Side-car Paris Visit with a River Cruise
Recommended by 90% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Paris, France
- 1 hour 30 minutes (approx.)
- Pickup offered
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Uncover Paris’s ancient foundations with this archaeological crypt tour and river cruise package. Led by an archaeologist, guests explore the crypt underneath Notre-Dame Cathedral before taking a one-hour cruise on the River Seine. See Paris’s historical and cultural landmarks from the water and continue to learn about the city’s extensive history. This tour is ideal for history buffs and visitors who like to explore a new city in unique style.
- Enjoy a personal experience with a small tour group
- Beat line overwhelm with pre-booked admission to Notre Dame’s archaeological crypts
- See multiple Parisian landmarks in a tight timeframe
- Relax in comfortable private transport between the crypt and the boat launch
Why Travelers Choose This Tour
This archaeologist-led tour guarantees in-depth commentary, perfect for lovers of ancient history.
What's Included
- Ticket for the Seine cruise
- Sidecar driver
- Helmet and gloves
- Hotel pick-up
Meeting and Pickup
Pickup points
Select a pickup point
Pickup details
I’ll meet you at your address :)
Itinerary
1
Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Paris
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
Eiffel Tower
3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
3
Musee d'Orsay
3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
Arc de Triomphe (Pass By)
4
Conciergerie
3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
5
Pont des Arts
3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
6
Musee de l’Armee des Invalides
3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
7
Palais de Chaillot
3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
8
Grand Palais
4 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
9
Place de la Concorde
3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
10
Louvre Museum
5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
11
Ile Saint-Louis
3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
12
Hotel de Ville
3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
13
Pont Alexandre III
3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
14
Arc de Triomphe
3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
15
Sainte-Chapelle
3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
16
Pont des Invalides
3 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
17
Ile de la Cite
5 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Near public transportation
- Most travelers can participate
- This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.6
based on 51 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Wonderful tour guide. Very knowledgeable of the history of Paris. Explained all the museums, I love how he went into details about the fire of the Notre Dame. How there were many bees and they all survived. I can’t thank him enough. My guide was on time. Picked me up at my hotel. We ended at the Eiffel Tower where I took a Seine boat ride. It was wonderful. I forgotten his name, but thank you so much for your time. I’m still waiting on my pictures if you remember, who I am, can you please send them?
This was one of the best tours we've ever done! Touring Paris in a motorcycle sidecar is an experience I'd highly recommend. It was just us and our driver, listening to the history of the city while cruising through its streets. We were able to explore narrow streets and hidden areas that a tour bus simply can't reach. Our final stop on the motorcycle was at the Eiffel Tower. The spot was perfect because it was a grassy area and no one was there. Most people flocked to the front of the tower.
Raphael was our driver, and he was amazing! He gave us plenty of time to stop for photos and even took pictures of us along the way.
After the motorcycle tour, which lasted about 90 minutes, we enjoyed a river cruise on the Seine. Ours took place at sunset, and the beautiful lighting made the experience even more magical and romantic.
This tour was absolutely worth it and is something I'd recommend to anyone visiting Paris!
Raphael is very friendly, most entertaining and knowledgeable about many things. Very good company. The route we took showed us all the fabulous things in Paris you could want and more.
This was such a fun experience! Raphael was a great driver and made us feel safe. He had lots of fun stories and facts about the city and its monuments. I totally recommend this if you want to be shown around the city by a cute French man. What can beat that?!
this would have been a GREAT tour if our tour guide had taken more of a stance with his personal life. Our tour guide cancelled our tour at 8 AM for a 2 PM tour because his partner was giving birth. which is totally fine but why was there no back up?? why was there no plan b ?? he asked if we could reschedule to 10/3 — that’s more than a week after! While we understand that things happen, it just was quite unfortunate that we didn’t have any time to book anything else due to the literal last minute cancellation & missed out on seeing things we had planned for :(
Response from Host, Dec 2025
Thank you for your feedback, and I truly understand your frustration. I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused by the last-minute cancellation.
Unfortunately, my partner went into labor unexpectedly that morning, which was also a surprise for me. I completely understand that, from your perspective, this disrupted your plans and left you without enough time to arrange an alternative activity. That was never my intention, and I am very sorry that this caused you to miss out on experiences you were looking forward to.
I appreciate your understanding that emergencies do happen, even though that doesn’t lessen the impact on your trip. Thank you again for sharing your thoughts, and I truly regret the inconvenience this caused.
Our guide, Rafael, was very knowledgeable and accommodating. His outgoing and friendly personality really made it fun. We learned a lot about the history of the island underneath the grounds of Notre Dame Cathedral. Rafael explained the ruins and showed us what it was like in different periods of time. I’m smarter because of it! After this tour, we simply got in line to tour the Cathedral and that line went fast! I highly recommend this tour.
Despite the interesting info the host presented, we thought because of the pictures on the website this involved seeing the catacombs. So a disappointment.
Response from Host, Jun 2025
Hello,
Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry for the confusion, but the listing clearly states that this is a tour of the Archaeological Crypt beneath Notre-Dame—not the Catacombs.
Best regards,
Raphael
Good tour would definitely recommend. Lots of good information. The guide was very knowledgeable and friendly.
This tour was very interesting. The dig site walls allowed easy visualization of long ago scenes of history. Our guide was enthusiastic and knowledgeable!
This tour was great for our group of 6 adults. The archeological crypt tour was very interesting and our guide was super informative. We as really loved the cruise on the Seine. I would highly recommend it for anyone interested in learning more about the history of Notre Dame and what lies beneath it.
This was a great tour. Raphael was a very knowledgeable and personable guide. He gave interesting information and made the tour fun. His English was very good. We also enjoyed the hour and a half boat tour on the Seine. It was a nice way to spend our last afternoon in Paris!
Our guide Raphael was fabulous very knowledgeable about the crypt and the city. We learned things about Paris and Notre Dame that we never knew.
We are giving a 5 star review because we loved Rafael and he made our experience a nice one even though a bomb threat at Notre Dame caused an evacuation 15 minutes into our tour and lasted too long to return to the experience. Rafael drove us to the river cruise and answered questions along the way, keeping us entertained.
Our guide was very knowledgeable and we were able to learn so much in a short period of time. He guided us in a way that helped immerse ourselves into the world of the past! Our guide made it a very fun experience with lots of laughs and smiles!
Utterly fascinating tour that pairs wonderfully with a visit to The Catacombs. Our guide, Raphael, was delightful, informative, and hilarious. This is not specific to the tour, but we opted for the Seine boat tour as an add-on, and it is absolutely worth it! Finding out that we were going to be conveyed from Notre Dame to the embarkation point which is well over a mile away from it was such a relief. It made the combined experience effortless and excellent. Thank you!
Our guide (Maleziux, I think), was excellent. Funny and informative, and drove a cool motorcycle to the cruise. My wife and I had a lot of fun and learned a lot about the crypt, as well as about the history of Paris. We’ve visited the city a few times, and still learned more here than perhaps anywhere else.
Raphael was awesome! The experience was one on one with a lot of history. Walking was not bad at all and even though our cab dropped us off late he was waiting. Great experience!
Raphael was incredibly knowledgeable and made everything very interesting! Must do for history buffs
Great guide, very knowledgeable and fun. Only thing we would have liked is to spend more Ike at the exhibits
I had a fantastic time visiting the Archaeological Crypt beneath Notre-Dame, and our guide, Raphael, made the experience even better. His deep knowledge of Paris' history and his engaging storytelling brought the ancient ruins and artifacts to life. The crypt offers a fascinating look at the city's Roman and medieval past, and Raphael's insightful commentary helped us appreciate the significance of each find. Highly recommended for anyone interested in history or archaeology!
Excellent knowledge of the history of Paris from a lifelong and generational Parisian. Archeological explanations of Notre Dame and the incredible crypts below. Most would miss this incredible part of Île-de-cite but Raphael gave it life! Also enjoyed our really special transportation to the cruise.
We had a great experience. Raphael was our guide and he was amazing! He definitely knew his stuff and we learned a lot. He was great at keeping our interests and just overall was very nice. The crypts are very neat to see. Thank you so much
Claire is an excellent and friendly guide. Absolutely worth the money and the wireless speaker you get with the earbud included works well. The pace is fine, anybody who can walk normally for a decent amount of time can do this tour, but much of Paris (and also Europe as a whole) is not wheelchair friendly, you need to be able to walk for a while at a typical pace, just be advised. Excellent tour and can't recommend this one enough.
Very knowledgeable and pleasant guide. In depth Historical details of crypt presented. Guide was fluent in English.
I had the unforgettable experience of taking a guided tour that combined the Crypt at Notre Dame, a deep dive into the history of Notre Dame itself, and a journey into the Paris Catacombs, and it was nothing short of incredible. The tour began in the Crypt, where our guide revealed key details often overlooked by casual visitors. We learned about the ancient Roman bathhouse that once stood on the very spot, and how the crypt preserves layers of Parisian history from Roman times through the Middle Ages. Our guide’s knowledge was impressive, and they skillfully connected the remnants of the Roman occupation with the rise of medieval Paris, adding a rich historical backdrop to the experience. The guide also brought to light fascinating details, such as the beehives maintained on the rooftops of Notre Dame—a quiet homage to nature in the midst of Parisian history.
Next, we delved into the majestic history of Notre Dame itself, where the guide pointed out often-missed details, such as the statues of the 28 Kings of Judah that adorn the facade—mistakenly beheaded during the French Revolution when revolutionaries thought they were French kings. Our guide was an excellent storyteller, weaving these historic events together in a way that made Notre Dame’s cultural and historical significance stand out even more. We entered the Paris Catacombs. Our guide’s knowledge of the underground labyrinth and its role throughout history, from its creation to its role in times of plague and revolution, was eye-opening. The tour left no stone unturned, and I left with a deeper appreciation for the layers of history beneath Paris.
Our group was small and intimate, the tour guide was amazing! I absolutely loved this whole tour. The guide was friendly and so helpful. Rafael I believe was his name. We asked him after for cuisine recommendations and he had us eat at the most beautiful and delicious Italian restaurant. So friendly, so in depth, answered any questions we had, really went above and beyond. I will definitely be back to Paris and would absolutely text him in the future for recommendations! Best tour we had in Paris!
Response from Host, Sep 2024
Thank you so much for your kind words! It was a pleasure to have you on the tour, and I’m glad you enjoyed the experience. I’m happy you loved the restaurant recommendation as well ! If you ever return to Paris, don’t hesitate to reach out—I’d be more than happy to help with any recommendations or to guide you again. Thank you for making the tour memorable for me as well, and I look forward to seeing you in Paris again !
Raphael provided a very warm, engaging and informative visit. He provided a lot of insights during our visit through the Crypt and effortlessly brought us to the Catacombs
Raphael is a fantastic guide! His English is fluent and easy to understand, he’s extremely knowledgeable, and super friendly. Highly recommended!
Our tour guide was great, such a nice guy and even reached out to make sure we knew where to meet up ect. However, for our family of 3 the cost was $592, in my opinion not worth it. Notre Dame is closed obviously, so there was a little history given outside and then we went down into the Crypt, which might have been a 45 minute tour. From there we went to the Catacombs and were just given the headset audio tour. If I were to do it again, I would have just gone to the Catacombs on our own. I thought when booking the tour - it was going to be a live guided tour through the Catacombs, which it was not. So we essentially paid $592 for maybe an hour of a tour of the Crypt and the short talk outside Notre Dame. In comparison we booked a tour of Versailles for $713 which included transportation to and from the palace (an hour's drive to and from) and a 2.5 hour live guided tour.
Response from Host, Jun 2024
Dear Customer,
Thank you for sharing your detailed review of your visit to the Catacombs of Paris and the Archeological Crypt. We appreciate your kind words about our guide and his helpfulness.
We are sorry to hear that the experience did not meet your expectations in terms of value for money. Your feedback is valuable and helps us improve our services. We understand that you expected a live guided tour of the Catacombs and regret the misunderstanding.
We take your comments on the duration and content of the tours included in the package seriously. Rest assured, we will review our offer description to ensure it accurately reflects the experience to avoid any future disappointments.
Once again, thank you for your feedback, and we hope you will give us another chance during your next visit to Paris.
Sincerely
We enjoyed learning about the history of the Crypt as well as the catacombs. Raphael our guide, was extremely knowledgeable. He answered all our questions and had a great sense of humor! He interacted well with everyone in our group. I highly recommend taking this tour with Raphael. This was the best tour out of all tours we experienced here in Paris! Thank you Raphael for making this a wonderful experience!
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From
$170.05
per personWas $179.00(-5%)
up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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Side-car Paris Visit with a River Cruise
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