Hotels near Ile Saint-Louis and the Seine Quays

Ile Saint-Louis is the smaller of the two islands in the Seine, developed as a single speculative project in the 1600s and barely altered since, which is why the whole island reads as one architectural piece. The Seine banks through central Paris are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the quays below street level on the island are the quietest stretch of them. Cross the Pont Saint-Louis from Ile de la Cite behind Notre-Dame and you are on it in a minute.

October is the month for the riverside walk. The plane trees along the Quai de Bourbon and Quai d'Anjou turn yellow over the water, the summer crowds on the quay steps have thinned, and the bouquinistes still have their green boxes open on the mainland banks. Rue Saint-Louis en l'Ile runs the length of the island with Berthillon, the ice cream house that has been here since 1954, roughly halfway along.

Pro Tip: Walk the lower quay rather than the street. Steps drop to water level on the north side at Quai de Bourbon, traffic noise disappears, and you get the Right Bank facades with autumn trees reflected in the river the whole way along.