Four cafés at a crossroads, a bar round the corner and a Breton house — and, ten minutes away, the cemetery where many of their customers lie: the Balzac nobody wanted, the policeman who collected painters, the first bar that never closed, the Bretons off the train, Brancusi, Cortázar, Vallejo and Baudelaire.
You start in front of a Balzac that scandalised Paris and that Rodin never saw in bronze. Within a hundred metres of boulevard stand the Rotonde, the Select, La Coupole and the Dôme, and each has its own story: the taxi in Hemingway's novel, the police captain who sorted out papers for foreign painters, the American bar that stayed open all night, the coal store turned Art Deco temple. In Rue Delambre, the doorway where Hemingway met Fitzgerald and, in the same street, the Mission Bretonne: the other Montparnasse, the thousands of Bretons who stepped off the train at the station next door to dig the Métro or go into service in wealthy homes, while the Americans raised their glasses. Then you go through the cemetery gate: a street cuts it in two, a Russian student sleeps beneath Brancusi's most famous kiss, Cortázar is left Métro tickets, Vallejo half-predicted his own death and Baudelaire shares a grave with the stepfather he hated.
An outline of the walk. The full stories are in the app.
Open a marker to see its page. Use two fingers to move the map on mobile.
Walking directions are based on mapped pedestrian routes. Check local access and signs; the route is not an accessibility guarantee. Times are approximate.
Paris works best a neighbourhood at a time. Combine a walk, a pause and another look: the distances on the map can be deceptive.
You start on the terraces of the Flore and Les Deux Magots and cross to the oldest church in Paris, which, tradition has it, was founded to keep a tunic brought from Zaragoza; inside lies Descartes, whom the Revolution wanted to move to the Panthéon.
You start in front of the faculty that stands on the site of Marat's house and beside the refectory where the Cordeliers Club met.
You start in front of the Panthéon, which began as Louis XV's promise to Saint Genevieve and changed use six times.
An app for self-guided audio walks. Choose a city and a route, then listen to the stories behind its streets. You decide when to start and when to stop.
Podtour is coming to iOS and Android. There is no confirmed launch date yet. Join the waitlist and we will let you know when it is ready.
No. Street walks and monument audio tours do not include admission tickets, transport or a guide accompanying you.
Download the audio in the app before heading out, then listen offline. Loading the online base map and calculating a new route from your location require a connection.
Every route includes Spanish and British English. The English version is adapted for English-speaking travellers, rather than translated word for word.
Join the waitlist, choose a city and confirm your email address. When the app launches, we will email you with access details. No card is required. You can also try one free route in every city.
Yes. Your own access is included and you can choose 0–5 guests: up to 6 people including you. Each guest saves up to €0.50 on a walk, €1 on a pack or €2 on a whole city compared with buying separately. The counter shows the total before you confirm one payment.
After paying, share your purchase’s invitation link. Each guest opens it in Podtour and accepts their place on their own iPhone or Android phone. They must redeem it within 30 days of purchase. Unclaimed places then expire and cannot be recovered or renewed. Access accepted in time is kept. Opening the link does not use a place; one account takes just one place, and no more people can join once all places are taken.
No. Choose all your guests before confirming the first purchase. Afterwards you can share the places you paid for, but you cannot increase their number or restart the 30-day deadline.
Join the waitlist. When we launch, your chosen city is yours to explore.
Join the waitlist and get one whole city free when Podtour launches. You choose where.
Podtour manages your launch request with your consent. You can withdraw it and exercise your rights as explained in our privacy policy. Privacy details.
One city per person. All its Podtour routes in Spanish and English. Available at launch. Offer details.
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