Seeking activities pass or cultural map for teenager in Paris
June 14, 2018 8:34 PM Subscribe
My recent-high-school-grad 17-year-old niece will be in Paris for a month, starting next week. She's been there a few times, and as before will stay with a family outside the city. Her grandmother and I wish to gift her with something that might goose her to venture outside her comfort zone in the 'burbs and check out cultural riches in the city.
Niece's parents give her enough money to do what she likes. What her grandma and I seek here is along the lines of, say, a month-long paid-for pass to historical sites or museums that provide an English-speaking docent, AND/or a map/calendar to whatever Parisians do in the early summer that might expose her more fully to everyday life and people. Whilst also being fun. Analogous maybe to outdoor movies in summertime L.A., or civic music festivals everywhere, or . . . or . . . or?
Niece has little French - she's needed little in her previous visits, as the home life she's been in there speaks English. She has a clique of friends in place after the past few summers, though who knows if they still share the same interests, which I gather was mostly flirting with neighborhood boys and checking out stores on their few forays into Paris proper. Niece has had a fine time with all that and may want nothing more than the same, but is there some way we can enable an expansion of opportunities to experience Paris from afar?
Niece's parents give her enough money to do what she likes. What her grandma and I seek here is along the lines of, say, a month-long paid-for pass to historical sites or museums that provide an English-speaking docent, AND/or a map/calendar to whatever Parisians do in the early summer that might expose her more fully to everyday life and people. Whilst also being fun. Analogous maybe to outdoor movies in summertime L.A., or civic music festivals everywhere, or . . . or . . . or?
Niece has little French - she's needed little in her previous visits, as the home life she's been in there speaks English. She has a clique of friends in place after the past few summers, though who knows if they still share the same interests, which I gather was mostly flirting with neighborhood boys and checking out stores on their few forays into Paris proper. Niece has had a fine time with all that and may want nothing more than the same, but is there some way we can enable an expansion of opportunities to experience Paris from afar?
The Paris Museum Pass can be purchased online, and offers access to over 50 major museums and historical sites. In most (but not all) cases, in addition to covering the cost of admission, the Pass also allows you simply to walk in without waiting in line. The Pass comes in 2, 4, or 6-day versions, and once you activate the Pass by using it for the first time, you have to use it consecutive days, so maybe one or two 2-day passes would be a good bet for your niece.
posted by muhonnin at 12:59 AM on June 15, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by muhonnin at 12:59 AM on June 15, 2018 [3 favorites]
Parent of a 17 year old. I don't think she is going to want to go into the city alone to see cultural riches because she has a museum pass. She could pay for admission if she wanted if she has plenty of money from her parents as you say, but she hasn't wanted to.
Instead, think of something she can do with one of her friends, like 2 tickets to something in Paris -- a show, a concert, even a fun one day pastry making class. Look at listings and ask her if there's something you see that she'd like as a gift, offering her a few options. I'll let others make specific suggestions, but you aren't going to get a well-funded teenager to change her idea of what's appealing from being with friends and shopping to going alone into the city where she doesn't speak the language and go to a museum just because she can save $20.00.
posted by nantucket at 6:11 AM on June 15, 2018 [9 favorites]
Instead, think of something she can do with one of her friends, like 2 tickets to something in Paris -- a show, a concert, even a fun one day pastry making class. Look at listings and ask her if there's something you see that she'd like as a gift, offering her a few options. I'll let others make specific suggestions, but you aren't going to get a well-funded teenager to change her idea of what's appealing from being with friends and shopping to going alone into the city where she doesn't speak the language and go to a museum just because she can save $20.00.
posted by nantucket at 6:11 AM on June 15, 2018 [9 favorites]
The Paris Museum Pass is great not because of the cost saving but because it lets you skip queues.
L'officiel des spectacles and Pariscope are the locals' listings magazines. And June is often a decent month to see anglophone bands playing in Paris between the summer festivals. Speaking of which, Solidays is next weekend.
posted by holgate at 6:45 AM on June 15, 2018
L'officiel des spectacles and Pariscope are the locals' listings magazines. And June is often a decent month to see anglophone bands playing in Paris between the summer festivals. Speaking of which, Solidays is next weekend.
posted by holgate at 6:45 AM on June 15, 2018
Get two passes or whatever, so she can take a friend.
On the other hand, has anyone ever talked to this kid? She's 17, so it would have to be with a light and respectful touch, but the idea of going off to Paris at her age multiple times just to reproduce the suburban home experience and avoid anything new or scary is fairly appalling and also doesn't bode well for what she's going to get out of college. Is there no one with a good relationship with her who could gently encourage her to spread her wings a little? Paris is not that hard a city to navigate for the Anglophone.
posted by praemunire at 7:40 AM on June 15, 2018 [1 favorite]
On the other hand, has anyone ever talked to this kid? She's 17, so it would have to be with a light and respectful touch, but the idea of going off to Paris at her age multiple times just to reproduce the suburban home experience and avoid anything new or scary is fairly appalling and also doesn't bode well for what she's going to get out of college. Is there no one with a good relationship with her who could gently encourage her to spread her wings a little? Paris is not that hard a city to navigate for the Anglophone.
posted by praemunire at 7:40 AM on June 15, 2018 [1 favorite]
Old heads do not fit well on young shoulders. Unless she has some particular interest/s you can facilitate, I'd let it go.
posted by GeeEmm at 6:08 PM on June 15, 2018
posted by GeeEmm at 6:08 PM on June 15, 2018
Response by poster: Thank you, all!
And. . . the kid's been talked to. I've no doubt that her father's told her how lucky she is, and her mother has no doubt encouraged her to spread her wings.
posted by goofyfoot at 9:58 PM on June 16, 2018
And. . . the kid's been talked to. I've no doubt that her father's told her how lucky she is, and her mother has no doubt encouraged her to spread her wings.
posted by goofyfoot at 9:58 PM on June 16, 2018
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posted by btfreek at 8:43 PM on June 14, 2018