Canal Saint-Martin, Paris

About the Canal Saint-Martin

The Canal Saint-Martin runs 4.6 kilometres through north-east Paris, from the Bassin de la Villette to the Seine by the Place de la Bastille. Napoleon I ordered work to begin in 1802, and it was completed in 1825, funded by a new tax on wine. It brought fresh water from the river Ourcq for drinking, fountains and street cleaning.

Barges carried grain and building materials along it. In the mid-19th century nearly half its length, 2,069 metres, was covered over and boulevards laid on top. In the 1960s it was almost filled in for a motorway, but luckily it survived, and today it's one of Parisians' favourite spots.

What to see

• Iron footbridges — arched pedestrian bridges over the water.
• The locks — cascades where the water slowly rises.
• Quai de Valmy and Quai de Jemmapes — chestnuts, benches and cafés.
• Hôtel du Nord — the building from the 1938 film.
• Bassin de la Villette — the wide water at the north end.
• The underground tunnel — by boat to the Bastille.

Locks and footbridges

The open section of the canal runs between the Quai de Valmy and the Quai de Jemmapes. It has four double staircase locks: the gates close, the water slowly rises or falls, and boats move from one level to the next. It's mesmerising to watch, especially from the arched iron footbridges spanning the water.

Further south, by Rue du Faubourg du Temple, the canal goes underground through three tunnels, Temple, Richard-Lenoir and Bastille, emerging in the Port de l'Arsenal by the Seine. Above the covered section runs Boulevard Richard-Lenoir, with its market and garden.

A canal cruise

To see the canal from the water, take a sightseeing boat: routes usually run between the Bassin de la Villette and the Port de l'Arsenal. The boat passes through the locks, rising and falling with the water, glides under the footbridges, then dives into the long underground tunnel beneath the boulevards, with light wells overhead.

The trip takes about two and a half hours and children love it. Book ahead, especially at weekends and in summer.

The canal in film and art

Artists loved the canal: the Impressionist Alfred Sisley painted it, and today colourful street art lines the quays. It's a film star too. Marcel Carné's Hôtel du Nord (1938) is set in a hotel on the Quai de Jemmapes, whose façade survives, now a restaurant.

In Amélie, the heroine skips stones across the water by the canal locks, one of her favourite little pleasures. The canal also appears in Jean Vigo's L'Atalante and in action films such as Mission: Impossible and John Wick, and Édith Piaf sang about it in a 1936 song.

The neighbourhood

The area around the canal is one of the trendiest and youngest in Paris, with plenty of cafés, wine bars, bakeries, bookshops, concept stores and young designers' boutiques. It's liveliest on Rue Beaurepaire, Rue Lucien-Sampaix and Rue Marie-et-Louise near the Quai de Valmy.

To the north the canal widens into the Bassin de la Villette by Place de Stalingrad, with cinemas on both banks, cafés and, in summer, Paris Plages with deckchairs. Along the Canal de l'Ourcq you can walk on to the Parc de la Villette. To the south, Place de la République has big shops and metro links.

Tips for your visit

Walk the Quai de Valmy or Quai de Jemmapes from République to Stalingrad, about two kilometres; with stops on the footbridges and in cafés it takes an hour or so. Bring a picnic and sit by the water like the locals.

The canal is a good place to see Paris without tourist crowds. With children, choose a boat cruise: they'll love the locks and the tunnel.

In the evening the quays get busy and noisy. Keep your belongings close and take your rubbish with you.

Places in Paris: compare and choose

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How to do it right

• Picnic by the water.
• Car-free Sundays.
• Locks from a bridge.
• A boat with kids.

Questions