Trip motivation
Although Ben and I have been to Europe numerous times, our kids haven’t been and we were excited to take them to a new part of the world. We were planning to visit Europe for the Christmas Markets in Winter 2021 but Covid derailed our plans. We were finally able to take our trip to Paris in May 2022 and had an absolutely glorious time. The food, art, people, and everything about the city makes me want to go back!
In this post, we’ll go over all the details about our flights to and from Paris, including how we used miles to fly for free, packing details, and how we conquered jetlag with kids!
Read all of our Paris posts at the following links:
- Flight details (free using points!) Jetlag with kids, packing tips, and more. (This post!)
- Hotel stays: Versailles, Hyatt Paris (free using points!) & Disney
- Itinerary and Logistics (phone, metro, language)
- Versailles Palace and Gardens & an awesome Chartres light show
- Paris Day 1: Eiffel Tower, Arch De Triomph, Boat Tour
- Paris Day 2: Sainte Chapelle, Musee D’ Orsay, Montmartre
- Paris Day 3: Louvre, Luxembourg Gardens, Macaron Class
- Disneyland Paris: Best rides, shows and activities
Flight: Nashville (BNA) to Paris (CDG)
Getting There: Nashville to Paris Fri 6:45a-Sat 7:45a (2h+8.5h layover EWR+8h)
Coming Back: Paris to Nashville Sat 11:15a-8:14p (8h +2h layover ORD + 1.5h)
Using United Miles to fly to Paris for Cheap
Ben + Jenn + Carter + Ellie: 60k United miles + $94.57 taxes each
This was a huge redemption of points! Flights to Europe can easily cost over a thousand dollars. Multiplied by 4, this trip would be out of reach if we didn’t use miles and points. While there are many options for transferring points, we are a fan of United. We used points accumulated from Chase United card sign-ups and spending on our numerous Chase cards. We found and booked our flights on the United website using United Miles. Currently, both the United Explorer and the Chase Sapphire Preferred card are offering great sign-up bonuses. You can transfer Chase points to United using the Chase portal. We waited until we found the flights we wanted before transferring as Chase points can be used for a variety of partners while United points can only be used for United flights.
See more detailed tips on using points and miles here.
EWR United Lounge
When traveling with layovers or to new cities, we always check the website of the airport and the Priority Pass Lounge website prior to the trip. The Chase Sapphire Reserve card (in addition to others) comes with Priority Pass, which gives you access to lounges at various airports. Often, it is more common internationally. On this trip, there were no lounges on the Priority pass list but we were able to find a great United Lounge at EWR.
What do you do when you have a long layover? 🤷🏻♀️ On our trip, we had 8 hours between flights and spent the whole time at the gorgeous new United lounge in EWR. 🤩 With day passes from our Chase United card, we were able to eat breakfast, lunch, and snacks along with unlimited alcohol and soft drinks.
Flying with Kids-How to Beat Jet lag
Airplane masks
Melatonin
Airplane pillows
On the plane, these are our favorite masks for adults and kids from Amazon. We decided for this trip to wear our masks when moving through the airport and plane but to remove them at our seats. This allowed a balance of risk and inconvenience.
Our kids have taken numerous flights to Hawaii and these flights were similar in length and distance: 1 flight around 2 hours and a long 8 hour flight.
West to East:
- Prepare and plan: For the overnight red-eye flight, we emphasized that there would not be tv watching or waiting for meals or drinks. We would get on the plane, go potty and change into PJs and then go to sleep.
- Prioritize sleep for the kids. I gave each kid a dose of melatonin and they passed out pretty immediately. We packed these cheap pillows from Amazon (They came with eye masks!) and United also provided a scratchy pillow and blankets. The kids also had their own small blankets and a lovey from home. Sleep is such an important priority as Ben and I don’t sleep well on planes and we didn’t need everyone to be short tempered and grumpy.
- Patience pants for everyone. Ben and I split who would be “on” and who would get rest on our first day. (Ben took a nap first and I did second)
- On arrival, keep the first day light, get outside and limit naps to less than 2 hours.
East to West:
- On the long flight, the kids were happy playing with the personal screen and alternating between coloring, reading, tv, games, and snacks. Carter has been loving the Magic Treehouse books and Ellie loves activities in the Magic Ink and small play pack coloring books (Amazon links). We have one iPad that the family shares and we use this case to protect it.
- For more on our favorite activities and tips for flying, see our post here.
Airplane masks
Connecting Headphones
Magic Treehouse
Packing Light
Because we knew we would be moving around Paris on the trains with our luggage, we knew we really needed to think through our luggage situation. Imagine yourself walking up stairs in the metro with the luggage. How many hands are free? Who’s holding Ellie’s hand? We decided on 3 rolling carry-ons, 4 back-backs and 1 foldable shoulder bag. Don’t forget an extra battery! We purposely organized this way to maximize free hands while also being able to go up and down stairs. One large suitcase would have helped with the hand problem but not the stair problem. See this post here if you need tips for putting together a packing list.
Suitcase
Backpack
Extra Battery
Airport Delays
We experienced a few airport delays both to and from Paris but nothing overly taxing. The kids are resilient and the same activities that we bring for flights, they can also do in airports. This is a good reminder to be flexible and kind and patient with service workers. And also to put the trip on a credit card that offers delay and baggage insurance. You can file a claim and get reimbursed differing amounts depending on the details. The Chase Preferred and Reserve are both good options.
Pre-Check and Global Entry
Another perk we get from several credit cards is Global Entry/PreCheck. Domestically, PreCheck benefits include separate shorter lines for PreCheck travelers, and the ability to not have to remove shoes, laptops, liquids, etc. It is amazing and has saved us so much time.
Global Entry offers time-saving when entering the US. On this trip, this benefit saved us hours and ensured we would make our connection. Note that for PreCheck, kids don’t require their own number, but for Global Entry, they do. All 4 of us have Global Entry that was reimbursed by various credit card sign-ups. For more on this benefit and how to use a credit card to receive it for free, see here.
Covid Testing for Our Return
It’s important to stay up to date on testing requirements. At the time of our stay in June 2022, the US was requiring negative PCR or antigen tests within 1 calendar day of travel. While there were options for testing at a pharmacy in Paris, we decided to bring our own tests that were approved for travel from emeds. We also decided to purchase home tests for 4 euros each from a pharmacy that we performed first so we would be prepared for the “real” test and know what our results were without worry. The test process was very straightforward. We signed up for an emeds and a Navica account and when it was time, we scanned a qr code on the box and followed the instructions from the company. The box and person stayed in camera and the test results were received within 10 minutes after the test.
The United app made it very easy to see what information we needed and gave me peace of mind knowing that we wouldn’t run into problems at the airport. Our passports were already uploaded from our previous trip and it was straightforward to upload an image of our negative result.
More Paris Posts
Read all of our Paris posts at the following links:
- Flight details (free using points!) Jetlag with kids, packing tips, and more. (This post!)
- Hotel stays: Versailles, Hyatt Paris (free using points!) & Disney
- Itinerary and Logistics (phone, metro, language)
- Versailles Palace and Gardens & an awesome Chartres light show
- Paris Day 1: Eiffel Tower, Arch De Triomph, Boat Tour
- Paris Day 2: Sainte Chapelle, Musee D’ Orsay, Montmartre
- Paris Day 3: Louvre, Luxembourg Gardens, Macaron Class
- Disneyland Paris: Best rides, shows and activities
