Jardin du Port de l'Arsenal

Overview

Sitting beautifully below street level near Place de la Bastille, the Jardin du Port de l'Arsenal is a lush, terraced garden running directly alongside a bustling pleasure boat marina. It offers a remarkably quiet, nautical escape right in the center of the city.

Highlights

• The Marina: The basin is packed with dozens of beautiful, highly varnished wooden canal boats and permanently moored houseboats belonging to lucky Parisians.
• The Terraces: The terraced gardens step steeply down from the noisy street level entirely down to the quiet water, completely planted with weeping willows and hundreds of blooming roses.
• The Lock: At the southern end, you can watch boats navigate the massive lock system that drops them directly out into the fast-flowing River Seine.

History

This peaceful basin was originally part of the massive defensive moat protecting the infamous Bastille prison. After the prison was violently stormed and dismantled during the Revolution, the moat was widened and connected to the newly built Canal Saint-Martin by Napoleon to allow commercial grain barges to bypass the difficult currents of the Seine.

Visitor Tips

• Picnics: The tiered, grassy slopes facing the water are arguably the single best place in eastern Paris for a quiet, sunny picnic away from the massive crowds of the Marais.
• The Footbridge: Cross the pedestrian bridge over the lock for excellent, highly symmetric photos straight down the length of the marina.
• Duration: 30–45 minutes.