The Val de Seine between Saint-Cloud and Suresnes

Starting point and access: Saint-Cloud station.
- Transilien - Line L, on the section between Paris-Saint-Lazare and Versailles.
- Transilien - Line U, on the section between Paris-Saint-Lazare and Versailles-Chantiers. Take the Rue Dailly / Hôpital exit.
For a start from the Tram (line T2) or the Metro (line 10), see the alternatives in the practical information section.

No signage

(S) At the bottom of the escalator, take the underpass. Then cross Rue Dailly at the pedestrian crossing and walk down Rue Charles Lauer opposite, between the two hospital buildings. At the junction, turn left onto Rue Gaston de la Touche.

At the traffic lights, cross Rue Dailly and follow it to the right. At the next set of traffic lights, turn left onto Avenue André Chevrillon, towards Les Millons tram station. Ignore Rue Feudon on the right and walk down the street with a hedge on your right. Cross Rue de Béarn on the right-hand side and head towards the bridge near a tram station.

Red and white markings

Continue straight ahead onto Boulevard Jules Peltier (do not take the bridge) with the railway embankment on your right (protected area). At the roundabout, continue slightly diagonally to the right and, after a few dozen metres, you will reach a junction (information sign for the Passerelle de l’Avre).

Red and white + yellow markings

(1) Turn right and take the footbridge. First cross the railway tracks (note the allotments on the embankment to the left) then a few streets (view of the Bois de Boulogne and the Eiffel Tower opposite). Continue along the footbridge and cross the Seine (to the left, view of the La Défense district).

(2) At the end of the footbridge, at the top of a flight of stairs (do not take these), follow the sloping path to the left (chicane).

Red and white markings

At the bottom, turn sharply left, leaving a small building of millstone and brick on your left, and head for the riverbank. Follow the^GR®1for about 1 km along a path that stays as close as possible to the river (on your left).

No markings

Roughly level with the main entrance to Longchamp Racecourse (whose grandstands can be seen on the right), let the^GR® turn right and continue straight on along the riverbank. Pass the moored restaurant "Le Galion" and continue along the banks of the Seine. After walking alongside a fence on your right, you’ll come to a small car park on the right and a "Gaz" sign on the left: at the fork immediately after, take the path on the right and move away from the riverbank to go up onto the bridge (do not take the path on the left, which goes under the bridge).

Yellow markings

(3) At the road, turn left and take the Pont de Suresnes on the left-hand side. Cross the Seine with the La Défense district on your right, Mont Valérien opposite, and the bell tower of Saint-Clodoald Church and the radio mast in the Meudon Forest on your left. At the end of the bridge, turn left to go down the stairs.

On the quay, turn right and cross a road (traffic lights). Further on, turn right into Allée de Longchamp after crossing it. At the three-way junction, veer left then turn left into Rue de Saint-Cloud. Ignore a road on the right and, before a roundabout, you will reach the entrance to the Parc du Château.

No signposting

(4) Turn left, go through the gate and enter the park. Go round the fountain area on the left and take a tarmac path (after the bamboo, note a sequoia on the right). Head to the far end of the garden, i.e. towards the banks of the Seine, from which you are separated by a fence. Turn right, pass a small aviary and, before reaching the play areas, turn right again to reach a pond. Go round the pond on the left and turn immediately left to leave the park (yellow marker).

(5) At the exit, turn sharply right into Rue des Meuniers (ignore the yellow marker directing you in the opposite direction). At the next junction, turn sharply left (restaurant). Then turn into the first street on the right, Rue du Chemin Vert. Cross Rue de la République and walk past a school on your left.

Cross Rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau and turn immediately right into Rue des Moulineaux. Follow this street with the tram line running above on the left. At Rue Chevreul (coming from the right), leave the street and climb the steps on the left. Take the footbridge over Boulevard Henri Sellier to reach the Suresnes-Longchamp tram station directly.

Yellow markings

(6) Go to the end of the platform and take Exit 4 onto Rue de la Ceriseraie. Climb the stairs and, at the top, turn left and take the bridge over the railway line. At the corner of No. 11, turn right and head uphill into the Passage de la Ceriseraie. Then turn right into Rue Worth. Cross Rue Desbassayns de Richemont on the right-hand side, go slightly uphill, cross Rue du Calvaire on the left-hand side and arrive at Suresnes-Mont Valérien station (E).

To get back home:
- Transilien - Line L, towards Paris-Saint-Lazare or Versailles.
- Transilien - Line U, towards La Défense or Versailles-Chantiers.

Train timetables: check the Transilien website.

Good walking shoes are sufficient for this walk. The route takes in streets, tarmac paths, steps and a well-maintained track.

A detailed map is required (at the very least the one accompanying this description).

Château Park opening hours:
- Opening: September to April, 8.30 am; May to August, 9.00 am.
- Closing times: December–January, 5.30 pm; February, 6.00 pm; March and October–November, 7.00 pm; April and September, 8.00 pm; May–June, 8.30 pm; July–August, 9.00 pm.

Alternative departure points:

Start from Parc de Saint-Cloud Tram Station (line T2) – Take exit 2 onto Rue Vauguyon (on the platform heading towards Porte de Versailles – Pont de Bezons). With your back to the station, turn left and walk alongside the bus station. Climb the stairs and, at the top, turn left and take the bridge over the tram tracks. Cross Rue Dantan and continue straight ahead onto Rue de Vauguyon. Climb a flight of steps, cross Rue Dailly at the traffic lights and climb another flight of steps (those who wish to may even take the escalator). At the top, turn right onto Rue de la Faïencerie and emerge onto Place du Moustier (Église Saint-Clodoald on the left). Then turn right and climb the steps to the left of a pizzeria towards Square Sainte-Clotilde (isolated red and white marker). Walk past a pharmacy on your right and emerge onto the square (view of Paris on the right). Turn left and join Rue de la Libération, which passes under a large building. Cross Rue de Rouen and rejoin the main route just before crossing Rue Dailly again (traffic lights).

Departure from Les Millons Tram Station (line T2) - Take the exit on the platform side towards Pont de Bezons - Porte de Versailles and follow the main route from point .

Departure from Boulogne Pont de Saint-Cloud Metro Station (terminus of line 10) – Take the exit marked “Avenue du Maréchal Delattre de Tassigny (even numbers)” (at the front of the train). Upon exiting the metro station, turn right towards the Rhin-et-Danube roundabout. At the roundabout, keep left and, after passing a bookshop, turn left into Rue du Port. Walk past the Albert Khan Museum and, at the end of the street, go up a flight of steps. Turn left then right at the traffic lights to cross Quai du Quatre Septembre (several lanes, several successive sets of traffic lights). Then take the Pont de Saint-Cloud, on the right-hand side, to cross the Seine. At the end of the bridge, cross Quai Carnot (again, several lanes of traffic, several successive sets of traffic lights). After the traffic lights, turn right under the motorway bridge, towards the bus stops and the tram station (do not go straight across under the bridge after the traffic lights, towards a café and a sign for “Saint-Cloud centre”). At the entrance to the tram station, follow the alternative route starting from Parc de Saint-Cloud station (see above).

Alternative route:
Stop at the point (6) to return by tram (line T2).

Alternative route if the Passerelle de l'Avre is closed:
At the point (1), turn left onto Rue Alphonse Moguez. Cross Rue Bory d’Arnex then take the first right onto Avenue Alfred Belmontet. At the fork, continue left along this same street and pass by the foot of the Church of Notre-Dame des Airs. At the entrance to Val d'Or station, turn right onto Avenue de Longchamp (stairs). At the bottom, at the roundabout, follow Avenue Clodoald to the left. At the next junction, turn left onto Avenue des Vignes. Cross Rue du Val d'Or and continue straight ahead onto Rue des Couvaloux. Cross Rue Henri Regnault and continue to the end of the street. Then turn right into Rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Pass under the tram line and rejoin the main route at the first left, Rue des Moulineaux.

Walk completed by the author on 4 December 2015.

- Gardens on the railway embankments.
- Avre Footbridge (1). Built in 1893 as an aqueduct for the Avre Canal, it now serves as a pedestrian viaduct. It offers a beautiful view of the Bois de Boulogne and Paris, the Val de Seine and the La Défense district.
- Views of the La Défense district and the Val de Seine between (1) and (4).
- Parc du Château in Suresnes between (4) and (5).