The Spectacular Subterranean Canal Underneath Paris
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- Опубликовано: 6 фев 2025
- Hidden underneath the streets of Paris - almost forgotten among the catacombs, sewers, and metro tunnels - is an old subterranean canal. But where does it go? What is it for? And more importantly, how do you get down there? I decided to find out...
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TUNNEL CRUISES
Paris Canal - www.pariscanal... (Includes River Seine as far as Musée d'Orsay)
Canauxrama - www.canauxrama... (Cruise ends at Bassin de l'Arsenal)
as a disabled person (cane user) who's visiting Paris soon (two weeks!), I really appreciate all of your accessibility notes for things you show off. Thank you!
Agreed about the accessibility notes! Even though I am unlikely to ever travel from the US to any of these places, thanks to this internet I do have disabled friends in Europe who potentially could.
I agree - even if it doesn't impact me, I think it's a kind and thoughtful inclusion in the videos.
UK Comedian Richard Herring did a comedy show about disability - tho not in a disrespectful way. One of the themes he emphasized was that humanity can be divided into "the disabled" and "the not yet disabled" - because with the passage of time that is where almost all of us end up.
@@john-r-edgewe also start that way - as babies in strollers. And we might be in that place temporarily at any point in life (think broken leg or similar).
@@john-r-edge The man has a point.
Hello Tim. I work for the Paris Water and Sewage department, and I really appreciate your channel and this video in particular, great job showing the people that there's more to a city's infrastructure than what is visible.
Please give him an insider tour of some infrastructure!
and I'm sure he appreciates your channel(s) right back 👍
Les egouts?
I visited the sewer museum this year - well worth it!
Paris has a huge amount of below-surface level infrastructure that eventually should be part of a tour.
"We're not here to see any of that!" That line always brings a smile to my face.
Same but I had 8 days in Paris once and until now did not even know I had missed this. In 8 days you do miss so much but I want to know I missed it.
I actually cheered, quite inadvertently! 😂
@@lauxmyth That's OK. I lived there for a year and didn't know about it. Based on Tim's videos, I did check out the Petite Ceinture and the Coulée Verte the last time I was in Paris.
First time I've heard it towards the end of a video!
@@respectedgentleman4322 True, it is generally in the first 10 seconds or so. It was still my favorite line. ;)
Welcome to the first instalment of 'Tim acts like a normal tourist'
"Tim" and "normal" in one sentence and without negation? That does not compute ;)
"acts" is doing heavylifting in that sentence
But we're not here to see any of that...
I literaly live on top of the tunnel and, if i was vaguely aware of its existence, i didn't know it was possible to visit it. Thanks for the suggestion, Tim, and thanks for the videos
Pedantry corner - the canal runs entirely under the middle of the Boulevard Richard-Lenoir so the only thing above it is the park and the market in the middle of the street. So unless you are homeless, you probably live adjacent to it.
@@AlexanderJEBradley True. I guess "i live above the walls" sounds pretty good too, then.
As a Parisian I can confirm I never went on any such cruise, nor did I wonder where the canal goes. I just sit on the quai with my friends and a bottle of wine we bought from the Super U nearby.
Same. 20 years of living here and I didn't know the canal was going underground in its final part. Now I want to see it with my own eyes lol.
I’ll be pedantic for the sake of being on Tim’s channel and say that it’s not a Super U but a U express.
That sounds really nice.
@@demathieuxmerwan9225 lmao you're not wrong. It was either that one or the franprix next to place de la République.
I have actually been on a few of the boat rides around, usually when a tourist friend of my mums visits Paris tho iirc
A rare TTT example of playing the music completely straight, just to provide atmosphere, even though admittedly it's French, from the 19th century, and called _Aquarium._
Thanks; I *wondered* what that music was...
There's also Rosie & Jim intro youtu.be/watch?v=c7DsmJR-bX8
thank you very much for this information! I'm looking for the name of this piece for years and Shazam couldn't find it either.
For completeness: it's the seventh movement from _Carnaval des animaux_ for small orchestra by Parisian composer Camille Saint-Saëns. This version sounds like a very good digital rendering, not a live performance.
@@hugobouma I believe Tim records all his own music.
Tim I know this has been said in the past but thank you for highlighting accessibility issues in all your videos. I have a family member with very limited mobility and knowing in advance what's off the menu is a godsend and saves from last minute frustrations.
I absolutely love the “pedantry corner” caption to overcome the question of where the apostrophe goes as troubled Private Eye back in the day
Um, am I the only one to wince at "Paris's" and fail to notice a related pedantry corner comment?
Um, am I the only one to twitch at "Paris's" and not notice a related Pedantry Corner comment? But of course we're not here to discuss any of that...
@@davidbuick8401 since you asked... PEDANTRY CORNER: most style guides these days recommend Paris's as the correct possessive form. However some (including presumably you?) prefer Paris'.
@@TheTimTraveller I'm shocked. I must be too French. Marseilles's? :o
@@TheTimTravellerwas 'Pedantry Corner' a self fulfilling prophecy? 🤔😂
I want you to know yours is the only channel on RUclips, the ONLY ONE where the music you choose for your videos doesn't piss me off.
So on all other channels, where Tim chooses the music, it pisses you off? ; )
@@borchen0
Only when Tim chooses the music for HIS videos on those other channels.
Off on a tangent and with the danger of sounding too pedantic, Shouldn't we call ti a RUclips canal rather than a channel? A channel is natural, if it's human made, it's a canal.
This is the frist video in ages that I almost didn't watch completely because of the horrendous noise that completely obliterated any opinion or experience that I might have had otherwise.
It’s so good that I didn’t even notice any music
We did the canal and tunnel by boat for the first time about 4 years ago and repeated it last year when visiting Paris. As an engineer I find the whole thing interesting. I would recommend it to anyone going to Paris. Another excellent video Mr Tim.
I'm living in Paris since 2005 and I never visited. I knew the tunnel existed, but I didn't know it could be visited. I will book a tour one of these days. Thank you!
Wow! I was in Paris in late August, walking around the Canal Saint-Martin, and was amazed to see a boat in the locks... something I hadn't seen on previous trips. My wife and I watched for about 5 minutes as the boat disappeared into what we then realized was an underground section of the canal... something we also had not noticed before. Fast forward two months and now I'm wondering if I was watching your boat! Great video as always. :)
Always have a smile on my face when a Tim video drops
My variant: "Tim Traveller videos always make me smile."
same
I have learnt so much from them, and visited places I'd never have known about otherwise! I did know about the canal tunnel (used to work near its entrance), but not that one could visit it.
@@ronstewtsawWell said. Videos are uploaded, not 'dropped'.
You're so melodramatic Tim with your suspenseful music, only to find that the tunnel wasn't gloomy and foreboding at all, but rather beautiful with it's shafts of natural light and electric wall lights.
Theme from Unsolved Mysteries, a musical joke he's used a few times.
@@johnladuke6475 Ahh his music is always such clever references.
Took the tour. The tunnel, the locks and great views of several neighborhoods... well worth the time!
The Aquarium from Camille Saint-Saëns fits perfectly here. Thanks for that great discovery.
That boat tour is the one touristy thing I thoroughly enjoyed!
2:57 that’s very decent lighting for a deserted place. It’s cool to see there are such specific cruises, apart of those standard ones from Tour Eiffel to Notre Dame and back.
I'm truly grateful for your sacrifice - two and a half hours on a tourist boat, but boy was it worth it - for us!
Brussel also used the "cut & cover method" to bury their river, the Zenne. You need to visit the Sewer museum to see it, which has the entry & exit above ground in a former city gate, but most of the museum is underground.
3:04 this is really cool to watch the small wake moving along with the boat
Rosie and Jim, lovely stuff.
But talking on accessibility, I took my disabled mother on a bateau bus a good 15 years ago. They were very helpful at lifting her wheelchair on to the boat and getting her on for a great experience.
No Tim Travel video would be complete without "...but we're not here to see any of that" ;-) Thanks for another great insight into hidden Paris!
That's an amazing drop of brickwork. Murky buckets!
This channel is hands down the best touristing channel on YT.
You always provide the perfect soundtrack to your videos and some old ragdolls aside, Le Carnaval des animaux was simply perfect for the tunnel! 😊
This has nothing to do with the topic of the video but I feel the need to tell you that I love your title music and it always improves my mood to hear it.
The Jungfraubahn episode has an superbly epic extended mix of it.
Bravo, très intéressant pour moi qui ne connaissait pas ce canal souterrain, et bien présenté aussi, on sent le gars qui parle bien le français et qui connait et apprécie notre pays. Merci à Tim le voyageur 😉 👍
My wife and I did this in the summer of 2018, from the southern end just south of the Place de la Bastille to the northern point at which the Canal Saint Martin meets the Canal de Saint Denis. It was a truly wonderful and unique experience - especially the part where the canal disappears off underground!
Thank you for a great video!That'll definitely go on my to-do list next time I'm in Paris!
I saw the tunnel and thought, "I've seen that in a Mission Impossible film" - sure enough, it featured in MI: Fallout (2018)!
Amazing canal tunnel, I’m very jealous!
So this is where they filmed for the Paris Olympics commencement show. And I know what I'll be doing for my next visit to Paris! Thank you, Tim!
Merci for another great TTT vid.
I've driven my boat along the Canal St Martin from the Arsenal to la Villette and back, and that tunnel is equal parts fabulous, surreal and eerie. But the freakiest bit is being watched by literally hundreds of onlookers as you negotiate each set of locks.
Is the canal open for any vessel to navigate? Or do you need to get special permission to drive your personal boat through it?
@@InventorZahran Very good question. If your boat has a license from the national waterways agency (VNF) you're OK to navigate that tunnel and the wider canal even though it's not part of the VNF network. From memory there's a small fee, collected by the canal official who supervises your passage.
Not sure about really small boats (under 5.5m) or kayaks etc. Someone else on here may know.
And as for Paris Police frog-people (I saw a bunch of them swimming into the tunnel last time I was at the Arsenal basin) that's anybody's guess.
I remember walking along above this, tracing what we supposed must be the canal when we're last in Paris. Amazing to see it for reals!
I really appreciate the accessibility updates at the end. Very kind.
Being a Dutchman having lived in both London and Paris, I absolutely love your videos. Keep up the good work!
Coool - literally in summer. 🙂
I love how you always give the extra bits one doesn’t get in brochures, like go on a sunny day, accessibility info, different perspectives, etc. Thanks for going the extra mile, or kilometer, or league. 🙂
Thanks Tim, that would provide a nice change of atmosphere.
Stunning light coming from the eyes to the sky.
Feeling a little chuffed for recognising the Rosie and Jim tune. Thanks Tim for another enjoyable adventure.
When I was last in Paris I spotted this canal tunnel, wondered where it went, and then promptly forgot about it. Thanks for showing us this hidden gem.
So when you were in the tunnel and was discussing the play of light on the water as a photographer's dream I could not help but think Oh Wow you Totally passed up the opportunity to say it's a photographer's wet dream!!! 🤠👍
If you ever back at Rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud (as seen on 3:39) don't miss out on restaurant Les p'tites indécises. Very good local restaurant, packed every night.
There's something disconcerting about an arch that wide, low, and shallow. The semi-circles at the end had me sighing with relief.
I never wanted to visit a tunnel so bad, thanks for showing me this!
Also kudos for always mentioning the accessibility of a certain place.
The thumbnail to this gives me a Baker Street Station but flooded vibe.
Yeah because 3:51
There is always something new in life to learn. I've been in Paris several occasions and never even heard about it. Thank you for pointing to it.
This has to be the coolest thing you've shown on this channel yet
0:40 "How to access the St Martin Canal tunnel without getting deported from France"
Whatever, the "Obligation to leave French territory" or expulsion are not exercised. If they were, we would have prevented many crimes and innocent victims.
@@Petitmoi74 tout a fait d'accord
@@Petitmoi74 Why is there always someone who has to make it about migration and be racist about it? It is compulsive?
If only the former French colonies could have enforced the deportation of the French, they wouldn't have been exploited and their economies wouldn't be in ruins. Trying your luck in Europe wouldn't be so attractive either, despite the cost and risk. The latest region wide unrest in Western Africa stems from France's constant interference.
It also would've prevented centuries of exploitation, brutal violence and death.
@@Yvolve I don't know why you think it's racist. A foreigner (non-French) can be white, you're the one who made the racist shortcut in your head.
And I don't care what happens elsewhere, what I do know is that sometimes a criminal was on the S list and/or had to be deported, but the order wasn't carried out.
It's not the criminal (or his race, as you seem to understand it) that I'm criticising but our system/government, which orders the deportation of a dangerous person but doesn't care if he's still roaming the territory.
@@Yvolve It's pure paranoia on their part. It will never go away as long as there are people with mental health issues.
Thanks for all your videos Tim. I’ve been watching for ages. Love the things you discover and how you share them. Too da loo
carnival of the animals is SOO dope. and that tunnel too. and you too. cheerz from germany
Dope? That could mean 'stimulant drug' (Aufputschmittel) or 'stupid person' (Blöd).
Thanks for showing around the less touristy parts of Paris, Tim. I gasped audibly at those beams of light illuminating the tunnel perfectly. It looked so calm and serene.
Of course, it also looked like Batman's submarine could emerge from it at any point. It just looked that cinematic. Well done, sir!
Thank you for this great video. Brought back wonderful memories of going through the tunnel from the River Seine and up the locks with my partner several years ago.
There's a significant underground section of a canal in my hometown of Falkirk, in Scotland. You can just walk through it normally and it's always a cool experience, no matter how many times I do it.
This is fascinating! The public often walks unaware of the hidden underground spaces beneath their feet, which hold intriguing secrets. The brickwork on display here is truly exceptional. Note the impressive canal tunnel in Paris, France.
You've done it again.
Shown me something unknown (to me) and wonderful.
Thank you.
☮
Loved the Ocean Colour Scene musical segment!
What an Engineering Marvel and still in use. Thanks for taking us on this tour!!
I did this exact cruise (although in reverse) with my grandparents when I was a child 😍 I live in Paris now and my friends wouldn't believe me when I told them the Boulevard was actually a canal!
Wow, what an interesting story. I take it in mind for my next trip to Paris.
If come to the Lorraine-area, there is a cool ship elevator facility at Arzviller-Saint Louis, the plan incliné, which took 17 locks out of service nearby and spare one day of travel for ships. Nearby is the double tunnel entrance of the Canal de la Marne au Rhin and the railroad next to it unterneath Arzviller. 45mins away at Bénestroff you can find a lost roundhouse in the forest, which is a lostplace for decades.
Thank you for that fascinating look into something I've never heard of before. Fascinating! As someone who has watched numerous Narrowboat adventures on the English canals, that was fantastic. Thank you from Australia.
Fabulous Filming as always. Thanks Tim, that started my day off a treat!
😁 Another good one - even though you didn't try to simply "sneak in". Thanks for showing !
I done that canal cruise a few years back. Definitely a great way to see the city. Lol
I've been researching places to visit in Paris and not one other list had this and it's now top of the to do list!
3:17 This seems like it would've been the inspiration for the lake under the Opera Garnier in The Phantom of the Opera, especially reminiscent of the 2001 movie musical version. (So spooky in a very surreal and beautiful way). And the concrete bit reminds me of The Backrooms.
Can see why you say that, but fyi the lake under the Opera Garnier is inspired by reality - there actually is water underneath it :)
www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-water-tank-beneath-palais-garnier-paris-france
Amazing. We saw a bit of this canal travelling from gare du nord to gare de Lyon with all our bags. If I had realised there was a boat through the canal. ….. thanks Tim
Really nice ! Super cool how this cruise comes out of the tunnel to get in the Bassin de l'Arsenal. When I used to take the line 1 everyday for work, it was always a pleasure to have a look at it while the metro stopped. Working on slightly late hours, the station was usually empty enough to let me see the water during the stop.
Well, this is just gorgeous! Thanks, Tim!
Who knew? ok this is a must on my next trip! Thanks for all the great insights into all things trains, ferries, boats and trams!
I absolutely love tourist river cruises where can usually get a nice cup of tea, some fruit cake and use the toilet if required. We’ve just visited Prague on a BA short break, and that was excellent.
Once again! You have made a clever and interesting video! I learned something new! Thanks Tim for your hard work and fantastic videos!
Very good 👍 film and very informative. Thanks. Greetings from Greece 🇬🇷.
This is awesome! I've visited Paris a few times over the years, yet I had never even heard of this underground canal.
I would love to visit Paris one day!!! It looks like such a beautiful city!!
Thanks for the voyage Tim, next stop Budapest oldest metro line. I love Budapest history, architecture, underground clubs (in true old school buildings "need to know a local to get in"), so many spaaaaaaas, etc ✨
@Tim If you ever visit Antwerp, visit the underground "Ruien" ... there are various routes & all of them are crazy if you also check the route above ground later ... you would never expect the route below to be there. Sadly I don't know if there is still one with a boat, but the (mostly dry) walks are already cool to do
I awaited the Ocean Colour Scene cover and wasn’t disappointed. As always great video, thanks Tim.
As a Parisian, I knew the existence of this canal, but I'm delighted to know more about it now. And I will probably do what you said truthfully no parisian would do: Book sooner or later a tour on this boat. Thank you.
btw: I suggest a video idea: The "Musée des égouts de paris", the parisian suage museum, wich is litteraly inside the Paris suage system, near the Eiffel tower
Thanks you... having spent many a coffee sitting along Canal St. Martin. I had no idea that the boats went through... thanks for enlightening!
Once again teaching me things about where I live. With Rosie and Jim in the background. Who else could do this?
I was wondering about those "light holes" (oculi), and, Tim, you never disappoint. Most excellent!
Love the unsolved mysteries background music in the beginning..🤔🤷🏻♂️💯😂😎
I knew that it existed from a video on Jay Swanson's channel, but didn't expected that it could be so beautiful.
Amazing video, as usual... but now I'd like one on the last vertical-lifting bridge of Paris!
That is so cool! I love those secret underground spaces that you walk over all the time without realizing what’s right under your feet.
Here in Austin, TX, we have a similar underground canal. It was originally a small creek that ran parallel to one of our major creeks; the small creek was called Little Shoal Creek, running just a few blocks from Shoal Creek. Little Shoal Creek was fed by natural springs and ran through downtown until it merged with Shoal Creek. During the late 1800s and early 1900s, Little Shoal Creek was turned into a lowered canal, lined with stone walls, then completely covered across its entire length. The only sign it’s there is the opening to the tunnel where it merges with Shoal Creek.
You can easily walk through nearly the entire tunnel; it’s mostly quite large and the water is just ankle deep when we haven’t had rain for a while. A friend and I used to put on waders and carry big torches to explore the tunnel. You can see the underside of some nineteenth century bridges as you walk through, and there are some very large chambers down there where groups will gather for hidden "parties." Sadly, once you get to within a few blocks of the springs that formed the original creek, the tunnel becomes just a narrow pipe that I’m not willing to enter (smaller than a meter in diameter). But the rest of the tunnel goes from 4th St. to 19th St., so it’s quite a lot to explore.
I find the swimming pool steps wonderfully surreal, nice engineering throughout.
Merci Tim ! For the pictures and the beautiful music of Camille Saint-Saens… Next time I am in Paris I will do this tour. Even on a cloudy day… A bientôt, prends soin de toi »»» Martin
Thanks for posting this, Tim! Nice price , too ! Makes me want to visit Paris even more...
Parc de la Villette is an interesting and cool park and easy to get to via several Metro lines.
Love your videos of Paris' interesting and lesser known infrastructures and places.❤. We've visited the majority of places you've covered
Someone has clearly not seen mission impossible (whichever number lol) - but seriously I've always wondered what this was since Tom Cruise jumped through one of those oculi, great video!
I know what I am doing next time I am in Paris! Merci, Tim!
Oh!!! I saw the canal during the Opening Ceremonies of thr Olympics and had 0 clue what I was looking at 😮! Thank you for this and will definitely check it out on my next trip to Paris
Thank you for sharing this. I want to see with my own eyes.
On related temperate underground sights: Next time you're in Nuremberg, do visit the "historic rock corridors" (historische Felsengänge). Beer and Pickle cellars, filled to the brim with Ice during summer, used to store art during WW2 bombings (as well as just general bunkers). The tour ends inside the Biergarten of a brewery right next to the castle.
I've only been there when entertaining guest from abroad or I would never have seen them 😆
I definitely want to do this cruise next time I go to Paris! Merci Tim!
What an amazing place! Probably wasn't so pleasant in the older days with steam tugs spewing out smoke! Thanks for the vid.
And all seems so quiet there... 👍
Thank you for sharing this with me. I love it.
Always fun watching these videos and I thought that I had seen most of what Paris had to offer (including the tour of the Paris sewers!). There's always something new to discover. Thanks for it!😀