Walking tour in the heart of Rouen

Rouen and its half-timbered streets. Typical Normandy and boats on the Seine. With a rich and prestigious past, largely dating back to the medieval era, not to mention the martyrdom and death of Joan of Arc.

Details

1051536
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 5.32 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 1h 30 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 6 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 6 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 19 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 7 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in the Vieux Marché car park, where you will find the statue and pyre of Joan of Arc, the Church of Sainte Jeanne D'Arc and the memorial to Joan of Arc.

(S/E) Leave the square via the steps opposite the Vieux Marché pharmacy. Turn left onto Rue de Crosne, then left onto Rue de Fontenelle. Leave the alleyway on your left and turn left onto Rue de la Pie (at No. 4, Pierre Corneille's birthplace).
Turn right onto Rue du Vieux Palais and then left onto Rue Samuel Bochard to reach the Temple Saint-Éloi. Go around it on the left and enter the pedestrian street towards the Hôtel de Bourgtheroulde on Place de la Pucelle.

(1). Continue on the right and turn left onto Rue de la Vicomté. Turn right onto Rue du Gros Horloge and continue for 350 metres (crossing Rue Jeanne D'Arc) to arrive in front of Notre Dame Cathedral with its Beurre tower (right tower). Go around it on the left onto Rue Saint Romain (at No. 7: Historial Jeanne D'Arc)

(2). Turn left onto Rue des Chanoines, then turn left and immediately right onto Rue Saint-Amand. At the first crossroads, continue straight ahead onto Rue Richard Lallemant. At the second crossroads, continue straight ahead towards the Abbey Church of Saint-Ouen.
Turn right onto Place du Général De Gaulle Rue des Faulx for 50 metres, then turn left onto the path that goes around the Town Hall garden. At the park exit, turn right onto Rue des Faulx to return to the path entrance. Turn left onto Rue des Boucheries Saint-Ouen.

(3) At the crossroads with Rue d'Amiens, go straight ahead into Rue Damiette to reach the Church of Saint-Maclou. Go around it on the right, Rue Eugène Dutuit. Turn left onto Place de l'Aître-Saint-Maclou. Turn right onto Rue Martainville, cross Rue Victor Hugo. Turn left onto Rue Armand Carrel.
Cross Rue Géricault and Rue d'Amiens. Turn right onto Place du 39ème Régiment d'Infanterie, then left onto Rue du Général Sarrail. Cross Rue du Dr Blanche and turn onto Place Saint-Vivien opposite. Continue right onto Rue Eau de Robec. Turn left onto Rue Édouard Adam and continue to Place de la Croix de Pierre.

(4) Turn left onto Rue Saint-Vivien until you reach Place de l'Église Saint-Vivien. At the crossroads, cross Rue des Faulx and immediately turn left into the alleyway (marked as a dead end) Rue de la Foulerie to come out on the right onto Rue Eau de Robec.
Leave Rue du Pont de L'Arquet and continue straight ahead until you reach the junction with Rue du Lieutenant Aubert.
Turn onto Rue du Petit Mouton opposite.
At the crossroads, cross Rue la République and take Rue des Fossés Louis VIII opposite to reach Place des Carmes.

(5) Turn left onto Place des Carmes, then turn right to join Rue des Carmes, which you should take on the left. Take the second street on the right, Rue Aux Juifs (No. 36 Palais de justice) for 260 metres, straight ahead to Place du Maréchal Foch. Turn right onto Rue Jeanne d'Arc, then left onto Rue Guillaume Le Conquérant to return to Place du Vieux Marché (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 13 m - Place du Vieux Marché
  2. 1 : km 0.57 - alt. 10 m - Hôtel de Bourgtheroulde
  3. 2 : km 1.33 - alt. 14 m - On the left Rue des Chanoines
  4. 3 : km 1.74 - alt. 13 m - Crossroads with Rue D'Amiens
  5. 4 : km 2.85 - alt. 13 m - Place de la Croix de Pierre
  6. 5 : km 4.47 - alt. 18 m - Place des Carmes
  7. S/E : km 5.32 - alt. 13 m - Place du Vieux Marché

Notes

A walk entirely within the city, requiring no hiking equipment.

Worth a visit

- Le Gros Horloge: Rouen's iconic monument. Attached to a belfry, this astronomical clock dates back to the 14th century and has been classified as a historic monument since 1862.
- The Rouen 24-hour motorboat race. Annual speedboat race on the Seine.
- The Rouen Armada, on the banks of the Seine: a gathering of the world's most beautiful and largest boats: sailing ships (with 2, 3, etc. masts), military or private. The sailors are in costume. The boats can be visited. The Armada takes place every 4 to 6 years. The next one will take place in 2019.
- The XXL Panorama: the only cultural venue in France to exhibit the world's largest 360° panoramas. Booking required. Quai de Boisguilbert in Rouen.
- The Jardin des Plantes in Rouen on the left bank, 114 ter Avenue des Martyrs de la Résistance.
- Museum of Fine Arts in Rouen
- Le Secq des Tournelles Museum in Rouen.
- Natural History Museum, 198 Rue Beauvoisine, Rouen
- Maison de Pierre Corneille, 4 Rue de la Pie, Rouen. Free admission from 1 September to 4 June.

Reviews and comments

4.9 / 5
Based on 9 reviews

Reliability of the description
5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.9 / 5
Route interest
4.7 / 5
Chris57
Chris57

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 20, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely little walk, discovering narrow streets that you wouldn't have found if you'd stayed in the town centre.
However, don't park in the old market car park, as it's very expensive at €1.60 for 15 minutes.
We paid €5.50 for less than two hours, which is ridiculous, especially as it was a Sunday and there was no free parking 😉

Machine-translated

Jean-Luc Robert
Jean-Luc Robert

I saw many of these old half-timbered buildings and religious edifices that give Rouen its charm, with an architect who was my teacher at the Rouen School of Fine Arts, at Aitre St Maclou, in art history.

Machine-translated

mikisreverse
mikisreverse

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 19, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A great route for exploring the historic centre of Roue.

Machine-translated

Coeurdours
Coeurdours

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 19, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A walk where you can see practically all of Rouen's points of interest.
Truly superb.

Machine-translated

Coeurdours
Coeurdours

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 16, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

The journey across the plateau was very windy and a bit long, but the route through Veules-les-Roses is superb.

Machine-translated

olaron
olaron

Overall rating : 4.5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 07, 2022
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

must do

Machine-translated

benoitrando
benoitrando

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 26, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

It's magnificent, with a top-notch description. You've been living in Rouen for years, and for these moments spent on the route, you become a tourist.

Machine-translated

randobolgir
randobolgir

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 21, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

An itinerary that is sufficient for an afternoon to discover Rouen.
The only thing missing is the Mont Sainte Catherine viewpoint.

Machine-translated

byronphil
byronphil

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 25, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

An interesting route for visiting the city centre
town

Machine-translated

benoitrando
benoitrando

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 14, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

excellent route for a family walk

Machine-translated

Other walks in the area

For more walks, use our search engine .

The GPS track and description are the property of this route's author. Please do not copy them without permission.