The River Seine springs from Dijon, southeast of Paris, and ends in Le Havre after a route of 776 kilometres. On its way, it gives life to many places, Paris being one of them. In fact, the first settlers established themselves on the current Île de la Cité, right in the middle of the river.
Without doubt, one of the trips preferred by all tourists is the cruise along the Seine. In this way, you will be able to see several monuments and buildings that are located on the riverbanks, such as Notre-Dame, the Louvre or the Eiffel Tower.
We would like to recommend you go on a cruise. There are those which are more expensive and those which are cheaper, and even some that are accompanied by breakfast or a romantic supper. However, you should also not miss the chance to stroll peacefully along the riverbanks and try to imitate Woody Allen and Goldie Hawn’s acrobatic dance in “Everybody says I love you”. It is no coincidence that the Seine has inspired many artists from all periods such as Claude Monet, known as the painter of the Seine.
If you prefer a more literary tour, you should not miss the section that goes from the Pont Marie to the Louvre in the north or rive droite and the one that goes from La Tournelle to Quai Voltaire, in the south or rive gauche.
In these trips of up to 4 kilometres you will find loads of book stands. The stallholders called bouquinistes say they have the “plus grande librairie du monde”, the largest bookshop in the world, where you can lose yourself looking for literary jewels or other curiosities among their half million books, magazines, engravings, postcards, etc.
It is said that the history of these old bookstall owners goes back to the 17th century and their name “bouquiniste” comes from the word “bouc”, which means “billy goat”, in reference to the smell of the leather and paper that impregnated their first bookstalls. Although it may be romantic and bucolic, these bookstall owners have always had problems with the authorities; at one time because they sold subversive pamphlets and at others for blocking the view of the sights to sightseers.
A final law signed by Jacques Chirac in 1993 limited the size of these stalls so that they would not invade the riverbanks, so that nothing would stop you from enjoying a lovely trip along the Seine. Without doubt, an unforgettable reminder of Paris.
