The Bassin de l'Arsenal is a six-hundred-meter-long boat basin that links the Canal Saint-Martin to the Seine. You can identify it by the rows of pleasure boats moored in the water, which sits three meters higher than the level of the…
Canal Saint-Martin Walk
This walk follows Paris's iconic canal from the historic Port de l'Arsenal up to the Bassin de la Villette. You will see how nineteenth-century water infrastructure shaped the vibrant neighborhoods of eastern Paris.
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1. Bassin de l'Arsenal
2. Place de la Bastille
The Place de la Bastille is anchored by the forty-seven-meter-tall Colonne de Juillet, a bronze column topped with a gilded statue known as the Génie de la Liberté. This square sits at the crossroads of the fourth, eleventh, and twelfth…
3. Square Jules-Ferry
The Square Dominique-Bernard occupies a long, narrow stretch of ground in the middle of Boulevard Jules-Ferry. This space sits on the central median of the boulevard, positioned directly above the underground section of the Canal…
4. Du Nord Hotel
The Hôtel du Nord sits on the Quai de Jemmapes, a distinctive brick-fronted building overlooking the Saint-Martin Canal. While it bears the name of a hotel, it now functions as a restaurant and bar, a transformation that occurred in the…
5. Écluses des Récollets
The Écluses des Récollets are identifiable by their heavy green metal gates and the narrow stone chambers that divide the water levels of the Canal Saint-Martin. Completed in eighteen twenty-five, the canal was built to provide fresh water…
6. CRL 10 - The Canal Scene - Jemmapes
The Espace Jemmapes, located at one hundred sixteen Quai de Jemmapes, sits directly along the tree-lined banks of the Canal Saint-Martin. This site is identified by its role as a cultural center, known locally as the Scène du Canal, which…
7. Écluse de la Villette
The Écluse de la Villette marks the transition between the expansive Bassin de la Villette and the narrow, winding Canal Saint-Martin. You can identify this spot by the simple lock mechanism that regulates the water level as boats begin…
8. Bassin de la Villette
The Bassin de la Villette stretches eight hundred meters long and seventy meters wide as the largest artificial lake in Paris. You can identify it by the Rue de Crimée lifting bridge, the last of its kind in the city, which rises…