Sightseeing along the way
The kiosks on Allées du Président Roosevelt : this broad boulevard, on to which you emerge from the Jean Jaurès métro station, is where the walk starts. Dotted along it are 8 recently restored Art Déco vendors' kiosks, where you can buy just about anything (newspapers, sandwiches, flowers, etc.).
Place Wilson : the current layout of this square dates from 1830. Note the wonderfully balanced arrangement of orange brick façades which are rounded to form a slightly curved shape around the square, also round. This demonstrates the unrivalled versatility of brick as a building material.
Rue du Poids de l’Huile : a succession of façades featuring balustraded and cast-iron balconies with festooned mouldings and openings. This was once the home of the Maison de l’Enclos, where the foodstuffs entering the city were weighed, particularly the oils.
Cour du Capitole : here you are within the great building from where the city has been administered since the early 12th century. The seat of the Capitouls (the city consuls) until the French Revolution, the Capitole acquired its monumental appearance in the 17th and 18th centuries. The theatre, home to the city's opera house, occupies the entire South Wing.
Open on both sides, Cour du Capitole witnesses the incessant ebb and flow of pedestrians passing each other across the smooth gunmetal grey flagstones. Decorated with a rare statue of Henry IV (the only one in France erected during his lifetime), today the square is also the site of the tomb of the Duke of Montmorency, executed in this very spot in 1632 for having opposed Louis XIII.
The arcades in Place du Capitole : occupied by a venerable row of brasseries, the arcades in the Capitole form an Italian-style gallery. Since 1995 its coffered ceilings have sported 29 paintings by Raymond Moretti, each one illustrating an episode in the city's history.
The internal courtyards of Rue du Taur : a pleasant street lined with rather hippy boutiques, where the entrances lead to sometimes enormous internal courtyards.
Typical of central Toulouse, these courtyards are havens of peace and quiet in the heart of the city, home to grand town houses, galleries, Renaissance towers and staircases, charterhouses, fountains, palm trees, arbours and more…
The Église du Taur : in 250 AD Rue du Taur was the site of the torture of Saturnin (the future St Sernin), tied to a bull by pagans and dragged through the streets. Notre Dame du Taur is a number 12, the spot where the martyr died.
The church, of Moorish appearance, dates from the 14th century and features a fine wall bell tower typical of the Midi Toulousain.
The Basilica of Saint Sernin : built in the 11th and 12th centuries, Saint Sernin is the largest intact Romanesque church in Europe. It contains the relics of St Saturnin and is still a major staging post on St James's Way to Santiago de Compostela (the Arles route).
Its splendid 65-metre octagonal bell tower featuring mitred arch openwork was later copied in a number of churches around the region.
The Musée des Antiques Saint Raymond : this great Toulouse institution occupies a fine brick building which was a school in the 16th century and opens onto attractive grounds.
The Couvent des Cordeliers : at number 3, Rue du Collège de Foix, the buildings of the Banque de France occupy the site of the old Couvent des Cordeliers monastery (13th-15th century) of which only the octagonal bell tower remains, visible from the street.
Les Jacobins : a fortress on the outside and a miracle of light on the inside thanks to its striking stained-glass windows and ogival vaults merging into palms, the Église des Jacobins (13th-14th century) is a monument which raises the art of building with brick to new heights.
The depository of the relics of St Thomas Aquinas, the church is extended by a quiet, sunny cloister.
The Hôtel de Bernuy : the mansion at number 1 Rue Gambetta was the sumptuous residence of Jean de Bernuy, who amassed his fortune in the 16th century in the woad trade. He died in 1556 during a 'corrida spéciale' (where mastiffs were set against a bull) that he held in his courtyard. Since 1806, the Lycée Pierre de Fermat, one of the most reputable schools in Toulouse, has occupied part of the Hôtel de Bernuy.
The houses in Rue Gambetta : cast-iron balconies, floral decorations, medallions, consoles, pilasters and more… it is the wealth of architectural details that creates the charm of this street leading to Place de la Daurade, on the Garonne riverside.
La Daurade Port : just down from the square of the same name, this port was once home to the city's boat wash-houses. Today it is where you board a river cruiser for a trip on the Garonne.
Used as a car park until the 1990s, the semicircular port was later grassed over and tuned into a recreational area. At several points it opens onto the quayside and is a favourite haunt of locals, who like to soak up the sun there.
The River Garonne : with its source in the Pyrenees on the French-Spanish border, Garonne as she is simply known here is a personality in her own right whose temperament has helped forge Toulouse's identity. The broad, voluminous and often turbulent river is hemmed in by high retaining walls designed to protect the city from flooding.
Promenade Henri Martin and Quai Lucien Lombard : one following on from the other, these two walkways take you from Place de la Daurade to Place Saint Pierre. Shaded by plane trees that lean gracefully towards the Garonne, they are lined with pretty, colourful houses with flower-decked galleries, balconies and colonnades. The play of the shade from the trees and the light saturating the orange-coloured bricks is simply gorgeous.
Place Saint Pierre : this square, which leads to Pont Saint Pierre (formerly a metal suspension bridge, rebuilt in the 1990s), is lined with student hangout cafés and is one of Toulouse's noisiest party spots.
The Église Saint Pierre des Cuisines : this church has been renovated and is now the Toulouse Conservatoire's music and dance performance venue. It contains the city's oldest visible remains (a 5th century funerary basilica, discovered in the archaeological crypt).
The lock on the Canal de Brienne : this canal connects the Garonne with the Canal du Midi. The former lock house is set to become the new Maison Claude Nougaro (1929-2004), a museum dedicated to the famous singer and much-admired native of Toulouse.
The Bazacle: this former hydroelectric power station at one end of the thundering weir on the Garonne has been transformed into an exhibition venue run by the French electricity company EDF.
It's worth walking through the building (free admission) for the beautiful panorama of the Garonne from the large teak sun terrace at the back.
The Église de la Daurade : after the Bazacle you retrace your steps to follow the Garonne quayside in the opposite direction towards Place de la Daurade and the Pont Neuf. This takes you past Notre Dame de la Daurade, the origins of which date back to the 5th century. This church is surprising with its cavernous interior, dark atmosphere, Black Madonna still venerated today, and the host of moving offerings inside.
The Ecole des Beaux Arts : this is one of the city's few white façades, monumental with its frontispiece decorated with allegorical statues representing Painting, Architecture, Sculpture and Engraving.
The Pont Neuf : the 'New Bridge' is actually Toulouse's oldest. It is even the oldest bridge spanning the Garonne along its entire length, from the Pyrenees all the way to Bordeaux. Completed in 1632 after 88 years in the building, it was opened by Louis XIV at the age of just 14.
The Hôtel d’Assézat : central Toulouse is full of grand town houses, but this is one of the finest. This city mansion inspired by the Italian Renaissance was built by the architect Nicolas Bachelier in the mid-16th century for the woad merchant Pierre d’Assézat. Since 1995, the Fondation Bemberg has placed a rich art collection on show there.
The caryatids in Rue des Marchands : on the façade of number 8, they are one of the legion of architectural surprises you come across in Toulouse. These 12 sculptures of female figures flanking the windows on the first floor are made of terracotta and hail from the famous Ateliers Virebent, in the 19th century.
Place de la Trinité : the fountain with winged statues, Maison Lamothe with its Greek statues and pilastered windows (at number 57), the plant-motif Art Nouveau stained-glass window at number 8, the café terraces, the almost complete absence of cars… everything here contributes to the charm of this square, built by the architect Urbain Vitry in the 19th century.
Place Saint Etienne : the gorgeous Rue Croix-Baragnon (grand dwellings and Gothic houses) lined with smart boutiques leads you to this square where the Griffoul babbles away quietly to itself. The Griffoul was the first public fountain to be built in Toulouse (16th century).
To the east, the unusual spread-out architecture of the Cathedral of Saint Etienne (13th to 19th century) stands out. Among its magnificent interior decorations, a pillar stands over the tombstone of Pierre-Paul Riquet, the designer of the Canal du Midi.
Place Saint Georges : Rue Boulbonne (admire the intricate brick façades) leads on this square with a village feel, filled with easy-going café terraces. You'd never guess that it was once one of Toulouse's main places of public execution.
Taking Rue Saint Antoine du T (named after the monks of St Antoine de Vienne, who sported the Egyptian T-shaped cross (tau) on their habits, you return to your starting point : Place Wilson and Allées du Président Roosevelt.
This lovely city walk is the best way to appreciate the charm and originality of Toulouse, offering something new to greet your eye with every step.
The best time to do it is when the city's famous red brick buildings are lit up in the crimson light of sunset or the pinkish glow of the early morning. Your route begins next to Place Wilson, buzzing with life, and takes you exploring a large part of Toulouse's historic centre. Here, on the right bank of the River Garonne, is the beating heart and oldest part of the city, still crammed with reminders of its 2,000-year history.
Fine monuments
The Capitole, the Basilica of Saint Sernin, the Hôtel d’Assézat, the Cathedral of Saint Etienne…: on the way you pass some of the city's must-sees. Their monumental beauty have made Toulouse's reputation, where ever since the Romans brick has proved its worth as a magnificent building material. But you will also delight in the keen pleasure of getting under the skin of a city that is at once subtle, capricious and lives life to the full.
In Rue du Taur for example, you'll push open some of the half-open gates and enter their amazing internal courtyards. In Rue du Collège de Foix, you'll unearth the remains of the Couvent des Cordeliers monastery. Walking up Rue Lakanal will take you back in time to the splendour of the Église des Jacobins.
Curiosities and refinements
You can also stop off at the port of La Daurade, whose rounded form collects and concentrates the wonderful light in the city of Toulouse, daughter of the Garonne. A little further on you can stop for lunch or just a drink on a terrace in Place de la Trinité, soaking up the square's Italian atmosphere.
Returning to your starting point through a maze of delightful back streets, you'll notice the faces and other carved details embellishing the pink, ochre and orange façades, worn smooth with the patina of the centuries.
Open your eyes, and Toulouse will reveal a host of elegant and curious touches that speak volumes about the history and soul of this great city. And this walk is the perfect way to see it for yourself.