Is there anything more romantic than dining on a river cruise that passes along the Seine in Paris, taking in the glowing lights of the City of Love? A river cruise is a must if you are spending at least 4 days in Paris, so make sure you add it to your itinerary. I was lucky enough to enjoy this experience during my recent trip to the romantic capital of France, dining on exquisite cuisine and photographing the sights as we passed by.
We boarded the boat for our dinner cruise in Paris in front of the gorgeous Musée d’Orsay gallery at 8.45 pm before setting sail to witness some of the city’s other buildings and monuments. Each table is well spaced to give you plenty of room to relax and the wide windows and glass roof allows all guests to enjoy the spectacular views that were awaiting us! We excitedly settled into our seats after a warm welcome from the captain and crew and were on our way.
The Journey
From the Musée d’Orsay, the boat sailed along the banks of the river, passing the impressive Institut de France, and Notre Dame on Île-de-France. We then witnessed the more modern Bibliothèque François Mitterrand before heading back past some classic buildings like the Hôtel de Ville, Conciergerie, and the Louvre. Seeing the Louvre conjured up images of Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code and we couldn’t wait to visit the next day!
As we continued with the meal we ventured further along the Seine, seeing the towering monument at the Place de la Concorde, the stunning Grand Palais, and Trocadéro. The cruise then finished with some of the most famous sites in Paris including the smaller (than the US) but still impressive Statue de la Liberté, the glistening Eiffel Tower, and the golden dome of Les Invalides.
Most travellers chose to use the interactive cruise guide, ParisByBoat, which gave us loads of information and insight into each of the buildings and monuments as we passed by.
Check out my 7 days in Paris post for more things to do in Paris.
The Food
The meal included three courses as well as options to match with wines to ensure the flavours were balanced with finesse!
In order to try a variety of dishes, our group opted for the tasting plate starter that provided us with four dishes to dine on. The starters included a range of vegetarian and seafood meals, such as the provencal tart with tomatoes, peppers and pine nuts, scallop, potato and seaweed, cucumber and artichoke tartare with smoked salmon and shrimp, aubergine and yellow pepper coulis. Each dish was fresh, light, and full of flavor so we knew we were going to be in for a treat for the whole meal.
For the main course, I chose to splash out and go for the beef which was served with new potatoes, caramelized peppers and onions, and a green pepper sauce. This dish was sumptuous and tasty and the portion size was plenty big enough to fill me up but still ensured I had room for dessert! The sauce had loads of depth and the seasoning was perfect!
Finally, we were treated to an assortment of desserts that had each been lovingly prepared by the patisserie team. The first pastry was layered with light cream and sticky apricot while the chocolate ingot was rich, sweet, and heavenly! We cleansed our palette with some mixed fresh seasonal fruit as a wonderful end to the meal.
The cruise pulled back up to the port in front of the Musée d’Orsay at 11.15pm and we had time to say our thank yous and goodbyes to the staff and crew who had made our gastronomic journey so memorable.
Even if you’re not travelling with a loved one, you can still enjoy a dinner cruise on the Seine, spending quality time with friends and family while seeing Paris in a whole new light.
La Marina de Paris Seine river cruises allow you to witness the Eiffel Tower illuminations from the comfort of a riverboat, so it will be a treat for everyone involved!