I am reclining in a deckchair on Ipanema beach, with the sun blazing onto my face. Behind me, a guitarist is playing a Gilberto Gil song, and from the far end of the strand I can hear the raucous rhythms and whistles of a samba band. A bronzed beauty in a tiny bikini sashays by. I stare out over the glistening water and close my eyes; I would curl my toes with pleasure, but I might get splinters.

This is not, you see, Ipanema, Rio, but the version in the centre of the City of Light. This year, Paris-Plage, the urban beach that hugs the Seine between Pont Neuf and Pont de Sully, is dancing to a Brazilian beat. So the road — sorry, plage — has been divided into three sections: Ipanema, Maracana (actually the square outside the Hôtel de Ville) and Copacabana. And the part of the beach I am sitting on does not have sand, but a boardwalk.

Okay, the city might boast that Paris-Plage is two miles long and uses 3,000 tons of sand, imported from Sandrancourt, in the Yvelines area (Ile de France), but large sections of the plage are decking or just plain old asphalt, and much of the sand goes to cover the volleyball courts. Nor, of course, is there any sea — and neither can you swim in the Seine, unless you bring your own stomach pump. However, the whole thing is executed with such panache and good humour, it really doesn’t matter.

There is certainly no shortage of beachy activities, with a swimming pool, copious cafes, snack bars, water fountains, loungers, hammocks, deckchairs and parasols, as well as t’ai chi, capoeira and samba lessons — all free. For kids, there is a dedicated section of sand with Swingball, an adventure playground, art tables, pétanque and an army of plag-istes (a hipper version of Redcoats) to keep things rolling.

Night-time means music (from hip-hop to jazz), an open-air cinema and dance performances, before the midnight closure for a swift wash and brush-up, ready for a 7am start. Last year, more than 4m visitors used the beach; the city expects to top that this year before it closes on August 21.

No argument, Paris-Plage works. As one of the plagistes said to me: “It’s a good job for London that the Olympic Committee didn’t take into account the city with the best summer beach before awarding the Games.” I could only admit that she had a point.

• Rob Ryan travelled as a guest of Eurostar

  Continued on page 2

  ()

  Continued from page 1

  More city beaches

  Getting there: Eurostar (0870 518 6186, www.eurostar.com) has 16 daily services from London Waterloo and Ashford International; from £59. For a suitably chic stay, the Murano Urban Resort (00 33 1 42 71 20 00, www.muranoresort.com) has doubles from £200.

  Page 1 of 3

   Next Page