Well, I’m a bit late with this, but the blog is young and some out-of-date archive padding is excusable. The following is a sample piece I wrote for a soon-to-be-launched blog sponsored by the Office of Tourism of Paris. If all goes well I will be contributing regular tourist-oriented “tips” on culture, neighborhoods, and daily life in the capital. Touch wood.

Paris with Kids: Noël Redux

The holiday season is a great time to visit Paris with children. Sure, the weather may not be ideal, but there are far fewer tourists to tangle with, and the pre-Christmas vibe cheers against the cold. Streets and storefronts are draped with decor. Gift markets crop up in public squares across town. Crepe stands serve piping vin chaud. A huge sapin – tastefully hung with white lights and red globes – glows happily beneath Notre Dame.

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Amidst all of this, one of the best places to take the kids is right in front of the Hôtel de Ville, where a sort of winter carnival takes place well into January. A huge fake igloo is set up for public programs, while the middle of pl de Greves is given over to an open-air ice rink and an icy sled run. Carrousels flank either side of the square. The lines can get long, but thankfully vendors are on hand with candy apples and barbe-a-papa to keep the little ones happy while they wait their turn. For people-watching it’s best to come at night, when young and old, local and tourist take to the ice beneath floodlights, and the sled run gets bathed in arctic blues.

Another great option for parents is the Grands Magasins, the fabled Printemps and Galeries Lafayette department stores. Don’t worry, though – all the fun stuff is on the outside, so you won’t get roped into buying any unscheduled xmas gifts. Both of these stores feature psychedelic light installations across their entire façades, which illuminate bd Haussmann from rue de Mogador to rue du Havre. At street level, the shop windows boast fantastic, automated marionette scenes – think dancing teacups and pirouetting teddy bears – for toddlers to marvel at. The stores are nice enough to set up viewing platforms for the little ones, and the whole thing doesn’t cost a euro-cent.