Even though it’s connected to both the Right Bank and the Left Bank of Paris by several bridges, Île Saint-Louis feels like a magical little world of its own, not quite an integral part of the city. On paper, it has everything you’d find elsewhere: grand mansions like the ones in the Marais or Saint-Germain, restaurants, crowds of tourists. And yet, the moment you set foot there, you can feel the whole atmosphere shift.
It’s as if calm descends on you like magic, and suddenly you understand what the surrealist poet Louis Aragon (1897-1982) was getting at in one of his short verses about this island.
In a few simple lines, Aragon describes an island at the heart of the city where everything stays peaceful, forever.
That image stuck with me, because it’s exactly how this little island feels even today.
It captures the island perfectly: a small, quiet world in the middle of a busy city.
Let me take you through the secrets of this magical, peaceful island with a slow, relaxed walk. We’ll find out who used to live here, peek at a few of the private mansions that have survived since the 17th century, and of course finish things off with an ice cream from Berthillon.
Our route will trace the shape of the letter N: we’ll start by walking along the northern quays of the island, Quai de Bourbon and Quai d’Anjou. Then we’ll walk the length of the island’s main street, Rue Saint-Louis en l’Île, and once we’re back close to where we started, we’ll walk along the southern quays, Quai d’Orléans and Quai de Béthune, where the tour will end.
Where the Walk Begins
This walking route is a natural continuation of the Île de la Cité walking tour, which ends at the Pont Saint-Louis, right where our tour begins. If you’d rather do this route on its own, get off at the Pont Marie metro station (line 7). From there, walk west, cross the Pont Louis-Philippe, head to Place Louis Aragon, and continue to the Pont Saint-Louis. Here’s a map showing how to get there.
Map of the Route
All the points of interest are marked with a star. If you’d also like to stay in the area, you’ll find hotels and vacation rentals on the map too.
Link to open the map in a new window
Île Saint-Louis: A Walking Tour
The Disaster of the Pont Saint-Louis
As I mentioned, we’re starting our walk on the Pont Saint-Louis, a pedestrian bridge connecting Île de la Cité to Île Saint-Louis. Today you’ll often find street musicians here, along with plenty of tourists crossing back and forth, but this charming little bridge hides a much darker story.
The bridge was built in 1624, and during its opening ceremony, a religious procession was supposed to cross it on its way to Notre-Dame Cathedral. But plenty of people wanted to be the first to cross the new bridge, and the moment the gong sounded, a crowd surged forward. A lot of people ended up in the water, and quite a few drowned. By the end of the day, 20 bodies had been counted, along with 40 more people seriously injured. Lucky for them that Paris‘s morgue was right behind Notre-Dame, and the famous Hôtel-Dieu hospital wasn’t far either.
The bridge’s tragic history didn’t end there. Over the centuries that followed, it was destroyed and rebuilt several times. The version you see today is the fourth one, and unlike some bridges that have failed catastrophically, let’s hope this one holds up for generations. (Still, if you do decide to cross it, it might be worth knowing how to swim, just in case.)
Quai de Bourbon
The House of the Centaur
Cross the Pont Saint-Louis, turn left and keep going until you reach the Place Louis Aragon, where you’ll find the poem I quoted at the start of this article. It’s a magical little square, with views of Île de la Cité, the Paris city hall on the Right Bank, and the bateaux mouches drifting lazily by.
Once you’ve taken in the view, turn around and look at number 43. It was built by the famous architect Louis Le Vau (1612-1670), who also designed part of the Palace of Versailles.
This building, which Le Vau built for his sister, is known as the House of the Centaur, named for the stone medallion on its wall depicting the battle between Hercules and the centaur Nessus. The relief is on the building’s right side, facing west. About 250 years later, the famous poet Guillaume Apollinaire (1880-1918) lived here. He is considered, along with Louis Aragon (1897-1982), one of the fathers of surrealism.
The Headless Woman
Keep walking along Quai de Bourbon until you reach the start of Rue de Regratier, named after one of the developers who built much of Île Saint-Louis. Look up and you’ll spot a statue missing everything but its legs, along with a stone plaque reading Rue de la femme sans Teste (Street of the Headless Woman).
Who was this headless woman the street was once named for, and is the statue we see today even hers? You’ll find the answer in Dr. Orna Liberman’s article, The Headless Woman.
And here’s one more piece of information, not entirely related to our walk, but useful for couples looking for a different kind of evening out. At 8 Rue Le Regratier, you’ll find Taken, one of the most famous swingers’ clubs in Paris, which even won the award for best swingers’ club in Paris in 2019. Inside you’ll find a bar, a dance floor, a smoking room, and themed rooms where you can meet other French couples and do whatever it is people do in places like this.
The Last Home of Camille Claudel
Continue on to number 19 Quai de Bourbon. The famous sculptor Camille Claudel (1864-1943) lived here between 1899 and 1913.
These were years of creative work, but also the years in which Camille Claudel slowly lost her sanity following her love affair with the sculptor Auguste Rodin (1840-1917). From here, Camille was taken in 1913 to an asylum, where she would spend the rest of her life until her death 30 years later. If you’d like to get to know her tragic life story and her artistic work better, let me recommend another article by Dr. Orna Liberman, called Gold and Mud.
Quai d’Anjou
This quay is named after Gaston (1608-1660), brother of King Louis XIII (r. 1610-1643), who held the title of Duke of Anjou before becoming Duke of Orléans.
And Please, Don’t Smoke Hashish Here
Head to number 17 and you’ll find one of the most remarkable private mansions on the island, thanks to its balcony and its drainpipes shaped like fish heads.
The building is called the Hôtel de Lauzun, and it has nothing to do with the singer Eli Luzon. It’s named after Antonin Nompar de Caumont, duc de Lauzun (1632-1723).
Despite being a famously unattractive man, even by the standards of his time, the duke had a way with women, and he even won the heart of the daughter of King Louis XIII’s brother, the very man the quay is named after.
During the 19th century, this building housed the hashish club organized by the famous poet Charles Baudelaire (1821-1867). Back then, hashish wasn’t smoked but eaten (it was served as a greenish jelly), and it was here that Baudelaire wrote his famous book of poems, “The Flowers of Evil.”
If you’d like to dig a little deeper into the story of the Hôtel de Lauzun, feel free to read this article.
Where They Decide Which Baguette Is the Best
Keep walking along the quay to number 7, where you’ll see an impressive building with a red wooden door.
This building was built in 1642 for a metals merchant who had struck it rich, but since the 19th century it has housed the offices of the Paris Bakers’ Guild.
Every year, baking experts and select celebrities gather here to settle a question of great importance: who bakes the best baguette in Paris. The winner earns the right to supply the Élysée Palace with baguettes for an entire year.
Personally, I think even second place, or tenth place, in a competition like this is good enough for me. But if you’d like to know who won the most recent competition, held in March 2024, feel free to check out this link. And if you’d like to read more about the Parisian baguette, along with recommendations for excellent boulangeries, take a look at the article Is the Baguette Really French.
When the Qataris Bought the Most Beautiful Mansion on Île Saint-Louis (and Then It Caught Fire)
Right next to the Bakers’ Guild building, at number 3, stands a building that Louis Le Vau built for himself.
If you ask nicely, you can step inside to see the courtyard and this lovely door, which I photographed the last time I visited, in November 2023.
But there’s no question that the truly important building here is the one right next door: the Hôtel Lambert. This grand mansion is named after Jean Baptiste Lambert, who made his fortune through various financial dealings.
Having become a very wealthy man, Lambert decided to build a house befitting his status and hired Louis Le Vau for the job. The cornerstone was laid in 1640, and the building was completed four years later. But Jean Baptiste’s luck ran out, and he died shortly before construction was finished.
The one who got to enjoy all this splendor was Jean Baptiste’s brother, Nicolas, who made sure the interior design was handled by none other than Charles Lebrun (1619-1690), the man who would later design the interiors of the Palace of Versailles.
During the 18th century, the Marquise du Châtelet, Émilie du Châtelet (1706-1749), one of the most remarkable women of her era, lived here. Among other things, she translated the writings of Isaac Newton into French (and was also Voltaire’s lover). Later, the mansion became a girls’ school, and even a storehouse for military beds, until Prince Adam Jerzy Czartoryski (1770-1861) bought the place in 1843.
The prince renovated the grand mansion, and from here he tirelessly worked to keep the Polish cause alive in the public eye, hoping to restore the independence Poland had lost during the 18th century. The Hôtel Lambert also became a gathering place for many famous Poles, the most important of all being, of course, Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849), who spent many evenings here and even composed his Polonaise, Opus 53, for a Polish ball held in this very mansion.
About 130 years later, the Hôtel Lambert was bought by Baron Guy de Rothschild (1909-2007), but his heirs later decided to sell the mansion to Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalifa Al Thani, brother of the Emir of Qatar, for 80 million euros.
Abdullah decided to carry out a massive renovation of the building, planning to install elevators, an underground garage, and even a swimming pool. All these changes caused an uproar among historic preservation experts, and the French Ministry of Culture ordered the work to stop.
“Conveniently,” a fire broke out at the Hôtel Lambert in 2013, damaging, among other things, Charles Lebrun’s famous paintings in the Hercules Salon. With no choice but to begin urgent repairs, the French Ministry of Culture allowed Abdullah to proceed with the renovation.
The renovation cost around 120 million euros, but just as it was nearing completion, Abdullah decided to sell the property to Xavier Niel (born 1967), the French telecom tycoon. Niel plans to turn the Hôtel Lambert into a cultural center, which is excellent news, since it might finally mean we can visit it (outside of European Heritage Days).
The Garden at the Tip of Île Saint-Louis
We’ve reached the far end of Île Saint-Louis, and before we double back along the island’s main street, it’s worth stopping at the magical little garden at its tip.
The garden is named after the sculptor Antoine-Louis Barye (1795-1875), who specialized in sculpting animals. The first thing you’ll notice is a memorial statue in his honor, created by Taiwanese businessmen, since the original bronze statue that once stood here was melted down during the Nazi occupation in 1942.
Beyond that, I highly recommend heading down to the riverside walkway, strolling along it, and of course sitting for a while in this lovely little park to take in the Seine. Once you’ve rested up a bit, it’s time to continue our walk.
Rue Saint-Louis en l’Île
Leave the garden and walk to Rue Saint-Louis-en-l’Île, the main street of Île Saint-Louis, named after the church located there.
The man who lit up Saint-Louis and died alone in the dark on the Champs-Élysées
Go to number 12, where you’ll find the house of the engineer Philippe Lebon (1767-1801).
Philippe Lebon invented the internal combustion engine, and more importantly, street lighting, which made Paris a much safer city for everyone, except for Philippe Lebon himself. In December 1804, on the eve of Napoleon Bonaparte’s coronation as emperor, Philippe Lebon was murdered in a dark alley on the Champs-Élysées…
The church of Île Saint-Louis
Go to number 21 and you’ll reach the Saint-Louis en l’Île church, after which the street is named. A smaller church once stood here, but it couldn’t hold all the worshippers, so in 1646 it was decided to build a new one. It took about eighty years to finish the church, and several architects worked on it, including François Le Vau, the brother of Louis Le Vau, whom we mentioned earlier.
It’s a remarkably bright church, which is no small feat given how densely packed the island is, and it’s very beautiful. Quite a few famous people have prayed here, gotten married here, and had their funeral services held here (the most famous of them being Georges Pompidou, whose funeral was held here).
Unfortunately, I don’t have any high-quality photos of this church, since the last time I visited it was undergoing extensive renovations. Until I get back there, I can tell you it’s well worth stepping inside to see everything this church has to offer.
Paris’s legendary ice cream
Continue to number 31 until you reach the original location of Berthillon ice cream. The place started as a bistro where Raymond Berthillon served ice cream as a dessert. In the early 1960s, a food critic from Gault Millau, Michelin’s rival, visited the place and raved about the ice cream served there.
From that moment on, the ice cream became legendary, and crowds of tourists line up to taste their famous sorbet. Personally, I don’t think you need to stand in line for the treat, both because Berthillon ice cream is served at quite a few cafés around Paris, and because, with all due respect to the hype, I think the ice cream at Amorino, at number 47, is just as good (though that’s a matter of taste).
The prettiest balcony on Île Saint-Louis
Keep walking until you reach number 51, where you’ll see a beautiful balcony featuring a peacock figure flanked by two chimeras. This is where Denis Auguste Affre (1797-1848), the Archbishop of Paris, lived.
In 1848, riots broke out in Paris and barricades went up all over the city. The archbishop went to the barricades, trying to mediate between the two sides and prevent bloodshed, but he was caught in crossfire, was badly wounded, and died in this house a few days later.
Across the way, at number 54, you’ll find the last surviving Jeu de Paume hall (an early version of tennis) in Paris. No one plays tennis here anymore, but it’s well worth stepping inside to see the old wooden beams, and if you’d like, you can even stay at the boutique hotel built here.
Quai d’Orléans
Continue to the end of Rue Saint-Louis en l’Île and turn left onto Quai d’Orléans. The buildings here were built between 1614 and 1646, and unlike other quays, there’s no overload of celebrity history here, just beautiful buildings and a view of the eastern side of Notre-Dame Cathedral that you really shouldn’t miss.
Where you can find Chopin’s sheet music
The one spot here I think is truly worth mentioning is the Polish Library at number 6. The building itself dates from 1655, and in 1838 it was bought by Adam Czartoryski, who, as mentioned, lived at the Hôtel Lambert, with the goal of turning the place into a library that would house the best works of Polish culture.
The main attraction in this library is the Chopin Hall, where you can see the sheet music of this brilliant composer. The place is open Tuesday through Friday, from 2:30 to 6:00 p.m., and if you arrive when it’s closed, you can check out the virtual exhibition, which shows a good part of the items you can find in the library.
Geneviève watches over Paris against the Prussians
Of course, we can’t move on to the last quay of this walk without a few words about the Pont de la Tournelle, which separates Quai d’Orléans from Quai de Béthune and connects Île Saint-Louis to the Latin Quarter.
An older bridge with niches and statues once stood here, replaced by a more modern bridge built in 1928. As you can see, on the southeastern side of the bridge stands a statue by the Polish-French sculptor Paul Landowski (1875-1961).
As you can see, on the southeastern side stands Saint Geneviève, the patron saint of Paris, facing east, and that’s no coincidence, since that’s exactly the direction from which trouble reached Paris, both in 1870 and in 1914 (and later in 1940 as well, when Geneviève wouldn’t be able to save Paris from being occupied by the Germans).
If you’d like to read a bit about Saint Geneviève, I highly recommend reading about the history of the Latin Quarter.
Quai de Béthune
This quay, where a good number of the buildings were designed by our old friend Louis Le Vau, is also known as Quai aux Balcons, thanks to the beautiful balconies on the house fronts. But it’s not just the balconies that are beautiful here, some of the carved doors are too, so it’s well worth keeping your eyes open and letting all this beauty sink in.
The house where two Nobel Prize winners lived
Go to number 36, where you’ll find a house with a beautiful wooden door and a plaque telling you that the famous scientist Marie Curie (1867-1934) lived here.
Marie Curie lived here from 1912 until her death in 1934. In 1946, René Cassin (1887-1976) moved into the building; he too would win a Nobel Prize (the Peace Prize, in 1968) and died here in 1976.
Keep strolling along the quay, taking in the balconies and the ornate doors, and while you do, here’s something to think about. On Île Saint-Louis, we found a mansion where Chopin played piano, a Polish library, and a house where a Polish Nobel laureate lived. Maybe we should call this place Little Poland?
The house that Helena Rubinstein tore down
Continue to number 24 and you’ll find something interesting: a modern building with an old wooden door. A grand mansion once stood here, built by Louis Le Vau for the man in charge of the ballet budget under Louis XIV (yes, that was an actual job at the royal court), named Louis Cauchon (1597-1662). Cauchon’s family name sounds in French exactly like the word for “pig”, and ironically, he died of a stomach ailment after eating (like a pig) 294 walnuts in a single day.
This house, which was bought by the cosmetics tycoon Helena Rubinstein, was torn down by her in 1930 on the grounds that the building’s foundations were unstable. At the time, preservation wasn’t nearly as popular a cause as it is today, so she was allowed to do it, but at least the beautiful gate was preserved. Small mercies.
The house of the greatest lover of the 18th century (not Casanova)
We’ll end our walk at house number 18, which belonged to the Duke de Richelieu (Louis François Armand de Vignerot du Plessis, 1696-1788).
This duke was one of the most fascinating figures of the 18th century, and over his long life (he lived through the reigns of Louis XIV, Louis XV, and Louis XVI) he managed to rival Casanova in the sheer number of women he seduced. As far as I know, he was the only man in the world for whom two women fought a duel to win his romantic favor, and he claimed the number of women he managed to bring to his bed surpassed even Casanova’s tally (for example, he bragged that at one point he had slept with every woman on Place des Vosges).
And if that’s not enough for you, you’ll surely be glad to know that this man is credited with inventing mayonnaise, the perfect partner, in my opinion, for french fries (which, as it happens, the French probably didn’t invent).
With that important culinary tidbit, I’ll bid you farewell, since this is where our walking route ends. If you’d like to keep exploring, let me recommend the zigzag route along Boulevard Saint-Germain, which starts not far from here at all. All you need to do is head back to the Pont de la Tournelle, cross it toward the Latin Quarter, and from there you’ll quickly reach Boulevard Saint-Germain, where your next walking route begins.
FAQ
Who wrote the famous song about Île Saint-Louis?
What shape does the recommended walking route on Île Saint-Louis take?
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