorable for an adult. But with young kids, what is the point? They won’t remember, aren’t doing some spectacular event, etc. Coupled with the airport/metro/someone else’s apartment

Have you been to Paris? Even with these "limitations" as you infer, OP/kids will have a marvelous time and ABSOLUTELY feel like they're in Paris, not back home. Parks, gardens, grocery shopping/cooking in a Paris flat is EXTREMELY different to doing all those things in the US.

Two carry-ons and backpacks for all.

If you're looking to purchase new bags, I love this Samsonite carry-on b/c it has a luggage strap on the back so it can be stacked on top of another carry-on, which is especially nice when kids get tired, it's crowded, etc.

https://a.co/d/dePEQU4

For air travel with kids, I also love, love, love this bag:

https://tobiqtravel.com/products/the-colorado-tiny-tobiq-30l

It makes it so much easier to find things on the plane. I do one compartment for snacks, another for toys, another for extra set of clothes for the kids, and another for small toiletries, baby wipes, headphones, my stuff etc. I've used it as my personal item to Europe a bunch of times.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both of your kids can carry a carry-on suitcase with wheels. Mine have been doing it since they were 2. Everyone has a smallish, carry-on roller bag, and a backpack. Maybe take an umbrella stroller if you’re four year-old isn’t a good walker, my kids are city kids, and are used to walking, and Paris has great public transportation (don’t skip the buses!) and lots of nice places to take walking breaks with an ice cream. A 7yo shouldn’t need a stroller or they can maybe take a short turn in it while 4yo walks. I have never found a place to rent strollers in France (and dh is French so we go often) so we bought a cheap umbrella stroller to use there that we stored at his mom’s apartment. Honesty with the state of the sidewalks there they arent super useful and with kids older than toddlers I think would be more of a pain than a help.
Minimize packing clothing by using mix and match outfits, quick-dry fabrics and things that are linen or pure cotton, and plan to wash and re-wear a lot. Little kid summer clothes are tiny and you should have lots of space. I have traveled with my three since they were babies and we almost always take one carry-on per person.

GTFOOHWTBS. 2 year olds do not tote their own luggage.

OP you seem very resistant to the good advice which is to cough up a few more bucks and check a bag. Find a lightweight stroller. I like the GB pockit. Get one on marketplace or Buy Nothing.

They may drag their teeny tiny roller bag that fits nothing inside while knocking into people, blocking the moving walkway, and stopping every 30 feet.

When DS was 4 he could pretty reliably manage his kid sized roller that was probably half the size of an adult one. Even though he's been traveling regularly since he was 6 months old, I cannot picture him managing that at 2. At least not in any way that would have made any sense. Maybe he could have pushed it from the car into Grandma's house. Certainly not around an airport.

Strollers are free to check. If you have a large stroller bag, you can fit some other stuff in there when it’s checked, just make sure it’s all lightweight stuff.

This is absolutely doable if you’re a good packer, and your kids will have a marvelous time! Here’s what I would do. For you, a roller/spinner suitcase and weekender bag wirh luggage sleeve like this one: https://www.loandsons.com/products/catalina-deluxe-600d-recycled-poly-deep-navy. You can keep a smaller purse inside it. For each kid, as big a backpack as they can carry. No stroller.

One carryon and one backpack that can also attach to the top of the carryon. That is literally all you need for yourself and two kids combined. You have a washer and dryer there. 3 outfits each and two pajamas each. I would invest in a stroller but only you know your kid. My 4 year old was annoying whiny and slow to walk. A lot easier to strap him down and go.

2 carryon luggage’s that are easy to push, especially for your 7 year old. A bookbag for you and 7 year old. 1 umbrella stroller. The carryon luggage’s should be plenty considering you have an in unit laundry. Don’t over pack the backpacks in case you bring stuff back.