Hello -
Our family of 4 will be in Paris for a mid-week stay in August. I'd like to possibly do a boat ride (not dinner, just a boat ride). Ideally, I'd like the flexibility to walk up and book it when we feel like it but I always worry about being fully booked.
Does anyone have experience to share if walk-ups are a reasonable plan for this, or is pre-booking essential?
Thanks.
Specific departures can fill up, specifically those around dusk. But overall, just walk up when you want.
Hi Matt,
Pre Booking is essential especially during peak Summer season in Paris for August. There will be many tourists in Paris during that time. Walk-ups are more doable during off peak season . I recommend Bateaux Mouches as an excellent tour operator to book a river sunset cruise with.
Rjean
We've taken Vedettes Pont Neuf several times during the evening hours and have never had a reservation, That said, however, the situation might have changed and it would not hurt to check to be sure. You might possibly make a reservation the day of the cruise so you have some leeway if there is bad weather.
Check out the Batobus, it is a hop-on hop-off ride with stops at all the major points along the Seine. We always just walk up and buy a ticket. Your ticket is good for all day and for a couple bucks more you can make it a two day ticket. We like it because when we get tired of walking we can just take another boat ride to cool off and relax. They have a number of boats so the wait isn't that long.
We took the sunset Vedettes Pont Neuf cruise and I bought our tickets online right before we walked over to Pont Neuf. When we got there, there were some people who are already in line and sending one of their party off to buy tickets at the window.
But keep in mind that this was in early April. I don’t know how August crowds would affect this.
Whatever you decide, arrive early so you can get premium seating. There are also capacity limits on each boat.
Wait to buy tickets immediately before the cruise you want leaves.
I bought the Vedettes Open ticket online which is valid for 1 year and costs 1 Euro more than the regular ticket.
https://www.vedettesdupontneuf.com/?utm_source=GoogleMyBusiness&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=Fiche
Last time we went on the Vedettes de Pont Neuf I reserved our time online. I checked when sunset would be in Paris on the day and reserved a time that fit with sunset and the ET lights going on. It was a first visit to Paris for the family members we were traveling with, and I wanted them to be sure of that magical hour. There was even a small discount for reserving online. We got in line early to be sure and get seats on top for the best views. This was in April, so it will probably be busier in the summer.
I do prefer Vedettes de Pont Neuf over Bateaux Mouches because I think their narrative is better, but to each his own.
