Lunch and dinner cruises on the Seine used to be a cheesy kind of affair — and not of the chic fromage variety. The river’s restaurants catered for the tourist crowd, or for what they thought tourists wanted — without realising that many visitors craved a more special onboard experience, something that matched the beauty of the view.
![Le Calife Paris dinner cruise](https://pfd.tempurl.host/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/C90AEF21-DF69-4401-A855-7889FF2B8C39-1024x1024.jpg)
Fortunately for those who want a floating feast for all the senses, there are several super-stylish ways to experience the Seine …
Le Calife
Living up to the grandeur that lines the river’s banks, Le Calife (pictured above, also) — which docks at the foot of the Institut de France just by the Pont des Arts — is an historical monument itself.
![Le Calife dinner cruise](https://pfd.tempurl.host/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Le-Calife-2-1024x1024.png)
After a loving eighteen-year restoration of a 1939 barge, La Calife is like something from a wanderluster’s exotic dream, all gleaming wood and glowing lanterns and eccentric, historic touches: a music room decorated with vintage floorboards from a former Parisian mansion and antique French stained glass, old Italian portholes, a 300-year-old Buddha …
![Le Calife Paris](https://pfd.tempurl.host/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/243063_117311175021200_2801681_o.jpeg)
Choose a two-hour lunch or dinner cruise; meals are priced from 87€ per head (alcohol is extras), and there’s a 45€ kids menu. Click here for more information.
Ducasse sur Seine
Esteemed chef Alain Ducasses’s entry into Paris’s river restaurant industry has, unsurprisingly, raised the bar.
![Ducasse sur Seine](https://pfd.tempurl.host/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/croisiere-dejeuner-paris.jpg)
Situated impressively across from the Eiffel Tower, this glossy glasshouse of a boat offers a numbers of multi-star meal experiences — click here for options — starting from 95€ for lunch, 150€ for dinner, per person. All cruises are two hours in length.
![Ducasse sur Seine](https://pfd.tempurl.host/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/DucasseSurSeineNight.jpeg)
Le Bateau Français
Le Bateau Français is an ultra-chic, 1930s-inspired, architect-designed boat:
![Private Seine cruise](https://pfd.tempurl.host/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/9D99C2D5-7041-48FF-B113-1900B9CD5011-1024x1024.jpg)
It can accommodate up to eleven guests, which helps to justify the splurge: a two-and-a-half-hour experience (with two hours of cruising) costs 890€, and comes complete with stylish apéro platters, champagne and rosé.
![Private Seine cruise](https://pfd.tempurl.host/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-19-at-10.55.16-am-1024x1024.png)
Or, you can customise the menu, and even route, which usually departs and ends at Port de l’Arsenal. For more information, click here.
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