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Voykit pocket guide · France
Amiens
Give Amiens one full day and one night: the cathedral, the Jules Verne house and the Musée de Picardie fit a single day from Paris; add the Hortillonnages boat only when it is running (roughly April–October, check dates).
Amiens is the capital of Hauts-de-France and a 1 h 10 min train ride from Paris, so it works as a day trip or a single overnight. The cathedral is the reason most people come; the Hortillonnages, the Musée de Picardie and the Jules Verne house fill the rest of a day. Two nights only pay off if you add the Somme battlefields or use it as a base for Lille, Arras and the coast.
- Country
- France
- Best months
- May–Jun, Sep–Oct
- Avoid
- Nov–Feb (grey, wet, short days)
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- EUR
- Money
- Currency is the euro (EUR, €). Contactless cards work in most shops, cafés and restaurants.
- Daily spend
- Budget €55–85 excl. bed · Mid €85–140 excl. bed · High €140+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- Orange, SFR, Bouygues Télécom and Free sell prepaid SIMs in their shops and at tabacs; ID is required to register.
- Emergency
- European emergency 112 · Ambulance (SAMU) 15 · Police 17 · Fire 18
- Plugs
- Types C, E · 230 V · 50 Hz · Round two-pin plugs; type E sockets have an earth pin sticking out, so Schuko (type F) plugs need a C/E hybrid or an adapter.
- Tipping
- Café or bar: Leave small change, €0.20–1.; Restaurant: Service is included; leave 5–10% in cash for good service.; Taxi: Round up to the next euro or two.; Hotel porter or housekeeping: €1–2 per bag or per night.; Tour guide: €5–10 per person for a half day, more for private guides.
- Water
- Tap water is safe everywhere unless signed otherwise. Restaurants must serve a free carafe of tap water on request.
- Toilets
- Paris has free automatic public toilets (sanisettes); elsewhere use cafés (buy a coffee), museums and stations, where some charge €0.50–1.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee | €1.50–3 |
| Lunch menu (plat du jour) | €14–20 |
| Dinner, main course | €16–26 |
| Beer: draught in a bar / can at a shop | €5–7 / €1.50–2.50 |
| Bus ticket (one hour) | €1.40 |
| Macarons d'Amiens, small box | €6–12 |
| eSIM or data SIM, about a week | €10–20 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- CDG · Paris Charles de Gaulle
- Rail link runs from the CDG terminal station, not Paris Nord; route and total time to Amiens vary — check connections and allow 2 h 30 min door to door
- BVA · Beauvais-Tillé
- About 1 h by road or rail via Beauvais; check connections
Typical fares
- Paris Nord → Amiens, TER or Corail
- about €18 each way, 1 h 10 min
- Taxi station → cathedral
- €10–15
- Hortillonnages boat
- about €12, seasonal (check)
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
The centre is pedestrianised and walkable end to end in about 25 minutes. Buses cost about €1.40 for a one-hour ticket. Park outside the centre or in an underground car park rather than driving in.
See and do
Known for
- Amiens Cathedral (UNESCO)
- Hortillonnages floating market gardens
- Jules Verne house
- Musée de Picardie
- Macarons d'Amiens
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Albert and the Somme battlefields | Train from Gare d'Amiens to Albert, about 30 min, then taxi or bike to Thiepval | About 1 h to Albert |
| Beauvais | Train from Gare d'Amiens, about 1 h 15 min | About 1.5 h |
| Abbeville | Train from Gare d'Amiens, about 45 min | About 1 h |
| Lille | Train from Gare d'Amiens, about 1 h 30 min, often via Arras | About 2 h |
Sleep
- Centre-ville (around the cathedral and Rue des Trois Cailloux)
- Walk to everything; the pick if you have one night.
- Station area (Place Alphonse Fiquet)
- Cheapest beds and the easiest arrival with bags; 10–15 min walk to the cathedral.
- Saint-Leu quarter
- Canals, bars and restaurants on Quai Belu; 10 min from the centre, and the bar streets stay busy late.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello / Good day | Bonjourbon-zhoor |
| Thank you | Mercimair-see |
| The bill, please | L'addition, s'il vous plaîtla-dee-syon seel voo pleh |
| Can I pay by card? | Je peux payer par carte ?zhuh puh pay-yay par kart |
| Where is the toilet? | Où sont les toilettes ?oo son lay twa-let |
| One ticket, please | Un billet, s'il vous plaîtun bee-yay seel voo pleh |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Say 'bonjour madame/monsieur' on entering any shop, bus or office; avoid: Asking a question before saying bonjour — it is read as rude
- Cheek kisses (la bise): Follow the other person's lead; one to four kisses depending on region; avoid: Initiating la bise with strangers or in business
- Addressing people: Use 'vous' and titles until invited otherwise; avoid: First names and 'tu' with older people or staff
- Restaurants: Wait to be seated in restaurants; call the waiter 'monsieur' or 'madame'; avoid: 'Garçon', snapping fingers, asking for the bill before you are finished
- Conversation: Debate is a pleasure; food, politics and philosophy are fair game; avoid: Asking about salary or religion; loud voices on trains
- Dinner at a home: Bring flowers (not chrysanthemums), chocolates or a good bottle; arrive 10–15 minutes late; avoid: Cutting the tip off a cheese wedge or asking for ketchup
- Dress: Smart-casual in cities; covered shoulders in churches; avoid: Beachwear in town centres
Scams and watch-outs
- Book the cathedral and Hortillonnages boat in advance in summer; boat slots sell out.
- The Hortillonnages boats run seasonally, roughly April to October: check before you plan the day around it.
- Amiens SC now play in the third tier; check fixtures before buying a match ticket.
- Winter days are short and wet; the cathedral interior is dark by late afternoon.
Amiens is a normal mid-size French city and safe by day. The station quarter and the Saint-Leu bars are where late-night trouble concentrates; keep bags zipped in crowds and avoid walking the Hortillonnages towpaths alone after dark.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Amiens yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Amiens Cathedral (UNESCO)
- Hortillonnages floating market gardens
- Jules Verne house
- Musée de Picardie
- Macarons d'Amiens
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Amiens Tourism (official): www.amiens.fr/Je-suis/Touriste
- Hortillonnages d'Amiens (official): www.leshortillonnages-amiens.com/
- Musée de Picardie (official): www.amiens.fr/Vivre-a-Amiens/Culture-Patrimoine/Etablissements-culturels/Musee-de-Picardie
- Wikivoyage: Amiens, revision 5287458 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5287458
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Amiens
À cette adresse, s'il vous plaît
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
No embassy in Amiens; the US, UK, Canadian, Australian, Irish and New Zealand embassies are in Paris. Consulates-general are also in Paris and Lille.
Service is included by law; round up or leave 5–10% for good service.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/amiens). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.