Paris’s Promenade Plantée

The Promenade plantée, or Coulée verte, is the French version of Manhattan’s High Line. It’s a park that’s been renovated from an abandoned elevated railway line, and is quite a stunning addition to this neighborhood in Paris. I don’t know if all the urban planners in Manhattan referenced the Promenade plantée when they were advocating for the High Line, but I think someone must have used it for inspiration!

The promenade is in the 12th Arondissement, which is in the southeast of the city, and extends for nearly 3 miles. It’s the perfect length for an evening stroll!  Unfortunately we stopped by in the middle of the day, and even though it is only the end of March, the sun was quite intense. In the interests of sensitive skin, we cut our walk short and quickly sought some shade. That’s probably by biggest criticism of the promenade: that you’re out there in the middle of the weather with no protection!  Perhaps that’s a function of the elevated-railway, but it would have been nice to get some more shade. There was one section with some nice bamboo that reminded us of our trip to Japan, but it seemed like all the benches were in direct sunlight. Which is not a bad thing for those of a swarthy nature, but for those of us who are delicate pinkies, it’s a bit tough.

The promenade runs along the top of these arches, which are a done with a lovely warm brick.

Looking down the walkway of the promenade. The small trees provided a bit of a break from the sun, but not much!