Did you ever wonder why I placed 🦕 a dinosaur in the MBFF logo ? It wasn’t simply because kids tend to love 🦖🦕 dinosaurs; it was also because near the Pays du Mont-Blanc, just across the border in 🇨🇭 Emosson, you’ll find some 🦕 dinosaur prints, vestiges of 💦 a great ocean that once covered our 🗻 mountains . . . But where else … Continue reading DINOSAURS & PREHISTORY near the Pays du Mont-Blanc
🐠🐊 AQUATIS aquarium-vivarium opened just over 4 years ago, and I had been wanting to take the boys ever since! And so MBFF was delighted to be invited just before the Christmas holidays. I kept it a secret from the boys until we arrived, just to add to the excitement; both boys being huge animal lovers (yes, including 🐊 reptiles and 🐸 amphibians!), I knew … Continue reading AQUATIS aquarium-vivarium en famille (LAUSANNE)
We are lucky to have some 🖼 wonderful museums 🏔 au Pays du Mont-Blanc, many housed in architectural gems (old, new and renovated). . . and as well as their permanent collections, they also offer 🖼 temporary exhibitions and 🎨 workshops for children and families over the school holidays! We are also lucky if we live (or are visiting!) the 🏔 au Pays du Mont-Blanc, as we are at … Continue reading MUSEUMS & EXHIBITIONS in nearby SWITZERLAND and ITALY
We are lucky to have some 🖼 wonderful museums 🏔 au Pays du Mont-Blanc, many housed in architectural gems (old, new and renovated) . . . and as well as their permanent collections, many also offer 🖼 temporary exhibitions and 🎨 workshops for children and families over the school holidays! [ ⇒ see MBFF article about 🖼 MUSEUMS & EXHIBITIONS au Pays du Mont-Blanc here and 🖼 OUTDOOR ART EXHIBITIONS … Continue reading MUSEUMS & EXHIBITIONS in nearby FRANCE
We are lucky to have some 🖼 wonderful museums 🏔 au Pays du Mont-Blanc and in the Chamonix Valley, many housed in architectural gems (old, new and renovated). . . and as well as their permanent collections, they also offer 🎨 temporary exhibitions and workshops for children and families over the school holidays! (the local tourist offices will have a list of those scheduled during your stay). ⇒ see … Continue reading MUSEUMS & EXHIBITIONS au Pays du Mont-Blanc
On Saturday evening, MBFF walked through a sparkling enchanted forest, courtesy of Les Gets Tourisme! I’d been wanting to experience this night-time son & lumières parcours since it opened more than a year ago, and finally we managed to get there! The unique trail is located in the forest behind the Lac des Écoles in Les Gets . . . and it is just M A … Continue reading ALTA LUMINA en famille (Les Gets)
Just before the holidays MBFF had the great privilege of being invited to experience the world-famous sensory exhibition Van Gogh Alive – the experience in Lausanne . . . in this exhibition, you literally step into Dutch born painter Vincent Van Gogh’s world, his life brought alive by bright digital renditions of his paintings. Did you know that Van Gogh Alive – the experience, developed by … Continue reading « VAN GOGH ALIVE – the experience » en famille (LAUSANNE)
A while back (in those pre-pandemic days!), MBFF had the absolute pleasure to be invited to explore the 🖼 Musée des Confluences! I had heard so many great things about this museum, and was eager to go and explore en famille – and it truly lived up to all of my high expectations! Before our visit, I’d had a really friendly exchange with the museum’s … Continue reading Musée des Confluences (LYON)
Each new spring season, ❄️ the snow melts and the 🌷 first spring flowers peep up shyly from the lawns; this re-awakening of nature is the perfect invitation for a buggy stroll . . . Early in 🌷 the spring season there may still be too much ❄️ snow along the river paths at higher altitude in 🏔 the Pays du Mont-Blanc, but there is a lovely stretch … Continue reading BUGGY STROLLS: Parcours de l’Eau Artistique (Arve River, PASSY)
I woke up a few weeks back now, on my 🐿 10th Groundhog Day, and decided that I would like to take the boys to 🗺 Paris . . . They have been asking to go for a while now, and I’ve always told them that we would go once they were old enough to be able to walk a fair distance without complaining (as … Continue reading GEOGRAPHY, HISTORY & CULTURE LESSON – learning about Paris (primary level)
I first got really up close and personal with 🌻 Vincent Van Gogh (1853-1890), his artistic genius and his personal demons, when I studied him for part of my GCSE art class (eek, 30 years ago!) . . . I made my dad sit on a decrepit old garden chair in our 🌸 springtime suburban garden, and then I painted him Van Gogh-style, with ☕️ a cup … Continue reading ART HISTORY LESSON – teaching your children about VINCENT van GOGH from your home!
It was quite by chance in the spring of 2014 that we discovered that we could enjoy the 📷 « Wildlife Photographer of the Year » exhibition fairly close to home, just across the 🇮🇹 Italian border from Chamonix! I had always enjoyed visiting the London-based exhibition at the Natural History Museum (NB « Wildlife Photographer of the Year » competition – exhibition was developed and is produced by the … Continue reading « Wildlife Photographer of the Year » (Forte di Bard, ITALY)
Every visit to the 🇮🇹 Aosta Valley unveils another wonder to the MBFF family . . . On one of our visits, we stumbled – quite by chance – upon 🖼 a modern & contemporary art museum IN a 🏰 20th century castle overlooking the valley! I did know that one of the 🏰 Aosta Valley castles (the valley is know as The Valley of 100 Castles!) housed … Continue reading CASTELLO GAMBA – modern & contemporary art in the Aosta Valley (ITALY)
Back in 2019, when my friend heard that we were to spend a weekend in Lyon over the Toussaint holidays, she asked if we were heading to Mini World Lyon, to see the Harry Potter Lego® exhibition: « L’expo-dont-on-ne-doit-pas-prononcer-le-nom » . . . and that got me wondering if I would be able to fit in a visit to our already busy weekend in Lyon, as … Continue reading MINI WORLD LYON – a unique & fabulous family visit!
During the 🍂 Toussaint holidays of 2019, MBFF spent a long weekend in the beautiful city of 🏙 Lyon. As Daddy MBFF had some work meetings in the beautiful city, we decided to head there en famille, arriving at our hotel (located in the 7è arrondissement, just across the river from 🖼 the Musée des Confluences) at 8h in the morning (eek!), in time for me … Continue reading LYON – 72 hours of fun & visits en famille !
WEDNESDAYS are, in many of the 🏔 Pays du Mont-Blanc communes, a day free from scholastic duties (for children in maternelle and primaire, at least!). A day to perhaps explore a new ⚽️ sport or 🎨 leisure activity, 🏡 to relax at home or to head to garderie (where kids will discover lots of fabulous activities!) . . . [ ⇒ see article 📚 La Rentrée for … Continue reading LES MERCREDIS – sport, nature, creative activities and relaxation for children au Pays du Mont-Blanc
I had been wanting to see and experience 🖼 « Annecy Paysages » ever since its conception in the summer of 2018 . . . and a couple of summers ago, on ☀️ a beautiful sunny day, we finally found a window for a visit en famille. Despite it still being ☀️ summer holiday season, and BUSY, we still had a fabulous time. And just last week, … Continue reading « ANNECY PAYSAGES » en famille (ANNECY)
The 🐧 Muséum Genève, Geneva’s natural history museum, was our go-to museum for ☔️ rainy days when our boys were small! We have – over the years – pushed 💤 sleeping babies around the exhibits there, watched our toddlers crawl, run and topple over there, and we have spent plenty of time running after them too! (now we actually have time to read the information!). … Continue reading MUSÉUM GENÈVE – Natural History Museum (Geneva)
We first visited 🐶 Barryland – Musée et Chiens du Saint-Bernard with a dog-loving and inquisitive 3 year old and a snoozing (mostly!) newborn baby in a pram . . . this visit coincided with the arrival of Saint-Bernard puppies! A year later we visited again and this visit coincided with another litter of 🐶 cute puppies, but also with the most wonderful 🐣 Easter egg hunt … Continue reading BARRYLAND – Musée et Chiens du Saint-Bernard (Martigny)
A visit to 🌳 La Maison du Salève makes for a wonderful family day out . . . originally an 18th century farm from the Chartreuse de Pomier (La Ferme de Mikerne – see here for more history), the building has been renovated to host a cultural centre recounting the history of the ⛰ Salève mountain and its environs (a permanent interactive exhibition and temporary exhibitions) . . . … Continue reading Maison du Salève (PRÉSILLY)
[ note: please check Covid-19 restrictions for entrance (online reservations, face-masks, limited numbers, etc . . . ) ] You have perhaps heard that saying ☔️ “ there’s no such thing as bad weather; just badly dressed people “ ? (I heard this several times on a couple of work trips to 🇮🇸 Iceland!) . . . that may well be, but even the strongest of resolves can be … Continue reading RAINY DAYS au Pays du Mont-Blanc
When I had my first baby nearly 11 years ago, I had just moved to a new town 🏔 au Pays du Mont-Blanc . . . I knew nobody in the town, and was quite lonely and keen to find 🌈 baby activities and playgroups, in order to get out and about and to socialise a bit! Progressively, I discovered the 🌈 playgroups that were available … Continue reading BABY & TODDLER activities au Pays du Mont-Blanc (and beyond)
Throughout the year in 🇨🇭 Geneva and Nyon, from September ⇒ May in 🇫🇷 Cluses, and from October ⇒ May in 🇫🇷 Annecy, several 🖼 museums & temporary exhibitions are FREE on the 🗓 FIRST Sunday of the month! In addition, the museums often put on some 🎨 wonderful workshops & guided tours for children and families (also FREE) on this day. The next FREE Sunday will be 🗓 Sunday 6th February … Continue reading [ Geneva, Nyon, Cluses & Annecy ] – FREE museums on FIRST SUNDAY of the month!
🎨 Le Chalet des Créateurs in Saint-Gervais-les-Bains is a fabulous venture, bringing together: 🖼 a gallery showcasing local creative talent (45+ créateurs, with collections changing with each season); 🎁 a boutique with unique hand-made, local goods and gifts to buy; 🎨 a centre providing workshops for children and adults throughout the year (and especially during the school holidays); 🎨 workshop facilities for local artists; A little history Charlotte Paget is the protagonist in … Continue reading Le Chalet des Créateurs (SAINT-GERVAIS-MONT-BLANC)
A few years back, a contingent of the MBFF team (the youngest member and myself) headed off on 🎨 a voyage of art exploration and discovery . . . to 🅿 the newly painted multi-storey 🚙 car park in Saint-Gervais-les-Bains: 🎨 2KM3. This art project really is a masterpiece: an alternative museum of street art, a FREE museum, a museum open every day of the year! … Continue reading 2KM3 – when a car park becomes ARTWORK! (SAINT-GERVAIS)
Mont Blanc Family Fun 