St Martin Canal Cruise; best route?

I like the trip up the Seine and into the Canal. I think you get the classic boat trip through Paris first, and then get to explore the neighborhoods you might not otherwise see.

And then you can decide if you want to explore more.

Most of the time is spent on the river rather than the canal.

The only sensible thing to do is go in the direction that keeps the sun out of your eyes. If you leave the d'Orsay, you're heading east -- don't do this in the early morning. And vise versa.

The other factor is wind timing. The river has concrete banks. In the summer when there is no wind, once you get below the lip, the heat and humidity become opressive. If the wind is from the north or south, or there is not wind, and it's hot, don't go at mid-day.

The Canauxrama boat leaves from Bastille and there is an "old hand" who is your guide in both English & French. At least, he was twenty years ago as well as two years ago, when last I took that trip. He is British, and as an added treat plays the flute for one and all and tells (corny) jokes.

Thanks for the suggestions. One other question-----is this trip likely to be more crowded on Saturday than during the week? We leave early Sunday morning, so I thought this might be a relaxing way to spend half of our last day.

If you look up the schedules for departures and are among the first in line, you won't have a problem. The boat has a max. capacity, after all. You may want to google the Science Park at La Villette to see if you want to spend some time there before you make your way back to the city by metro.