From a square built to flatter Louis XIV to Molière's theatre and the house where he died, by way of two rival arcades and the garden where a journalist standing on a table set 14 July alight: wax busts paraded through the streets, a deputy murdered in a restaurant, a Spanish-born queen who fled by night, and columns nobody wanted.
You start in the Place des Victoires, the square a marshal paid for out of his own pocket to the greater glory of Louis XIV, with lanterns lit all night, and which the Revolution left with a near-naked general hidden behind scaffolding. You pass the Galerie Vivienne and the Galerie Colbert, the first a success and the second a 1985 copy. In the garden of the Palais-Royal comes Camille Desmoulins's Sunday, 12 July 1789, told through his own letter, along with the wax busts from Curtius's cabinet and the cannon that fired with the midday sun. In the Galerie de Valois, the deputy murdered on the eve of the king's death, and the shop where Charlotte Corday bought her knife. Anne of Austria flees by night with her son, Buren's columns spark a national row, and beside the Comédie-Française you hear about Molière's last performance. You finish in the Rue de Richelieu, in front of the plaque marking the house where he died: his burial at night, almost in secret, and the legend of a gravestone split by fire.
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 at the tip of the island, where one March evening in 1314 the last master of the Templars was burnt at the stake, and you follow his day backwards to the square in front of Notre-Dame, where his sentence was read that morning.
You start by looking towards the Tuileries, the palace Catherine de' Medici began beside some tile works, and which ended in flames in 1871.
You start at the end: the steps of Saint-Roch, where a young general called Bonaparte brought the Revolution to a close with cannon fire.
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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