Under the Terraces of Saint-Germain-en-Laye

de fr

From boatmen to Henry IV, this walk reveals what lies beneath the terraces of the Château de St Germain: paths winding between the pavilions, trees from the Île-de-France region, a walk under the terrace, the banks of the Seine and Corbière Park.

Details

n°8370233
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 6.68 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 05 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 55 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 55 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 81 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 22 m
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Photos

Row of lettuces
The market garden plain
Horses under the Terrace
Market gardens and view of the heights of Saint Germain-en-Laye

Description of the walk

Start from the Corbière Park car park, to the left of the D159 when coming from Saint-Germain-en-Laye.

(S/E) Leave the car park via the exit opposite Corbière Park (to the west) and follow Rue Gabriel Péri to the left. Before the railway bridge, turn right onto a path that climbs between two properties. Come out onto Rue des Prairies, follow it to the left and pass under the railway bridge. Cross Allée des Gas on the right-hand side.

(1) Shortly afterwards, turn right onto an uphill path (Chemin du Pilet). After about 100 metres, turn left. Wind your way between the properties and gardens, ignoring any paths on the right. At the end (T-junction), turn right onto a tarmac path.

(2) At the end, follow Allée de la Capitainerie to the left. Immediately turn right onto rural path no. 8 and go around the cemetery on the right.

(3) At the end of the path and before reaching the cemetery entrance, turn right and climb a staircase that leads to the foot of the Saint-Germain-en-Laye terraces. At the top, turn right and walk along a vineyard on your left. Pass directly below a viewpoint and continue at the foot of the terraces.

(4) Continue straight ahead (north-northeast) at the foot of the terraces for about 1.8 km. You will reach the Belloy gate.

(5) Take the path that descends to the right and follow a few hairpin bends. Then follow Chemin du Parc au Lièvre to the north-east. Continue along Rue du Belloy, which immediately turns left. At the three-way junction, turn right. You will come out onto Boulevard du Paymal. Follow it to the right for a few dozen metres.

(6) At the roundabout, turn right and go down Rue Pierre Curie. When the street turns right, turn left onto Chemin du Clos de la Salle. After about 100 metres, turn right and cross a playground. At the end, take the path opposite and walk to the banks of the Seine.

(7) Turn right and go under the motorway bridge. Walk along the Seine on your left until you reach Parc de Corbière. Enter the park and ignore thefirst path on your right. At the downstream tip of Ile Corbière, turn right. Then turn left and exit the park on the right. Cross the D159 at the pedestrian crossing and return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 26 m - Corbière Park car park
  2. 1 : km 0.28 - alt. 25 m - Chemin du Pilet
  3. 2 : km 0.64 - alt. 50 m - Allée de la Capitainerie
  4. 3 : km 0.95 - alt. 61 m - Staircase
  5. 4 : km 1.21 - alt. 80 m - At the foot of - Point de vue des Parterres de Saint-Germain-en-Laye
  6. 5 : km 3.02 - alt. 70 m - Belloy Gate
  7. 6 : km 3.91 - alt. 30 m - Place de Strasbourg
  8. 7 : km 4.54 - alt. 25 m - Seine [la]
  9. S/E : km 6.68 - alt. 26 m - Corbière Park car park

Worth a visit

The Corbière park and the gardens of the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye allow you to extend the walk.

Reviews and comments

4.3 / 5
Based on 18 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.2 / 5
Route interest
4.3 / 5
User 28015176
• Edited:

Overall rating : 2.7 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 04, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

It would have been a lovely walk if we had been able to complete it without any obstacles.

Right from the start, we saw that along the Seine, an impassable gate blocked the passage between Corbiere Park and the vegetable fields.

The first half of the route was perfect, until we reached point 7, where market gardeners had clearly blocked the path along the Seine with barriers and red and white plastic construction tape.

We had to walk 2 km along the busy D159 road, even though there is no pavement: very difficult and dangerous.

What a shame.

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User 6907385

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 05, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Already mentioned previously: one drawback is that it is impossible to walk along the fields of Barfour as indicated on the map, as there are market gardens and a barrier, forcing you to return to the road.

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User 6907385

Yes, the route beneath the terraces of St Germain
impossible to pass along the meadows of Balfour

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User 6907385

Hello, I went on this short hike yesterday, 4 November 2025. It is impossible to walk along the Seine on the long straight stretch after Parc des Corbieres, as there are market gardens and a closed gate, so you have to walk on the pavements and the road. After this slightly unpleasant stretch, I found the path between the plane trees again, which is currently very cluttered due to pruning.

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junot
junot

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 10, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant and varied hike. Most of the route is shaded.

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stéphane albert
stéphane albert

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 26, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A minor difficulty on a path somewhat overgrown with grass, but otherwise a varied and very interesting route!

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Calaceite
Calaceite

Overall rating : 4 / 5

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

We didn't follow the route exactly because we came by RER A.
So we didn't start from the car park (at the bottom) but from the Château de St Germain, where we joined the route on the terraces of St Germain. We descended to the Seine in the same way and arrived at the car park in the same way too. From there, there were two options: 1- go back up to the château, which corresponds to the start of the description
or
2- walk along the Seine to Le Pecq, cross it on the left at the first bridge and take the RER back to Le Pecq/Le Vesinet station.
This is the option for those who are not coming by car.

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Fab 56
Fab 56

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 10, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pleasant and unusual 2-hour walk. A mix of countryside, semi-urban hillsides and market gardening areas.

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cyril_bl
cyril_bl

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 09, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

An interesting walk that runs below the Terrasse Le Nôtre, then along the banks of the Seine
Not particularly difficult, except for the path through Le Pecq, which is very poorly maintained
The route offers unique views of a landscape that is otherwise well known

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zueppu
zueppu

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 09, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very pleasant hike; difficult to find the right starting point; the small hiking trails could do with a good refresh; wooden staircase to access the terraces is quite difficult and not very safe
Easy access to the castle, its grounds and terraces; allows you to explore the town

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pnj95
pnj95

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 27, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very pleasant walk but difficulty at the Pecq cemetery: a very steep staircase with wooden steps in poor condition: dangerous to climb, especially in wet weather

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Petitpont
Petitpont

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 31, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Please note: On the way back along the Seine, there was a gate to enter a park that was padlocked. We had to take a detour.

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Dilou59
Dilou59

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 02, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk in warm sunshine, with few people out and about at the beginning of August. I had a little trouble finding my way after point 5, but I managed to find Boulevard Paymal.

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brigitteguyot
brigitteguyot

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 11, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant walk to do.
The section through the woods and under the ramparts does not offer much of a view as it is quite enclosed.

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Nickette51
Nickette51

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jan 06, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Please note: the final stretch (7) through the fields may be muddy, and it is impossible to enter Corbière Park through the gates overlooking the fields, as they are locked. Only the gates overlooking Route du Pecq or D159 are open, which is a shame!
Otherwise, it's a lovely walk. THANK YOU.

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