Vedettes de Paris review: Seine river cruise with a live guide

What the Port de Suffren company is worth, what it charges, and the naming traps in its catalogue. To see where it sits among the others, start with our Seine cruise companies page.

A mid-sized company with a catalogue worth reading closely

Vedettes de Paris is an independent company registered in Paris. It calls itself an emblematic part of life on the Seine since 1976 and has declared itself a "société à mission", a French status for companies with a stated social purpose. It runs five boats, two reception spaces on the quay and a terrace. Fewer departures than its big neighbor, but a more personal cruise.

The official catalogue is short. The one-hour Guided Cruise (Croisière Guidée) is the heart of it. The Apéro & Musicale cruise runs in the evening, with no guide. The Champagne Cruise is the guided cruise with a glass. The Family Cruise is aimed at ages 6 to 13. Then come the combos: with the Tootbus hop-on hop-off bus, with a virtual-reality show on the history of the Eiffel Tower, plus a New Year's Eve cruise.

Two naming traps. First, "Paris la Nuit" or "Paris by Night" on the company's website is not a cruise: it is a Tootbus night bus tour, resold by Vedettes de Paris, which says itself that no cruise is included. The evening cruise is called Apéro & Musicale. Second, there is no crêpe, ice-cream or waffle cruise in the official catalogue. On board you can add a snack break, a crêpe or cookie with a drink, for about €6. The "ice cream" and "waffle" listings you see on GetYourGuide from Port de Suffren are sold by a different reseller, and the waffle is eaten at Trocadéro, not on the boat.

Night

GetYourGuide1 hourSuffren

Paris: Evening River Cruise with Music

4.4 (26,102)

from €25Check dates

Drinks & champagne

GetYourGuide1 hourSuffren

Paris: Seine Cruise from the Eiffel Tower & Crepe Tasting

4.4 (12,803)

from €20Check dates

Drinks & champagne

GetYourGuide1.5 hoursSuffren

Paris: Happy Hour Evening Cruise on the Seine River

4.3 (2,355)

from €17Check dates

Night

TiqetsSuffren

Seine River: Evening Cruise with Music Onboard by Vedettes de Paris

4.3 (2,556)

from €22Check dates

Sightseeing

TiqetsSuffren

Seine River: Electric Boat Guided Sightseeing Cruise by Vedettes de Paris

4.4 (1,095)

from €18Check dates

Vedettes de Paris on GetYourGuide →Vedettes de Paris on Tiqets →Prices checked on October 17, 2026

The route from Port de Suffren: upstream first

Like its neighbors, the guided cruise heads upstream, east. From Port de Suffren, just downstream of Pont d'Iéna, the boat runs past the Grand Palais, Les Invalides, Place de la Concorde, the Musée d'Orsay and the Louvre, passes the dome of the Institut de France, then the Conciergerie, Notre-Dame and the Hôtel de Ville. It turns around near the Institut du Monde Arabe and comes back down to the Eiffel Tower. The company warns that the route can change at any time, especially when the Seine is high.

In an hour you pass under about 20 bridges, not under all of the 37 that Paris has. Which side of Notre-Dame you pass depends on the alternating one-way traffic around the islands: our what you see from the Seine page explains how it works and lists the monuments bank by bank.

The boats do not go as far as the Bibliothèque nationale de France or Bercy, and they do not promise the Statue of Liberty on Île aux Cygnes. The route is the one every one-hour cruise from the Eiffel Tower follows; the difference is in the commentary. To compare the companies on this format, see our one-hour Seine cruise page.

The fleet: four electric boats and one hybrid

This is the company's main selling point. Its first boat converted to electric power, the Paris Trocadéro, was presented by the press as the first fully electric sightseeing boat on the Seine; the company now says four of its five boats are electric. According to the trade press, the fifth, the Paris Étoile, is still hybrid. Hence our wording: an electric fleet, with one hybrid boat. The two official pages that put a figure on the CO₂ saved do not give the same total, so we quote neither.

For passengers, electric power mostly changes the noise. No rumbling engine, and a guide you can hear without straining. You cannot book the electric boat as an option: boats are assigned by departure.

The boats have an open-air upper deck, a covered main deck, a bar on board (cards only) and restrooms. According to the company that converted the first boat, they carry about 250 passengers, far fewer than the big trimarans of Bateaux Parisiens.

Vedettes de Paris prices: official site, ticket counter and booking platforms

The house rule is simple: two prices for every product, the counter price and a lower web fare. The guided cruise costs €21 at the counter and €18 online per adult (from age 12), €10 for ages 4 to 11, free under 4. The Apéro & Musicale costs €25 at the counter and €22 online, €13 per child; with champagne, count on about €38, with wine or beer about €32. The Champagne Cruise is listed at around €32.

At the counter there are a few discounts: about €6 off for students and holders of the Carte jeune youth card, €3 with a Navigo transit pass, €2 with a Paris Visite pass. And the company gives you the guided cruise free on your birthday, with photo ID, from age 4 and subject to availability.

On the platforms, the guided cruise is sold on Tiqets at the company's web fare, and the Tiqets listing does name Vedettes de Paris, 2 Port de Suffren, as the operator.

For the evening cruise the gaps are wider: the last time we checked, one platform showed the web fare and the other a price close to the counter fare. The evening table further down updates itself. Our general comparison is on GetYourGuide, Tiqets or Headout.

Booking and boarding: the ticket office with three flags

Finding the pier. With your back to the Eiffel Tower, face Pont d'Iéna and go down to the quay on your left: the pier is easy to spot thanks to its three big blue-white-red flags. Do not confuse it with Port de la Bourdonnais, on the other side of Pont d'Iéna and upstream, where Bateaux Parisiens and the Batobus board. From Pont d'Iéna you go down stairs; from Pont de Bir-Hakeim a ramp gets you there step-free. Take Métro Bir-Hakeim (line 6, with an elevator, about a 7-minute walk), Trocadéro (6, 9, no elevator) or RER C to Champ de Mars–Tour Eiffel (elevator on the avenue de Suffren side). No car access, no parking.

Getting there on time. The company asks you to arrive 20 to 30 minutes ahead. If you are late, you board the next boat with seats left, on the same day. Anything you buy at the Café des Vedettes on the quay can come on board; outside food cannot.

Cancelling. This is where Vedettes de Paris stands out. A dated ticket bought online can be cancelled free of charge up to 24 hours ahead, and the time can be changed within the same window. A ticket bought at the counter is valid on that day only, with no refund; an open ticket is valid for twelve months, also with no refund. On a platform, the conditions depend on the listing and are shown before you pay.

The experience, product by product

The one-hour guided cruise

This is the real difference: a licensed guide on the microphone, speaking French and English, backed by an audio app in 11 languages (including Spanish, Mandarin, Japanese, Korean and Hindi) that you play through your own earphones. Boats leave roughly every 30 to 45 minutes from late morning to late afternoon; the exact timetable only shows in the booking engine. The company is open every day except a few days in January and, in some years, the evening of the national fireworks.

The Apéro & Musicale, in the evening

In the evening the guides make way for an all-French playlist: chanson, a drink in hand, no commentary. Boats leave every evening from about 6:30 pm or 7 pm until 10:30 pm, later in high season. Drinks that are not included are paid for on board, by card. The Eiffel Tower sparkles for five minutes at the start of every hour after dark, until at least 11 pm; on some evenings, especially in summer, it carries on later — check the tower's website for the day. See our Seine night cruise and Eiffel Tower sparkle pages.

Champagne, families and New Year's Eve

The Champagne Cruise is the guided cruise plus a glass; if the tasting matters more to you, our Seine champagne cruise page compares the options. The Family Cruise, for ages 6 to 13, swaps the standard commentary for riddles and hands out a "Captain's diploma"; it sails once or twice a day depending on the season (see Seine cruise with kids). On 31 December the New Year's Eve cruise lasts an hour and sells online for around €70, ages 12 and up, with a glass of champagne and music: you are back on the quay before midnight.

Who Vedettes de Paris suits best

People who want a real guide. If the commentary matters more than the size of the boat, this is the best choice at the Eiffel Tower: a person on the microphone who answers questions, not a wired audio guide.

Travelers whose plans may change. Free cancellation up to 24 hours ahead is rare on the Seine: Bateaux Parisiens refunds nothing, and Vedettes du Pont Neuf keeps 20 to 40 %.

Families. A child fare up to age 11, a dedicated cruise for ages 6 to 13, restrooms on board, and small dogs welcome.

Wheelchair users. The Bir-Hakeim ramp, a gangway, a reserved area on the main deck and priority boarding: the best-documented access we have found. Accessible restrooms are definitely available on the pontoon; on board, the information varies, so ask the crew.

Skip it if you want commentary from a person in German or Italian (the guide speaks French and English), a narrated evening cruise (the Apéro has no guide), or dinner: the company does not offer one, see our Seine dinner cruise guide. For a departure in the heart of Paris, look at Vedettes du Pont Neuf instead.

The verdict: strengths, weaknesses and our rating

Vedettes de Paris FAQ