Secret Steps in Paris’s 16th Arrondissement
- Rue des Eaux ,
- 75016 Paris
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Just off the Quai de Passy, across the street from the Pont Bir-Hakeim and running parallel to the metro line, you’ll find the small Rue des Eaux, literally Street of Waters. Once closed to the public, this little street is very easily overlooked but is full of charm and history.
The rue has been here since 1650, named for the two mineral springs that were discovered when digging in the area. The village of Passy, long before it became a part of Paris, was well known in its day for healing natural springs, and up to the late 1700s, many Parisians traveled to Passy to take the waters.
With your back to the Seine, follow the street past a few residential buildings and you’ll find the Square Charles-Dickens, with the Musée du Vin. This little museum is for true wine enthusiasts. Housed in the tunnels of an old convent, the Wine Museum boasts countless artifacts relating to growing grapes and making wine, from pruning knives and old bottles to porcelain figurines and baskets for collecting the grapes. Entry is €13.90, but if you’re hungry, you might opt for the set Bacchus menu (€63), which gives you entry to the museum and a four-course meal.
Continuing up the Rue des Eaux, toward the left of the square, you’ll find a tiny entrance to a long staircase. This is a hidden gem: small, steep, and rising between immense apartment building walls, you’ll climb almost 200 feet, all the way up to Rue Raynouard, close to Rue de Passy. Don’t forget to look back and take a picture of the steps with the lovely streetlights jutting out. Depending on the day, be it gloomy, rainy, or sunny, the light makes for truly different pictures each time.
Not sure where to go next? Explore these top places in the neighborhood.
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