Summer is up and cities across Europe have planted palms trees and trucked in tons of sand to urban riverfronts to create the feeling of a lazy day at the shore. Urban beaches are a hit and Momondo guides you to our favourites.

Paris Plages

Paris Tourist Office/Amélie Dupont

Written by David Rich Momondo

Take thousand tons of sand, palm trees, deckchairs, glistering torsos and ubiquitous ice cream sellers - and you have the Paris Plages. The ‘Parisian Riviera’ spans 3 km along the right bank of the Seine from Louvre to Pont Sully.

During the summer, parts of the riverside are closed off from traffic and you can join the thousands of Parisians and tourists that enjoy the rather surreal experience lying in middle of the street wearing only bikini or speedos and a top hat. Beware, no g-strings, topless or nudist beachgoers allowed unless you want a 38 € fine!

Paris Tourist Office/Amélie Dupont

The Paris Plages is a highly popular, free 'event' instituted by the City Fathers in 2002. Originally it was thought of as a getaway for the thousand of Parisians who can’t afford to go on holiday, but the project was immediately adopted by the whole city and now millions of people visit the beach next to the city hall every summer.

On hot summer days Paris Plages is packed with sun-craving citizens and it is THE place in Paris to show the world your newest tattoo and the result of a long winter's hard work in the gym.

Beyond the stretch from Louvre to Pont Sully there is also a beach on the left bank of the Seine at the foot of the François Mitterrand National Library (13 arr.). Here is a floating swimming pool (Piscine Josephine Baker) filled with recycled water from the river for those seeking some relief from the summer sun, especially as the dirty water of the Seine itself is not a welcome thought. Since 2007, a third beach next to Bassin de la Villette, in the 19th arrondissement, has become extremely popular.

The Paris Plages run from 20 July to 20 August 2009.