Montmartre With Kids: Hills, Carousels and the Steps

Montmartre is a steep hill of cobbled streets, packed crowds, and a lot of stairs — get the approach wrong and you're hauling a tired child up an endless staircase through a crush of people. Get it right and it's a carousel, a funicular ride, a white domed castle, and a view over all of Paris.

The whole trick is how you get up the hill — and choosing a short, downhill-ish route instead of trying to "see all of Montmartre."

Take the funicular, not the 222 steps

The famous staircase up to the Sacré-Cœur is 222 steps — a non-starter with a stroller or a toddler. Instead, ride the funicular: it climbs the hill in about 90 seconds, it's stroller- and child-friendly, and it uses an ordinary métro t+ ticket (around €2.55), so under-4s are free and 4–9s are half-price. The lower station is by Square Louise-Michel, a few minutes' walk up from métro Anvers (Line 2).

Riding up and walking gently down is far kinder on small legs than the reverse.

Or take the little train. The Petit Train de Montmartre (the Promotrain) is a tourist road-train that loops the neighbourhood — it leaves from Place Blanche, right in front of the Moulin Rouge, and stops at the Sacré-Cœur, so it doubles as a sit-down rest and a 35-minute tour with the commentary doing the work. Roughly €6.50 adult / €4.50 under-12; about hourly on weekdays and every 30 minutes at weekends, with more departures in summer (likely weekends-only out of season). A lovely way to save tired legs the climb.

A short, child-scale route

1. Métro Anvers, then walk up rue de Steinkerque to Square Louise-Michel — the terraced gardens at the foot of the basilica, with a double carousel, a small shaded playground, and grass to flop on. This is your Montmartre pressure valve: use it before you tackle the hill, not after.
2. Funicular up to the Sacré-Cœur — entry to the basilica is free; the terrace has one of the best views in Paris (perfect for the five-senses pause: "how many rooftops can you count? what can you hear from up here?").
3. A loop past Place du Tertre — the square full of painters and portraitists, fun for kids to watch, but the most crowded and pickpocket-prone spot, so hold hands and keep bags zipped.
4. Wind gently downhill through the quieter back lanes, and finish at the "I Love You" wall (Le mur des je t'aime) in Square Jehan-Rictus near Abbesses — a small garden where kids can sit while you find the languages.
5. For a calmer pause, Square Suzanne Buisson — a shaded local garden on the quiet side of the hill, away from the crowds, where Montmartre families actually hang out (often on a Friday evening after work). A good place to let the kids slow down and run while you sit for a moment.

Keep it to a half day, and skew it early — the local rule is to be up and around by 9 and off the hill by late morning. Montmartre after lunch is all crowds and portrait-sellers; in the morning it's almost yours.

Rainy or overheated? At the foot of the hill, Halle Saint-Pierre (2 rue Ronsard) is a colourful art hall with a children's-friendly café and salon de thé, a bookshop, and family workshops — a calm indoor refuge a few minutes from the carousel.

What usually goes wrong

• Going up the stairs with a stroller — use the funicular.
• Crowds at the top — go early; by midday Place du Tertre and the basilica steps are heaving.
• The cobbles and the gradient — steep, uneven, and stroller-unfriendly on the back streets; a carrier is easier for the littlest.
• Overstaying — it's tiring terrain; leave while everyone's still enjoying it.

The reset games on the hill

Montmartre is built for the walk-like game — "climb like a mountain goat, tiptoe down like a cat" turns the slopes into play. Keep silly shakes for the funicular queue and the five-senses pause for the Sacré-Cœur terrace, where the view does half the work.

Food

Skip the tourist cafés around Place du Tertre (pricey and slow). Grab a crêpe or a bakery snack on a side street and eat it on the basilica lawn with the view, or save the meal for back down the hill near Abbesses, which is more local and relaxed.

Practical tips

• Funicular over stairs, every time, with kids.
• Mornings are calmer, cooler, and far less crowded.
• Pickpockets & "friendship bracelet" sellers work the basilica steps and Place du Tertre — keep kids close and bags zipped.
• Bathrooms are scarce up top — go before you climb.
• Stroller reality: fine on the funicular and main paths; hard on the cobbled back lanes — a carrier helps.

Montmartre is the clearest neighbourhood example of why the route matters more than the list: the same hill is a delight or a disaster depending on which way you go up, when you arrive, and where you stop. That's the invisible planning a vetted day takes off your plate.

Keep exploring

Pair it with the rainy-day guide for when the weather turns, the Marais story walk for another neighbourhood, and the introduction to easy days in Paris with kids.