A tour of the Parc de Saint-Cloud

Start at the entrance to the wide underground passageway that allows pedestrians to access the Parc de Saint-Cloud, near the bridge of the same name. Public transport is the best way to reach the starting point (see practical information).

No signposts

(S) Go down the stairs and take the wide underground passage. Go through a gate in the middle of a fence and enter the park. Follow the very wide gravel path opposite until you reach the lower basin of the Grande Cascade.

(1) Then turn right and go up a path lined with statues on the right. At the top, turn left and walk past the foot of the Grande Cascade. At the corner of the Bassin du Grand Jet, turn right, go through a gate and walk along the pond on your left. At the next corner of the pond, climb the stairs on the right. Go up a path, climb a flight of steps and you will reach the top of the Grande Cascade (statues seen from behind on the right).

Then turn left. At the crossroads that immediately appears (truncated column on the right), continue straight ahead. Turn right, go through a gate and rejoin the tarmac at the foot of the Bassin du Fer à Cheval. Go around the pond on the right (paved path). At the top, climb the steps on the right, go through a small gate and continue straight ahead on the terrace until you reach a large marble slab (map of the estate; location of the old castle).

(2) Then turn left (due west) and follow a wide gravel path lined with flower beds. Go around the Bassin de l'Orangerie and continue in the same direction, down a small staircase and then along a gravel path. You will reach the Bassin de la Petite Gerbe.

Then turn right, pass the foot of a lion statue and go through a gate. Cross the road (watch out for traffic) and follow it to the left. Begin your tour of the ponds in a counterclockwise direction, passing at the foot of statues honouring some of the figures of the Greco-Roman pantheon: Apollo, Flora, Venus, Neptune and Jupiter.

(3) Shortly after the statue of Jupiter, take the^first path on the right and climb up, keeping the lawn on your left. Cross a grassy path (Allée de Chartres) and continue on the path opposite. Further on, cross another grassy path (Allée d'Orléans).

Yellow markings

Pass an old boundary stone, continue straight ahead and follow a fence on your right. At the corner of the fence, turn right and follow a fenced pond on your right. At the next corner, turn left and enter the woods. Follow a zigzagging path that leads to a wide paved lane (Allée de la Grande Gerbe). Cross the lane and follow it to the left for about 50 metres.

No signposts

(4) Shortly after a bench on the right, turn right onto a discreet path. At the crossroads that immediately follows, go straight ahead. Note the railway line below on the right, turn right with the path and descend slightly, following a fence on your right. At the T-junction, turn left and climb gently. Cross a grassy lane (Allée de la Porte Jaune) and continue through the woods. You will come out onto a tarmac lane.

Red and white markings

(5) Then turn right and take the bridge over the D985. Continue straight ahead on the tarmac road until you reach a forest barrier. Then take the^third path on the left (the path furthest to the right after passing the second forest barrier). At the next crossroads, go straight ahead and climb gently. After a short descent, you will reach a crossroads. Turn left. At the fork that immediately appears, take the left-hand branch and ignore a turning on the right.

Climb gently up a stony, well-maintained track (an old tarmac road) and go straight ahead at the next two crossroads. Ignore two tracks on the left and continue until you reach a flat area.

No signposts

(6) Continue straight ahead (leaving the^GR® trail on your right) and follow the railing on your left. When the paved road turns right, take a dirt road on the left. Descend steeply through the woods. You will come out onto a lawn. Pass a small monument on your left (the Lyre) and turn right onto the path at the edge of the lawn. Leave the park momentarily by passing through the Grille de la Lyre. Cross a road (be careful) and then a small car park. Then go through another gate to re-enter the park.

Yellow markings

Immediately after the gate and before the motor vehicle toll booths, turn right. Follow the path along the gate and then turn left. At the crossroads, follow a tarmac lane to the left to reach a large roundabout (the Rond de Chasse).

Red and white signposts

(7) Turn right immediately and go through a forest gate. You will then come to two paths: take the left-hand one and go between two grassy lanes. At the next fork, turn right, between a small hedge on the left and a grassy lane on the right.

After about 150 m, in a gap in the hedge, turn left onto a path that enters the woods. A little further on, ignore a path coming from the left. Continue straight ahead (east), descend gently and cross two grassy paths and then a lane. Finally, ignore a lane on the right and you will immediately come to a very wide grassy path. Follow this path to the right, go around a roundabout and you will reach a large esplanade (panoramic view of the Seine and Paris).

No signposts

(8) Facing the view, turn right towards Sèvres and Meudon and descend onto a paved road. After about 200 m, take the^first path on the left (forest gate) and follow a fence on your right. Continue downhill. Finish the descent with two hairpin bends, go through a forest gate and come out at a crossroads. Then take the^{second road} on the left, a cobbled lane with no entry, which goes downhill.

(9) Then turn right at an acute angle, continue downhill and follow the pond on your left. At the corner of the pond (basin), turn left and then right to continue downhill on a wide gravel lane. At the bottom (large sculpted monument on the right), turn left. Go around the lower pond of the Grande Cascade on the right.

(1) Continue straight ahead (north) along the very wide gravel path. Leave the park, take the wide underground passage, climb the stairs and return to the starting point (S/E).

Access to the starting point by public transport:

- By metro (line 10), Boulogne-Pont de Saint-Cloud station (terminus) - Take the exit "Av. du Maréchal Delattre de Tassigny n°s impairs" (at the front of the train). Follow the avenue towards the Pont de Saint-Cloud, which you take on your left. Once you have crossed the Seine, turn left at the corner of the bridge. At the next traffic lights, turn right and cross the road. The stairs to the underpass are on the left.

- By tram (line T2) or bus (lines 52, 72, 126, 160, 175, 460 or 467), Parc de Saint-Cloud station. Walk up the street (to the right as you exit the tram station) under the A13 motorway bridge. Pass a taxi rank on your left, cross the tram tracks and go around a brasserie on the left. Cross Rue Dailly at the pedestrian crossing. Turn immediately left to cross again at a pedestrian crossing. Then turn right and left to cross a road. Turn right and go around a pillar of the motorway bridge. Then go down the ramp to a pedestrian tunnel. At the bottom, take the tunnel on the left. On the other side, cross a cobbled street and turn right to reach the stairs leading to the underground passage to the park.

Conditions of access to the Domaine National de Saint-Cloud:
- Opening hours: 7.30 a.m.
- Closing times: November-February, 8pm; March-April and September-October, 9pm; May-August, 10pm.
There is a charge for motor vehicles. 2020 prices: 2 or 3 wheels, £3; cars, £5.50.
Please note: between 10 August and 5 September, access is limited due to the Rock en Seine music festival and preparations for the event.

Good walking shoes are sufficient for this hike.

With a map (at least the one accompanying this description), you can add many variations to this route.

This hike has been completed around 40 times by the author, with many variations, the first in 1964 and the last on 12 December 2020.

The first part of this hike, between (1) and , offers a rich heritage:
- French gardens.
- Ponds, fountains, waterfalls, which are prettier when they are working, i.e. "in the summer" according to the official website, without further details...
- Numerous statues inspired by Greek and Roman mythology.

Extensive panoramic view of Paris and its suburbs from the esplanade (8). More limited view between (1) and (if you take the trouble to turn around).

For more information, visit the official website of the Domaine National de Saint-Cloud.