A Transilien Line P train service, a long-distance cycle route and historic buildings give Lizy-sur-Ourcq several starting points for a stay. When planning a trip, visitors can choose between getting active on different routes and focusing on architecture and local history. The information about the cycle route and walking route describes different options, not a single combined tour.
Getting here and routes
Lizy-sur-Ourcq is served by Transilien Line P on the Meaux–La Ferté-Milon route. At Meaux, you can connect to trains to Paris-Est station. Check timetables and services before your trip to make sure the train connection works for your travel dates.
The Véloroute 52 also passes through Lizy-sur-Ourcq. It connects Paris with Strasbourg, making it a starting point for a cycling trip. As its waymarking should be checked locally, it is advisable to take this into account when planning.
For walking, there is a section of the GR® 11: it covers 32.5 kilometres from Lizy-sur-Ourcq station to La Ferté-sous-Jouarre station. The Véloroute 52 and the GR® 11 differ both in type and in the route details given. When planning, you can first decide whether a cycle route or the designated walking section better suits your plans, without treating the two as one continuous tour.
Église Saint-Médard: architectural history and art
Église Saint-Médard has been listed in the French register of historic monuments since 6 July 1942 and is owned by the municipality. The present building was constructed at the end of the 16th century at the instigation of Charles du Broullat and Antoinette d’Angennes. The church is described as a rural late Gothic building; its irregular floor plan and asymmetrical composition shape its architectural form.
Distinctive features include a slender slate tower and ornamentation that combines Renaissance and Gothic elements. The stained-glass windows are also part of its artistic decoration: some were designed by Laurent Gsell of Paris. The building’s history, form and windows offer different ways to explore a structure that cannot be understood through its date of construction alone.
Lock, painting and historic cellars
The Saint-Hubert lock adds an aspect of water engineering to the history of the municipality. It dates from 1756 and was built upstream of the Lizy mill weir. Its precise connection to the mill weir makes it a distinct historical topic alongside the church’s architecture.
The painting “Tableau Bourgeois” is on display at the town hall. It is considered the only painting in Île-de-France to document the construction of the “Flûtes” of the Ourcq Canal. This turns attention to another aspect of local history: the depiction of the canal’s construction. There are also historic cellars beneath the houses in the town centre. These add traces of older building fabric to the picture of the town.
Another historical connection can be found at the municipal cemetery, which is associated with a recognised pilgrimage by travelling people. Together, the church, lock, painting and cellars present a broad range of local history: sacred architecture, water engineering, artistic representation and long-standing cultural connections. Visitors interested in architecture will find specific details at Église Saint-Médard, from its floor plan to its windows; those who prefer exploring a variety of historical themes can complement their visit with the other places and buildings mentioned.
Discover more destinations: La Chapelle-Gauthier, Lognes, Bougligny, Jutigny, Rouvres, Le Mesnil-Amelot, Thénisy, Dammartin-en-Goële.
See the regional travel overview: Seine-et-Marne.
