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 HaasCC 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
Donna & Jim from Canada
This was our second trip arranged by France Just for You. That says a lot. What says more is we would do another trip with them without any concern. They are pros from the time the trip is planned to the very last minute of the journey. Every detail is provided through the travel book, app and communication, if needed, during the trip. We would …
Mounir from Dubai
Laura and Emilie organized a magical trip for us. Every little touch, every recommendation, every part of the trip was absolutely perfect and made our trip even more special! We definitely plan to organize more trips with them!
Elliot
You gave me so many good suggestions that honestly, I just walked everywhere you recommended, with something breathtaking around every corner. The guidebook was great and the suggestion to make an effort to try French was a solid one. I did much better once I got comfortable trying. I will recommend your service to anyone I know thinking at coming …
Chuck
Emilie was a great help in planning our trip and the accommodations and recommendations were excellent and well thought out. Unless you speak French and know the countryside, this is the best company for you to use to have a superb vacation and I would use them again anytime. They give you options so you can do what you like, but help with the …
Anshu & Family
One of the best planned and personalised travel experiences that my family and I have ever had. From information on how to go about navigating the toll machines on the highways; a range of brilliant restaurant recommendations in every town and village that we visited; interesting daily itineraries and extremely hospitable and generous hosts at all …
Annie & Rob from Australia
We had the most amazing holiday visiting all the wine regions in France fully arranged by France Just For You. Those ladies thought of everything….from parking & fuel station options to fabulous restaurants & patisseries, scenic walks & some of the prettiest villages, chateaus & gardens you’ll ever see. They also shared such a lot of history & fun …