In Camon, you have two different ways to explore the Hortillonnages: on a self-guided electric boat trip and on foot along the Somme. The boat trip takes about two and a half hours; the Chemin de Halage is a seven-kilometre circular route. When planning your day, you can therefore account separately for the time needed for the boat trip and the length of the walk. Check tour and access details before your visit if they are important to your plans.
Hortillonnages: Islands, waterways and garden art
The Hortillonnages have been cultivated in their present form for about 700 years. They consist of numerous alluvial islands surrounded by 65 kilometres of waterways and drainage and irrigation ditches. The area extends across five municipalities: Camon, Amiens, Lamotte-Brebière, Longueau and Rivery.
Visitors steer the electric boat themselves. Along the way, they can discover around 30 gardens and artistic installations combining art and nature.
On foot: Circular routes and longer walks
The Chemin de Halage runs along the Somme in the heart of the Hortillonnages. Starting from Camon, Lamotte-Brebière or Parc Saint-Pierre, it offers a waterside walk past the gardens of the Hortillonnages. This seven-kilometre circular route includes leisure gardens and decorated bridges.
The Circuit de la Canardière is eleven kilometres long and runs between Amiens and Longueau, making it four kilometres longer than the Chemin de Halage and offering a different route format from its circular walk. Those looking for a route through several places rather than a single circular walk will find another option in a walking route suggested by the Somme Tourist Board: it runs from Parc Saint-Pierre via Amiens, Camon and Rivery.
Culture and local history
Saint-Vast parish church has a construction phase dating from the last quarter of the 16th century. In 1836, the church was extended with a brick side aisle—a space added to the side of the church. This brings two distinct stages of construction into focus: one from the late 16th century and the 1836 extension.
The Festival international de jardins | Hortillonnages Amiens was founded in 2010 to support young landscape designers and artists. The two cultural themes offer different emphases: Saint-Vast represents historic construction phases, while the festival, founded in 2010, set out to support young landscape designers and artists. Together, built heritage and an aim that brings landscape and art together offer visitors two distinct cultural perspectives.
Espace Gaston Gambier was created on the former site of the “Marais aux Bœufs” on the banks of the Somme between Camon and Longueau.
Discover more destinations: Doingt, Pont-Remy, Berny-En-Santerre, Buigny-Saint-Maclou, Ailly-Sur-Noye, Valines, Roisel, Acheux-En-Vimeu.
For the regional travel overview: Somme.
