The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, has announced that people will be able to swim in three monitored zones of the Seine river starting from 2025. There will also be changing areas where people can shower, get changed and store their belongings safely.

The hope is for swimming in the capital’s river to become a major legacy of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Parts of the river will be used for the marathon swimming events and the swimming portion of the triathlons (at Point Alexandre III). It will also be the stage of the opening ceremony.

The five Olympic rings in Paris with the Eiffel Tower in the background

©

Anne Jea, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Swimming in the Seine has been prohibited since 1923 because of the dangers to swimmers from boats and poor water quality. But for the last seven years, a huge clean-up project has been undertaken in preparation for the Olympic swimming events. Authorities now say that, based on levels of waterborne bacteria, it is now safe to swim in the Seine 90% of the time.

The plan is to carry out daily tests once the river is open for swimming, to ensure acceptable water quality. Currently, this only tends to dip below acceptable levels for a short time after very heavy rainfall.

Paris Plage - a man-made beach along a stretch of the Seine river. There are people on sun loungers and blue parasols
Paris Plage
©

Peter Haas, CC BY-SA 3.0

Authorities are working to improve this even further by making improvements to sewage treatment plants, building large storage basins that will stop bacteria-filled waste entering the river after rainfall and by cracking down on boats, businesses and homes that empty wastewater into the Seine.

With summer temperatures in Paris rising almost on a yearly basis (and predicted to reach up to 50°C/122°F by 2050), opening the river for swimming will mean Paris continues to remain livable during the summer months in the future.

So from 2025, three bathing areas will be open. The first is located at Bras Marie, where ‘Paris Plage’ (Paris Beach) takes place on some Sundays during the summer.

The second bathing area will be at the Bras de Grenelle, between the port of Grenelle and the banks of Île au Cygnes. The third will be in Bercy, below the Parc de Bercy.

 

If you're looking for a tour that helps you explore Paris's most popular attractions AND discover hidden gems away from the tourist crowds, we invite you to browse our Paris self-guided tour page.

France Just For You

Experts in self-drive tours in France

Travelers Reviews

5.0
Candy
Wherever possible we prefer to travel on our own as opposed to going on a tour package. With France - Just For You, they arranged for a vehicle and booked us into a couple of lovely B&B’s and a great Boutique Hotel in Paris and booked a couple of activities that we were interested in. Besides that, they put together a book for us with everything we …
Jena
Our trip was exactly as expected, planned perfectly with so many amazing tips on where and how to get around like a local. 25 days, with lots of driving and so much to see. Paris, Versailles, Normandy, Loire Valley, Sancerre, Dordogne and Bordeaux. We were warmly welcomed at all B&Bs and felt that we really got a local feel everywhere we went. All …
Maureen
If I had to sum up our trip in one word it would just have to be WOW! But of course it is impossible to describe the trip of a lifetime in just one word. The detail and care that Emilie put into planning our trip was AMAZING. Every place we stayed, every outing she planned, every person that she put us in contact was wonderful. My husband and I …
Clare & Greg
We just got back from a 2-week fairytale trip to the Southwest of France, perfectly planned for us by Emilie and Guillaume. We spent 3 days in Carcassonne, 4 days in the Dordogne, and 4 days in the Medoc. Each B&B was charming and the hosts were wonderfully welcoming. The special activities that were planned (truffle-hunting, wine-tasting and …
Miller Family
Our family of 5 adults spent 17 days touring France on a trip built around the Women's World Cup Semi-finals and Final in Lyon. France Just For You did a marvelous job setting up beautiful, well managed B&B's in 5 different regions as we explored both the history and gastronomy of France. Guided tours from personable and informative guides during …
Marjorie
My husband and I found France Just For You on the internet, while trying to plan a trip to France. We knew, given our desire to see both Normandy and the south of France, that we would spend hours deliberating about the details. We provided Emily with a budget, the duration of our vacation and a few must-sees and she provided us with a three-week …