Paris Montmartre / Pigalle Running Route

Click here for route map
Length 5.5 km (3.4 miles), terrain: one hill, gain 60 meters

Paris Running Routes:
Best Paris Running Routes: Overview
Seine island of St. Louis, St. Paul, botanical garden  
Left bank and Luxembourg Gardens 
Paris' green heart: Bois de Boulogne   
Canal St. Martin  
Montmartre/Pigalle
Rock formations of Parc Chaumont  
Seine loop with Champs Elysees and Eiffel Tower  
Seine riverside run 
Bois de Vincennes 
Versailles Palace Gardens 
La Défense/Nanterre 
Saint Germain 
For more running routes, see Route List

If there is one neighborhood in Paris that fits every tourist's romantic Paris dream, it has to be Montmartre. This is the place where so many impressionist painters made Paris the center of the art world, where Toulouse-Lautrec painted the cancan dancers at the Moulin Rouge.

Artist in Montmartre: you just have to love Paris!

Renoir, van Gogh, Matisse, Degas, Picasso, Modigliani... They all lived and worked here, and they painted the scenes that played out before them in the streets and cafés of Montmartre. Many of them are now buried in the Montmartre cemetery.

The neighborhood is not big, so we'll zig-zag a bit on this short run, to see a few of the most scenic streets. Montmartre is one of the few hills in the Paris area, so this is one place to actually do some real hill-climbing.

South of the hill is the gritty Pigalle red-light district, with clubs like the Moulin Rouge, which adds a nice contrast to the picturesque hilltop. We'll combine the two neighborhoods, plus the cemetery into one really interesting run!

Start of the run at Place Pigalle

So get yourself to Place Pigalle, easy to reach with the Pigalle station of the number 2 and 12 Metro lines. The Folies Pigalle club lines one side of the round place.

Along Boulevard de Rochechouart

The big street here is the Boulevard de Clichy. It has a wide, tree-lined pedestrian promenade down the middle, so we'll follow that eastwards. We'll pass Star's Music store with its amazing variety of musical instruments, and a lot of local shops. Lots of people of leisure sit around on the benches along the promenade day and night.

The street-name soon changes to Boulevard de Rochechouart, and you'll come to Place d'Anvers on the right side. It's a nice little square, so let's round it and enjoy the greenery and come back out to the boulevard.

Place d'Anvers

Now we'll head north towards Montmartre hill. So cross the boulevard and run northwards along Rue de Steinkerque.

In two blocks you'll be at the base of the hill with Sacré-Cœur basilica crowning the hilltop with its beautiful white domes, throning above a park along the slope. This is the one-kilometer mark.

Sacré-Cœur from below

There are lots of people here, plenty of tourists and a lot of hustlers trying to separate them from their money. As runners, luckily, we're too fast for them...

So run up the zig-zag pathways heading to the top, then continue on the central steps to the plaza in front of this really impressive church.

View from the top!

The view from the top is great! You can see southwards and eastwards across the whole city. And good news: that was already the main climb, there isn't much more of a rise for the rest of the run!

Now turn left (westwards) to run past Sacré-Cœur along Rue Azais. It ends soon at Rue du Mont Cenis, where you turn right to run a bit uphill to a square at an older church, St. Pierre. This church is left from an old monastery at the site, built where St. Dennis was martyred by the Romans.

Until the late 1800s, the hill was still mainly open country: just the monastery on top, with hillsides covered with vineyards and fields, and with 13 windmills grinding the grain for the nearby city.

Portrait artists in action at Place du Tertre

Turn your back to St. Pierre and run straight west along Rue Norvins to the next square in just a block: the Place du Tertre. This square is the heart of the neighborhood, surrounded by restaurants, and the whole square is full of their outdoor tables. In the evening, the colorful lights make it enchanting.

Street scene in Montmartre

Really talented portrait artists line the square, waiting for people to request a portrait. It's fascinating to take a look.

So circle the square and continue down Rue Norvins for a couple of blocks, one of the most charming streets you'll ever see. In fact, EVERYTHING around here is charming. Keep your eyes open! A lot of things look somehow familiar if you've spent any time looking at impressionist art.

At La Bonne Franquette

At the first right-hand turn, take that street, Rue des Saules past more famous spots. That restaurant on the right, La Bonne Franquette, was made famous by van Gogh in his painting "La Guinguette". Pissarro, Sisley, Cézanne, Toulouse-Lautrec, Renoir, Monet and Zola all used to drink there.

We head downhill, then turn left at the first chance (at the pink house called La Maison Rose, onto Rue de l'Abreuvoir.

Photo shooting at La Maison Rose

The road leads to a square called Place Dalida, named after a popular singer and actress who had lived nearby. A lot of fans make a pilgrimage to her statue at the square. There is a viewpoint down the steps to the north. This area is noticeably quieter than the touristy area behind us: a nice change!

Fans visit Dalida

Now turn south along Rue Girardon for just a hundred meters, till Square Suzanne Buisson comes up on the right.

At the 2-kilometer mark, turn into the square to run past the boules players and others relaxing in this nice little park. Exit to the north through the flower gardens.  

Boules players in the heart of Montmartre

NOTE: at the moment, the northern part of the park is being renovated, so you have to head back to Place Dalida and turn left to run westwards, down the narrow lane that heads past the park.

Exit the park to the left and head west along quiet Rue Simon Dereure. It ends at Avenue Junot, where you turn left and follow it as it curves uphill back towards the area where we already were. On the right side, take a look into the beautiful little cul-de-sac, Villa Léandre.

Nice homes along Villa Léandre

When you reach the first intersection, at Rue Girardon, turn right and run the block till it ends at Le Moulin de la Galette (one of the old windmills, and scene of one of Renoir's most famous paintings, "Bal du moulin de la Galette".

Now continue along the narrow alley, Rue d'Orchampt. There is some interesting street art along the house walls here, so keep your eyes open!

Rue d'Orchampt

The alley turns to the left and continues downhill until it meets a couple of squares that connect, bringing you farther down the hill. So head downhill through Place Èmile-Boudeau and pass a couple of friendly pubs.

Place Èmile-Boudeau, heading downhill

Keep running straight downhill along Rue Ravignan until it ends at one of the main streets down along the hillside, the Rue des Abbesses.

This is a lively neighborhood, with lanes heading further downhill, and restaurants and shops all around.

Let's turn left to run just two blocks to the Place des Abbesses, a spot that looks so Parisian. This 3-kilometer mark has a carousel and a Metro station, and there's an interesting little park behind it, with its "Le mur des je t'aime", the "I love you" wall. The words are translated into lots of languages all over the wall, and many romantics head here to take a few pictures.

The "I love you" wall

Circle the park then head back along Rue des Abbesses in the other direction, heading downhill to the west.

Run about five blocks, until the road splits. Continue straight along the left-hand street, Rue Joseph de Maistre (stay to the left of the nice old half-timbered house with the Le Basilic restaurant).

This way along Rue des Abbesses!

In a block, you'll come to a busy street, Rue Caulaincourt, where you turn left. You'll cross a bridge above the Cimetière de Montmartre below. The cemetery was built in an old gypsum quarry, which is why it's so low. In fact, the whole hill is honey-combed by old gypsum mines. The mining started back in the Celtic days, before the Romans arrived.

At the south end of the bridge, take the stairs downward and then turn left to enter the cemetery, at the 4-kilometer mark. It's an interesting place, with memorials to lots of famous locals (lots of artists, and Dalida again!).

The Montmartre cemetery

Basically, just circle the cemetery on whichever paths you think look most interesting. You'll have to exit at the same place that you came in.

It's a bit eerie, a sea of old tombs and monuments, in its own little netherworld below the busy city streets.

When you exit the cemetery, continue south, down Avenue Rachel until it ends at Boulevard de Clichy.

Now you just have to get to the promenade in the middle again and turn left to run eastwards back to Place Pigalle.

The Moulin Rouge, always good for a picture!

Along the way, you'll pass the Moulin Rouge club on the left side with its famous dance revue (cancan was invented here). And a few hundred meters later, you'll be at Pigalle again. Now that was a lot of contrast!

Paris Versailles Running Route

Click here for route map
Length 10.4 km (6.5 miles), terrain: mainly flat with light hills

Paris Running Routes:
Best Paris Running Routes: Overview
Seine island of St. Louis, St. Paul, botanical garden  
Left bank and Luxembourg Gardens 
Paris' green heart: Bois de Boulogne   
Canal St. Martin  
Montmartre/Pigalle
Rock formations of Parc Chaumont  
Seine loop with Champs Elysees and Eiffel Tower  
Seine riverside run 
Bois de Vincennes 
Versailles Palace Gardens 
La Défense/Nanterre 
Saint Germain 
For more running routes, see Route List

You may have heard that Versailles is the biggest and most spectacular palace in the world. And you may have heard that the palace gardens are one of the landmark examples of European gardening, full of fountains, statues, reflecting pools and manicured hedges. But maybe you haven't heard that the gardens are free, and open to the public every day from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. And they are actually quite easy to get to, using the Paris public transport network.

NOTE: The gardens are only free during the winter, from November through March, or Mondays in the rest of the year. From April to October, access to the gardens is subject to a fee from Tuesday to Sunday (days of the Fountain Shows or Musical Gardens). Tickets can be purchased online for €10.50 at this website.

Autumn colors in the Versailles gardens

So, if you're in Paris and have time to get to the gardens in time for a run before the park closing time, take my recommendation: just jump at the chance! You will get a close-up view of the palace and then explore the vast gardens to an extent that few of the other visitors can. The gardens are very formal and detailed close to the palace, but get more natural as you head westwards, further away. You will even find yourself running past vegetable fields and sheep pastures at the furthest reaches of the grounds: quite a contrast to the manicured environment around the main buildings.

So, if you'd like to try the Versailles Challenge, just jump on one of the commuter trains of the RER "C" line, heading towards St. Quentin or Versailles itself. The SARA and VICK trains all stop at either the Versailles Chateau station or the Versailles Chantiers station. The two Versailles stations are just a few blocks apart, and a short walk from the palace. The current Metro price from the city is €3.50.

Avenue de Paris, looking towards the chateau

To take on this very contrasty run, get yourself to the corner of Avenue de Paris and Avenue du Général de Gaulle, at the Versailles city hall (Mairie). This is just a block north of the Versailles Chateau station. The tree-lined Avenue de Paris is the main boulevard leading up to the chateau, just two blocks away.

The town itself is elegant and worth a visit in its own right: set up by the king to house government offices and employees, and it was the French capital for 100 years. It's a lot like Berlin's Potsdam: a pleasant, planned town created to provide a fitting first impression of the king's neighborhood.

Standing at the corner, next to the mairie, turn west to face the palace a few blocks in the distance. Now run the two blocks to the big open, cobble-stoned plaza in front of the palace, now used mainly for parking. Run past the equestrian statue of Louis XIV, who built the palace, and head through the first, ornate metal gate.

Versailles entrance: to enter gardens, run between the 2 buildings on right

Now you run right up to the golden gate, where people buy tickets for the palace tour. There will be masses of tourists milling all over, but don't worry, it won't stay like this for long.

The palace is one of the most opulent buildings in the world, with golden fences and decorations glittering in the sun, and imposing facades everywhere you look.

The palace from the front

So now, turn right and head to the alley to the left side of the ornate chapel, past the building with the inscription "A Toutes les Gloires de la France". Humility wasn't Louis' strong-point.

This is the way into the gardens. Just run through the arched walkways to the gardens on the other side. There is a boarding spot right there for a little train that takes people on tours of the gardens. The people will still be pretty numerous here, but the gardens are so big that even here there is plenty of room to run past them.

The gardens just behind the palace

So now run to the backside of the massive palace, with its three wings. Past the little ponds behind the central wing of the palace, towards the left. There is a wide staircase leading down into the further gardens to the west. We'll basically follow a counter-clockwise loop around the grounds from here.

Overlooking the huge grounds: full of great running trails

There is a great view up there, and you just follow the walkways down past the clipped shrubs and statuary towards the fountains and lake straight ahead.

Next, you'll come to the Apollo fountain at about the 1.5-km mark, with the god driving his chariot horses through the pond. Immediately thereafter, the "Grand Canal" starts, a cross-shaped lake that dominates the park. To run in the gardens means having to run around the lake.

Fountain of Apollo, with Grand Canal lake in background

You could just stay along the shores of the lake, running a cross-pattern, or follow the trails that connect the tips of the cross with each other, in a diamond shape, or loop around the outside of the whole grounds. This route combines a bit of each, but of course, you could do it any way you please. It's all good.

To follow this route, head to the right side of the lake, where the café and the rowboat-rental are. This is the liveliest corner of the gardens, and the most fun place to people-watch. Just watch out for all the bicycles and rental golf-carts that vie for the walkways.

The lake, with boats and café

Run to the café, then -- immediately afterwards -- turn right to head along the Allée de la Reine, a quiet walkway with little woods to each side. You're now heading northwards towards Trianon Palace, the place where the king normally lived: homier and more livable than the gigantic main palace. The main building was used mainly for parties and receptions.

Trianon Palace

When you reach Trianon, just after the 2-km mark, take a look around, then head to the left. You'll now run downhill along the paved path called Allée de 2 Trianons to the northern point of the cross-shaped lake. The walled gardens of Trianon Palace are along your right side, and woods to the left.

When you reach the water, keep heading west directly next to the wall, along Allée de Bailly. The main path is paved, but there is a little dirt path to the right side, next to the wall. The main path later turns to cobblestones and isn't very pleasant to run on.

Allée de Bailly: suddenly fields and woods everywhere

From now on, you will see fewer and fewer people: just a few hikers and bicyclists, and even a few other runners. You won't be the only person to be running the gardens.

You will soon be running out between farm fields and woods. At the third turn-off to the left, where you will see a wooden gate to a horse pasture on the left, turn left onto the Allée de la Ceinture, at the 4-km mark. This is also just before reaching the stone wall along the west edge of the grounds, which you can see bordering the far side of the pastures.

The turn-off onto Allée de la Ceinture, along meadows full of horses and sheep

Now head southwards. Here, you'll also find a dirt path next to the cobble-stoned lane, along the left side this time. You'll head a bit downhill, with the horse pastures along the right side, and woods and vegetable fields on the left. There are also sheep pastures at the little farm buildings along the right, as it starts going uphill again.

You will now come to the western entrance into the park at Grille Royale, to the west of the lake. Now turn left to run through the open lawns leading down to the lake, at the 6-km mark.

At the intersection of the lake

Just follow the southern shore. Run until you reach the intersection of the cross, then turn right to keep following the water towards the south.

Round the southern tip, at the 7.5-km mark, then take the diagonal path to the right, another lane called Allée de la Reine. This time you're heading towards the eastern tip of the lake, at the Apollo Fountain. This avoids the ever-growing crowds along the eastern edge of the lakeside.

Last stretch along Allée de la Reine towards Fountain of Apollo

Once you get back to the eastern tip of the lake, just re-trace your original steps for the last two kilometers. You'll run back eastwards to the palace, head out into the plaza out front, then continue towards the east, along the Avenue de Paris. In 2 blocks you'll be back at the city hall again. Now that was a run with a lot of amazing variety!

Best Paris Running Routes and Trails

Top 12 Paris Routes
Arriving in Paris, it can look like a very unpleasant place to run. There are lots of wide, traffic-clogged streets, sidewalks full of people, uneven pavement, and lots of noise. In all, it's pretty daunting. But I love running in Paris. It's easy to avoid the loudest streets and to discover interesting neighborhoods all over this city full of character. The parks aren't as big as in London, but you can still find green areas and waterside runs to highlight your day.

Tuileries boat rentals

The Best Paris Routes
Seine/Champs Elysees Loop:  This is the classic Paris run. If you have just one chance to run, try this: following part of the Seine, running through the Louvre and Tuileries gardens, and then up the Champs Elysées to the Arc de Triomphe, then to the Eifel Tower and back, past the Invalides and along the Seine again.

Seine Riverside Run:  This run traces the newly cleared-of-traffic riverside sections, turning the Seine into a running paradise. This is the place for a morning jog if you're staying in the center of town.

Left Bank Route:  Discover the backstreets in the Latin Quarter around the Sorbonne University with this run.

Montmartre / Pigalle: Montmartre is maybe the most romantic neighborhood in Paris: hilltop views, Sacré-Cœur basilica, artists painting portraits on every corner, charming restaurants. Who can resist?

Canal St. Martin:  Here's a quiet, scenic run that follows the old Canal St. Martin, with its arched pedestrian bridges and boat locks.

Saint Germain: This short Left Bank run explores the quintessential neighborhood, St. Germain, with its galleries, cafés and bookstores, along with the Luxembourg Garden and the Seine.

Parc Chaumont:  This park is a hidden gem on the north side of town. An ex-quarry, it's full of cliffs, water and an island citadel. Also a great place to do some hill work.

Bois de Boulogne:  This is the place to go on a summer evening. This wooded parkland on the west edge of town is a paradise for runners, with lakes and gardens, streams and trees.

La Défense/Nanterre: This interesting route takes you through a whole different side of the French soul, discovering the modernistic architecture of the La Défense area. 

St. Louis/St. Paul/Jardin des Plantes:  This route explores the eastern side of the town center, and this beautiful section of the Seine, with its islands. It starts at the Île de la Cité, at Notre Dame, and crosses Île Saint-Louis with its old houses, then loops through the old Marais neighborhood before crossing the Seine to the botanical gardens, the Jardin des Plantes. A loop through this beautiful little park precedes the run back along the south bank of the Seine.

Bois de Vincennes: Like the Bois de Boulogne, but for the east side of Paris: wooded parkland with lakes, athletic fields, streams and garden. A great place to run!

Versailles Palace Gardens: The extensive gardens are free to the public, full of trails and offer impressive contrasts from the opulent palace to vegetable fields and sheep pastures. Definitely a run you'll never forget.