Seine River

The Seine River, named after Sequana, a Gallo-Roman water goddess, crosses France from southeast to northwest, passing through the country’s most important cities of Paris, Rouen and Le Havre. Solid ports and industrial enterprises located on its banks are interspersed with cozy hotels in old stone houses, national cuisine restaurants and campsites. The peaceful landscapes of the sun-drenched banks of the Seine inspired the Impressionists to create world-famous canvases.

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Geographical features

From Rouen to Paris, there are many islands on the winding Seine, with tidal events persisting for 35 km from the mouth. The Seine River is 776 km long and reaches an average depth of 9.5 m in the Paris area. Most of the basin – plains with flat sandy banks, threatened by flooding in the winter months, only in the southeast, closer to the source, on the Langres plateau in Burgundy, the altitude reaches 900 meters above sea level. The Seine overflows during the cold season have become a real scourge of the coastal areas. In order to save Paris from floods, in the XIX century the city built high stone embankments and began to carefully monitor the water level. The last extreme rise of the Seine was noted in 2016, thanks to the coordinated work of city services, there was no special destruction, although it was necessary, as usual, to evacuate tens of thousands of works of art from the basement funds of the city’s museums. During dry years in the summer, by contrast, the Seine is threatened by shoaling, jeopardizing navigation on the river.

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History of coastal towns and villages

Written sources indicate that the banks of the Seine River were settled by Celtic tribesmen, fishermen and farmers, in the 3rd century B.C. The Romans who came to Gaul also appreciated the convenient waterway, and in the 6th century they were displaced by the Germanic tribe of Franks, who gave their name to the state. Because of its flat character and slow flow, navigation along the Seine is easy, which was taken advantage of in the IX-X centuries by the Vikings, who came up to Paris and besieged the city. They later retreated and spent some time in the vicinity of Rouen, closer to the sea.

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At the mouth of the river lies Le Havre, the largest seaport in France. Between the Seine and the basin of Le Havre stands a concrete causeway, allowing only ships to pass through. In terms of passenger traffic, this port is the leader in France; in terms of cargo traffic it is second only to Marseille. The port of Le Havre carries out not only sea, but also river transportation. The city owes its prosperity in the XVI century to the fact that the more popular ports on the Seine Honfleur and Arfleur, located a few kilometers from Le Havre, were in the silted up part of the riverbed.

The next major city on the Seine to the east is Rouen, a significant French port permeated by tributaries of the river. In 1431, a tragic event for French history took place in Rouen – the trial of Joan of Arc. The savior of the country was burned at the stake, and the ashes were scattered over the Seine.

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The most important suburbs of Paris were formed along the banks of the Seine, the main transportation artery of the region. Epinay-sur-Seine, which absorbed the name of the river, is located 11 kilometers north of the capital, Corbeil-Eson lies in the southern part of Paris, at the confluence of the Eson with the Seine. From the suburb, boats were used to bring food to the capital, and back during the plague epidemic, corpses were taken by water – hence the French name for hearse. Mantes-la-Jolie, 53 km west of Paris, was a fortified port that protected the capital from invasions.

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Traveling by river

Large ocean-going ships travel along the Seine River 120 km to Rouen, barges and riverboats travel over 500 km to Marrille-sur-Seine. The trip from Paris to Honfleur and back with a tour of Rouen usually lasts about 5 days. The cost of the trip is 1000 euros for accommodation in a double cabin with full board. Charter yachts can be sailed on the Seine and, through a network of canals, on other rivers in France.

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Walking on the Seine in Paris

On the left bank of the Seine River are concentrated museums and tourist sites, led by the Eiffel Tower, on the right – business centers and government structures. However, the division is conditional – on the right bank remain no less popular among visitors of the city Louvre, Tuileries, Bois de Boulogne and Montmartre. The most convenient option, which allows you to think out the route on your own, is a trip on the river streetcar Bateau Bus, which follows the river with 8 stops.

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Tickets on the Bateau Bus are valid for a day or two from the time of first boarding, so tourists can sightsee and then continue walking. The Seine River route runs through the tourist center of the city, from the botanical gardens to the Eiffel Tower. From March to September streetcars run frequently, every 20 minutes, in low season you will have to wait about 25 minutes. It starts at 10:00 and ends at 19:00 in winter and 21:30 in summer. A ticket costs 16-19 euros for a day or two for adults, 7-10 euros for children from 3 to 16 years old.

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More comfortable than the river streetcars, excursion boats start from the third pier of the Bourdonnais quay. The cost of an hour-long excursion is 6-14 euros. Restaurants on the ships are booked in advance, the cost of a two-hour lunch on the river Seine comes to 100 euros per person. A dinner accompanied by live classical music lasts longer and costs up to 215 euros.

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Seine in the history of painting

The banks of the Seine have traditionally been the focus of French landscape painters, but the real boom in interest in the river began with the advent of Impressionism. Edouard Manet and Gustave Caibotte lived permanently in the Paris suburb of Argenteuil, and the other members of the Salon des Outcastes came to visit them and worked in plein air. The island on the Seine River west of Argenteuil, in Chatou, was called the Impressionist Island. Here, the Maison Fournaise restaurant and chamber museum houses the works of the artists, among them Auguste Renoir’s “Breakfast of the Oarsmen.”

Handmade attractions

The flat river scenery lacks variety, and the monotony of a walk along the Seine is diluted by exploring architectural sights and museums. Among the must-see religious buildings are the XII century Rouen Cathedral, the XV century Church of St. Catherine in Honfleur, the Abbey of Graville-St. Honorine in Le Havre. A lesser known but interesting site, the Gothic church at Vernon, was built from the eleventh to fifteenth centuries and recently restored.

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Bridges

At the mouth of the Seine River lies the Normandy Bridge, reaching a length of 2.35 kilometers. Its central span is 935 m long. In Mant-la-Jolie, an old bridge from the 12th century has been preserved. There are 6 bridges in Rouen, one of them, named after the writer Gustave Flaubert, is the longest lift bridge in Europe. Its length reaches 86 meters. An example of modern architecture can be seen near the Seine Museum in Codbec-en-Caux. There are 37 bridges in Paris, the oldest of them is the Pont Neuf, built in 1607. The shortest, at only 32 m, is the Petit Bridge, spanning to the Isle of Cité.

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Since 1870, the Austerlitz Bridge in Paris has displayed a flood scale to warn citizens of the danger. If the incoming water washes the knees of the statue of Zouave on the Alma Bridge, the danger is not yet too serious, reaches the waist – you should worry, beards – near disaster.

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Castles

The Seine River has not so often inspired architects to create masterpieces as the Loire, but there is much to see here too. The most famous castle, the domain of the royal family, is the Conciergerie in Paris, the construction of the surviving parts of which began in the 13th century. It is now part of the Palais de Justice. The ruins of the Château-Gayard castle are located 95 km west of the capital. It was built by order of Richard the Lionheart at the end of XII century and partially demolished in 1599 by the will of Henry IV. The fortress walls and the main tower towering above the Seine River have survived to our time. You can get inside in the warm season, wander around the outer walls year-round.

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Museums

The most interesting museums on the banks of the Seine River are related to rivers, seas and water transportation. Rouen’s maritime museum with hangars is located next to the Gustave Flaubert Bridge. In Rouen, on the other hand, the Great Barrier Reef is reproduced in the Panorama XXL, waiting for visitors from 10 to 18-19 hours, tickets cost up to 9.5 euros. The Museum of Waterways is open at the meeting point of the Seine and Oise, with ship models on display. The Seine Museum in Kodbeke-en-Caux, open from February to November from 13:00 to 18:30, and in July and August from 10:00, tells the history of the river and the inhabitants of the coastal villages from antiquity to the present day. A ticket costs 5 euros, with a guide, 6 euros.

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Tourist information

Not long ago, the Seine was unsuitable for swimming and fishing, but the efforts of ecologists have led to its cleansing from sewage. Atlantic salmon have returned to its waters, a good indicator, but there are still frequent excesses of heavy metals recorded. However, walks along the Seine River do not prevent this, and for beach vacations in France there are many other opportunities. In the vicinity of Paris in the summer, at the peak of the heat, from imported sand poured artificial beaches on which you can sunbathe and have fun. Swimming is forbidden. At the mouth of the Seine River there is a botanical garden of Honfleur with butterflies, exotic birds and plants, the cost of visiting comes to 9 euros. The Boucle de la Seine Normande reserve can be visited near the exit from Le Havre, a zoo and amusement park are open on the borders of Rouen.

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River vacations

In addition to cruises on the Seine River, tourists can relax in numerous guesthouses and campsites, outside the industrial zones found at every kilometer. Near them are usually equipped with cafes, snack bars, gas stations, and car rentals. In the seaside part of the Seine River there are many yacht clubs. In Paris you can rent a barge with a mini-terrace as a hotel. The cost of accommodation in it is about 200 euros per day for a group of up to 5 people.

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