Amiens travel guide
France's largest Gothic cathedral, floating gardens and Jules Verne's house
Amiens, about an hour from Paris by train, has France's largest Gothic cathedral, the canal-side Saint-Leu quarter and boat trips through the hortillonnages market gardens. Go between May and September for the boats and the cathedral light show; a full day or one night is enough. Costs are above average, and Schengen rules apply.
Amiens is the capital of the Somme, 120 km north of Paris, and its cathedral is the largest Gothic church in France, with an interior volume no other French cathedral matches. That alone justifies the trip. Give it an hour inside and more if you want to study the carved west front. On summer nights and again around Christmas, a light show paints the façade back in the colours its medieval sculptors gave it.
Walk down from the cathedral to Saint-Leu, the old canal quarter where low houses face the water and the restaurants along Quai Belu put tables out on warm evenings. Beyond lie the hortillonnages, a patchwork of market gardens on small islands threaded by canals. Boats from the Maison des Hortillonnages on Boulevard de Beauville glide through them, past vegetable plots and garden sheds reached by private footbridges.
Jules Verne lived here for more than 30 years. His house, with its spiral-staircase tower, is now a museum. He also sat on the city council and opened the circus building that carries his name. Reopened in 2020, the Musée de Picardie was modelled on Napoleon III's Louvre and runs from prehistoric tools to French painting. Rebuilt after heavy bombing, the station quarter is all post-war concrete, crowned by Auguste Perret's tower.
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Top things to do in Amiens
A colossal Gothic cathedral, a canal quarter and boats through the floating gardens.
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Best time to visit Amiens
Month by month, so you can pick the weather and the crowds you want.
Boats run through the hortillonnages, the cathedral light show plays after dark and tables line Quai Belu.
Cold and grey, though December's Christmas market and the winter light show brighten the centre.
The cathedral's colour light show runs on summer evenings and again in December; it starts only once it is fully dark, so late in June and July.
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Getting there
Gare du Nord trains and the Beauvais low-cost field
Trains from Paris Gare du Nord leave at least hourly, and Auguste Perret's post-war station puts you a ten-minute walk from the cathedral. High-speed trains do not come into the city; the TGV Haute-Picardie station, out in the fields to the east, is linked to Amiens by shuttle bus. The closest airport is Paris-Beauvais, used by low-cost airlines and roughly an hour away by road, though flying into a Paris airport and taking the train from Gare du Nord is often simpler. Drivers arrive on the A16 or the A29.
- Train from Paris Nord
- About 1 hour 10 minutes on fast trains, a little longer on TER
- TGV Haute-Picardie
- High-speed station east of the city, with a shuttle bus into Amiens
- Paris-Beauvais (BVA)
- Nearest airport, low-cost flights, about an hour by road
- By road
- A16 and A29 cross here, with Calais and Le Havre within reach
- Coming from Britain by car, the A16 from Calais brings you straight down to Amiens without touching Paris.
- Leave the car in an underground car park on the edge of the pedestrian zone; the centre is not built for driving.
Where to stay
Saint-Leu canals, the cathedral close or Henriville
Amiens is small enough that every area below is walkable from the station, so the choice is about atmosphere and noise.
- Saint-Leu
- Low houses on the canals, close to the bars on Rue des Bondés and Quai Belu; loud on weekend nights
- Cathedral close
- Quiet streets right under the west front, ideal for the evening light show
- Station and Boulevard d'Alsace-Lorraine
- Chain hotels in the rebuilt post-war quarter; practical, not pretty
- Henriville
- Leafy 19th-century streets south of the station around Jules Verne's house; calm, a little further out
Getting around
Cathedral to Saint-Leu on foot, towpath to the floating gardens
Most of central Amiens is pedestrianised, so you will walk almost everywhere. Rue des Trois Cailloux leads from the station to the cathedral. For the hortillonnages, follow the river east to the Maison des Hortillonnages on Boulevard de Beauville, where the boats leave; the towpath along the Somme also makes a flat walk or ride out of town. Ametis buses serve the outer districts. The bike-share scheme has few docks where visitors need them, so do not count on it.
- On foot
- Station to cathedral in about 10 minutes, Saint-Leu just below
- Ametis buses
- Hour-long tickets; useful for the outer districts; the centre is walkable
- Somme towpath
- Flat walking and cycling route east along the river
- Hortillonnages boats
- From the Maison des Hortillonnages, Boulevard de Beauville
- Book the hortillonnages boat for late afternoon in summer, when the light is soft and the morning groups have gone.
Know before you go
What makes Amiens worth the trip, and what catches visitors out.
Why travelers love it
- The west front during the light show, when the carved saints and kings regain their painted colours for a few minutes.
- A boat through the hortillonnages, sliding past vegetable plots and tiny garden islands a few minutes from the cathedral.
- Quai Belu at dusk, with tables along the Somme and the cathedral spire above the Saint-Leu rooftops.
Good to know
- Do not drive into the centre: it is pedestrianised, so use one of the underground car parks and walk.
- The hortillonnages boats are a fair-weather outing: they run in the warmer months, so do not count on them in winter.
Trip fit
BookingMentor editorial ratings out of 5, based on a first-time visitor's experience.
Weather in Amiens, month by month
Amiens has a cool, damp northern climate, with mild summers for the boat trips and grey winters. Monthly tabs show the city's long-term highs, lows and rain.
Climate figures are approximate long-term averages for Amiens (Meteociel, via Wikipedia).
The cathedral, Saint-Leu and the floating gardens of Amiens
Give Amiens a full day. Give the Gothic cathedral an hour inside, have lunch on Quai Belu in Saint-Leu, then take the flat-bottomed boat tour through the hortillonnages market gardens. Finish with Jules Verne's house or the Musée de Picardie, and in summer or December stay for the coloured projection on the cathedral front.
Leaving the station, look back at Auguste Perret's post-war concrete tower, once among the tallest buildings in western Europe. Walk up Rue des Trois Cailloux to the cathedral and give the interior a full hour. The nave rises some 42 metres, the choir stalls are carved with thousands of small figures, and the labyrinth set into the floor is worth tracing. Then go outside again to read the west front, saint by saint.
After lunch on Quai Belu, walk the riverbank east to the Maison des Hortillonnages. The boat tour glides along narrow canals between the market-garden islands, past vegetable plots and small cabins.
Back in town, pick one museum and give it time: Jules Verne's house in Henriville, or the Musée de Picardie, built in the style of the Louvre. In summer or December, have dinner in Saint-Leu and return to the cathedral after dark for the coloured projection on the façade. A second day fits a tour of the 1918 battlefields east of the city, including the Australian memorial at Villers-Bretonneux.
Ficelle picarde, duck pâté and Amiens macarons
Rich Picard cooking dominates Amiens menus. Order ficelle picarde, a pancake of ham and mushrooms baked under cream and cheese, and flamiche aux poireaux, the leek tart. Duck pâté en croûte has been made here for centuries, and macarons d'Amiens are soft almond discs; Jean Trogneux on Rue Delambre is the best-known shop.
Ficelle picarde is a thin pancake rolled around ham and a mushroom and shallot filling, laid in a dish, covered with cream and cheese and baked until it bubbles; it turns up as a starter on most brasserie menus. Soupe des hortillons uses whatever the market gardens are producing: leeks, potatoes, peas and greens.
Pâté de canard en croûte is a whole duck pâté baked in pastry and sold cold by the slice; it travels well for a picnic on the towpath.
For sweets, the macarons d'Amiens are nothing like the Parisian kind: small, soft discs of almond paste with honey and fruit, sold in boxes. The chocolate tuiles amiénoises make a second gift.
The hortillons themselves sell their vegetables at the Saturday morning market on Place Parmentier in Saint-Leu, and once a year, in June, the marché sur l'eau brings growers in traditional dress by boat. For dinner, Quai Belu has the riverside tables; the lanes behind are often better value.
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How we research our Amiens travel guide
Hortillonnages boat trips and the cathedral light show are seasonal, so their dates are rechecked with local operators, as are train details with SNCF. City facts follow amiens.fr and France.fr.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Quick answers to the questions travelers ask most before visiting Amiens.
General
Yes. Trains from Paris Gare du Nord run at least hourly and take about 1 hour 10 minutes on the faster services. Amiens station is a short walk from the cathedral.
It is the largest Gothic cathedral in France and has the greatest interior volume of any French cathedral. It is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Boat tours leave from the Maison des Hortillonnages on Boulevard de Beauville, east of the centre. They thread the canals between the market-garden islands.
Yes. The house where Verne lived and wrote is now the Maison de Jules Verne museum. He lived in Amiens from 1871 until his death in 1905.
On summer evenings and again in December, once it is fully dark. The projection recreates the medieval colours of the carved figures.
A thin pancake rolled around ham and a mushroom filling, then baked under cream and cheese. Most brasseries in the centre serve it.
Around Rue des Bondés between the cathedral and the Somme, and along Quai Belu in Saint-Leu, with indoor and outdoor seating.
Yes, Amiens is the usual base. The 1918 Battle of Amiens was fought just east of the city, and the Australian memorial at Villers-Bretonneux is a short drive away.
One full day covers the cathedral, Saint-Leu and a boat trip. Stay the night if you want the light show or a battlefield day.
Most of central Amiens is pedestrianised, so you will walk almost everywhere. Rue des Trois Cailloux leads from the station to the cathedral. For the hortillonnages, follow the river east to the Maison des Hortillonnages on Boulevard de Beauville, where the boats leave; the towpath along the Somme also makes a flat walk or ride out of town.
Getting there
Beauvais is closer by road and used by low-cost airlines. Charles de Gaulle has far more flights; from there, head into Paris and take the train from Gare du Nord.
Trains from Paris Gare du Nord leave at least hourly, and Auguste Perret's post-war station puts you a ten-minute walk from the cathedral. High-speed trains do not come into the city; the TGV Haute-Picardie station, out in the fields to the east, is linked to Amiens by shuttle bus. The closest airport is Paris-Beauvais, used by low-cost airlines and roughly an hour away by road, though flying into a Paris airport and taking the train from Gare du Nord is often simpler.
Timing & weather
The best time to visit Amiens is May to Sep. Boats through the hortillonnages, summer light shows on the cathedral and terraces on Quai Belu.
- Summer: May - September (Boats run through the hortillonnages, the cathedral light show plays after dark and tables line Quai Belu)
- Winter: November - February (Cold and grey, though December's Christmas market and the winter light show brighten the centre)
Visa & documents
France belongs to the Schengen area. Citizens of the EU and of many other countries, including the US, UK, Canada and Australia, can visit visa-free for up to 90 days in any 180-day period; other nationalities need a Schengen visa. The EU's Entry/Exit System (EES) records non-EU travelers' fingerprints and a photo at the border.
Health & safety
Crime against visitors to France is mostly petty. Pickpocketing is common in Paris on the Metro, especially line 1, and around the Eiffel Tower, Montmartre and Gare du Nord. Rail and air strikes and street demonstrations can disrupt transport, so check before travel days and keep away from protests.
