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Starting point and access: Saint-Paul station.
- Metro - Line 1.
From the exit via the escalator, turn left; from the exit via the "normal" stairs, turn around.
In some places, the route crosses or is shared with aGR® (red and white markings) or aGRP® (red and yellow markings). Given the systematic street signage, stick to the route on the map and this description, where it was not deemed necessary to mention these markings.
(S) Cross Rue Saint-Antoine and take the narrow Rue du Prévot. At the end, turn left onto Rue Charlemagne. Note the remains of the Philippe-Auguste city wall on the right, which border a public park. Cross Rue des Jardins Saint-Paul and continue straight ahead for a few metres.
At number 10, turn right under a porch to enter the Village Saint-Paul. You will come out into a small courtyard. Turn left into another courtyard. Before number 25, turn right and go under another porch. Climb a flight of steps on the right, walk past a restaurant with a veranda on your right, go down some steps and you will come out into another courtyard. Continue straight ahead, passing No. 15 on your left and then No. 13 on your right. Go under two porches and come out onto Rue de l'Avé Maria. Follow the street to the right.
(1) At the crossroads (Hôtel de Sens opposite), take the first right, Rue des Fauconniers. After No. 11, turn left into Jardin Roger Priou-Valjean. Cross the garden and, at the exit, follow Rue du Figuier to the left. After about 30 metres, turn right into Jardin de l'Hôtel de Sens. Go straight ahead and exit onto Rue des Nonains d'Hyères, then follow this street to the left. Cross Rue and Quai de l'Hôtel de Ville, then take the Pont Marie bridge over the Seine to reach Île Saint-Louis.
(2) Immediately turn left onto Quai d'Anjou. Follow the quay, lined with beautiful mansions, until you reach Pont de Sully. At the bridge, turn right onto Rue Saint-Louis en l'Île. Cross Rue de Bretonvilliers (porch) and then Rue Poulletier, and walk along the left side of the Eglise Saint-Louis en l'Île. Cross Rue des Deux Ponts and, at the next intersection, turn left onto Rue Budé.
At the end of the street, cross the Quai d'Orléans and take the metal staircase slightly to the right that leads down to the riverbank. Walk along the Seine on your left, enjoying a beautiful view of the upstream tip of the Île de la Cité and the chevet of Notre-Dame. Climb a flight of steps and descend to the left on a sort of ramp leading to the river. Then take a very narrow quay with a railing on the left.
Ignore the steps on the right that lead back up to the Quai d'Orléans and pass under the Pont Saint-Louis. Walk around the downstream tip of the Île Saint-Louis. Then climb the first set of steps on the right, just before the Pont Louis-Philippe. At the top, turn right into Rue Jean du Bellay. At the intersection with Rue Saint-Louis en l'Île, turn right and take the Pont Saint-Louis to reach the Île de la Cité (you will see Paris City Hall and the Saint-Jacques Tower on your right).
(3) At the end of the bridge, turn left twice to enter Square de l'Île-de-France. Head towards the Memorial to the Martyrs of the Deportation at the upstream tip of Île de la Cité. Turn right and leave the square. Then follow Quai de l'Archevêché on your right until you reach Pont Saint-Louis.
(3) Turn left onto Rue du Cloître Notre-Dame and walk along Square Jean XIII on your left, then Notre-Dame Cathedral. In fact, since the fire in April 2019, you will need to walk along the restoration work fence (information panels).
Take thefirst right, Rue Chanoinesse, then thefirst right again, Rue des Chantres. At the end, turn left onto Rue des Ursins (do not go back up onto the quay). At the next intersection, turn left onto Rue de la Colombe. At the end, turn left onto Rue Chanoinesse. At the fork, follow Rue Massillon to the right. At the T-junction at the foot of the north wing of the cathedral, turn right onto Rue du Cloître Notre-Dame. Continue to the end of the restoration site fence.
(4) Cross diagonally to the left across the area of the square that is still accessible to the public. Leave the Petit Pont on your left and cross Rue de la Cité. Go down a flight of steps to walk along the Seine on a narrow quay with a railing. At the Pont Saint-Michel, go up some steps and cross the Boulevard du Palais. Continue along Quai des Orfèvres (at the top) and walk alongside the buildings of the Criminal Court and then the Police Headquarters.
Just before the corner of the building with its sundial tower, take a ramp on the left that descends to the riverbank. Walk along the Seine on your left and pass under the Pont Neuf (note the grimacing heads that adorn it). Continue along the riverbank, walk along a square on your right and reach the downstream tip of the Île de la Cité, where a weeping willow stands.
(5) Turn right at an acute angle and continue with the Seine on your left and the square on your right. Just before the Pont Neuf, turn right towards the entrance to the square. Then take the steps on the left leading up into a block of masonry. At the top, go around the equestrian statue of Henri IV, cross the street that connects the two parts of the Pont Neuf and take the alley opposite that leads to Place Dauphine.
Cross the square diagonally to the left. At the end, turn left onto Rue de Harlay, then right onto Quai de l'Horloge. Walk along the Conciergerie on your right. At the next bridge, turn right onto Boulevard du Palais. When you reach the monumental gates of the palace (court of justice), cross the boulevard to the left and continue straight ahead on Place Louis Lépine (pedestrianised) until you reach the Cité metro station on the left (E).
To return home:
- Metro - Line 4.
- RER - Lines B and C. The entrance is a little further on, at the corner of Rue de la Cité and Parvis de Notre-Dame.
Visorando Member
Moderate 
Association / Club / Walk leader
Difficult 
