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It’s easy to play your favourite sport for free in the French capital! The City of Paris offers residents and visitors free use of a range of sports facilities: football pitches, rugby stadiums, athletics tracks, etc.
Since the end of 2020, the Voltiges garden in the Parc de la Villette has become a paradise for outdoor workout enthusiasts. Just a stone's throw from the Zenith de Paris, the site offers some thirty exercise modules free of charge, which can be used for weight training, cross-training or even Parkour.
© OTCP David Lefranc
If you’d like a free workout with a coach, there are several options in Paris.
If you’d rather work out at the weekend, the City of Paris also organizes Sunday morning sport (Les activités sportives du dimanche midi) – free sessions with specialized instructors, held in a variety of Parisian green spaces and sports centres. Jogging, muscle building and stretching are among the various options on offer. You can sign up on arrival.
The Parc Rives de Seine is the place to go to run the 100 metres or to also take part in many sporting workshops and events on this specially equipped riverside stretch. There’s something for all tastes and all fitness levels. There’s even a scaled-down athletics track, which is free to use.
Filip Mroz via Unsplash
For an introduction to golf, go to the Parisian driving range on Boulevard Masséna and its complete installation on more than 2,500m². All information about golf in Paris with TeamJPA Golf in Paris.
If you’re keen on watersports, there is a range of free introductory sessions at the Base Nautique de la Villette. Participants can borrow canoes, rowboats and kayaks, and all sessions are run by qualified instructors (Saturdays).
Love getting out into the open air? Join a bicycle tour with Paris Rando Vélo, or get your walking boots on with the Fédération Française de la Randonnée Pédestre (French hiking federation) or the Comité Départemental de la Randonnée Pédestre de Paris (Paris departmental hiking committee).
As well as over a dozen open access rollerparks, skateparks and urban boarding zones in Paris, there are free group rollerblading sessions every week on city routes organized by clubs like :
Village-style dances are often organized in different Paris neighbourhoods. In summer, the Jardin Tino Rossi at Quai Saint Bernard in the 5th arrondissement draws crowds to its traditional and folk dances on certain weekday evenings. A must, the Bal Pop' takes place once every month at the Centquatre in the 19th arrondissement.
Jean Baptiste Gurliat
The creative and leisure centre, Centquatre, organises wutao or qi gong workshops. All times on the Centquatre site.
Gentle workouts, tennis, aqua aerobics, taekwondo, Nordic walking: with the City of Paris programme's Paris Sport Seniors, all of these activities can be enjoyed free of cost.
In the run-up to the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, the City of Paris has launched its "Paris Sportives" programme, which promotes gender diversity in sport and offers women free access to sports fields from April 2021.
