Staying Home Sucks, home
Avenue Jean Medecin (Nice) en mars 2022 (2)
Nice, the nearest town, 4 km away. Photo: Benoît Prieur, CC0, Wikimedia Commons

Le Paillon

Kayak spot · France

Whitewater: a river with rapids

Is it worth the trip?

67Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

Best on Tue 3: Wind 5 kn gusting 14, Air 17 °C, River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 73 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
14kn
Air
17°C
Rain
0 mm

Wed 4 · 67 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
14kn
Air
15°C
Rain
0.1 mm

Thu 5 · 66 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
8kn
Air
14°C
Rain
4.8 mm

Fri 6 · 61 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
13kn
Air
13°C
Rain
13.8 mm

Sat 7 · 67 out of 100

Wind
5 kn
Gusts
14kn
Air
14°C
Rain
0 mm

Sun 8 · 65 out of 100

Wind
4 kn
Gusts
13kn
Air
13°C
Rain
0 mm

Mon 9 · 64 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
10kn
Air
12°C
Rain
0 mm

Tap a day for wind, gusts, air and rain. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 271, good
  2. Tue 373, good
  3. Wed 467, good
  4. Thu 566, good
  5. Fri 661, good
  6. Sat 767, good
  7. Sun 865, good
  8. Mon 964, good
  9. Tue 1068, good
  10. Wed 1161, good

The spot in three facts

  • Grade IIat its hardest
  • Moving waterthe water
  • 2.7 kmthe section

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know the river level, weirs or your skill.

Wind and weather forecast and score for each day at Le Paillon
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Mon 2Nov71, good4 kn12kn16°C0 mm
Tue 3Nov73, good5 kn14kn17°C0 mm
Wed 4Nov67, good5 kn14kn15°C0.1 mm
Thu 5Nov66, good3 kn8kn14°C4.8 mm
Fri 6Nov61, good2 kn13kn13°C13.8 mm
Sat 7Nov67, good5 kn14kn14°C0 mm
Sun 8Nov65, good4 kn13kn13°C0 mm
Mon 9Nov64, good2 kn10kn12°C0 mm
Tue 10Nov68, good3 kn8kn15°C0.3 mm
Wed 11Nov61, good2 kn8kn13°C9.3 mm

Wind and gusts are in knots, rain in mm. River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go. More

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Best time to go

No month stands out

Good kayaking days in a typical week, each month, for grade III paddlers, from 2016 on (ERA5 history scored the same way).

  1. Jan2of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
  2. Feb4of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
  3. Mar6of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
  4. Apr6of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
  5. May7of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
  6. Jun7of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
  7. Jul7of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
  8. Aug7of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
  9. Sep7of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
  10. Oct7of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
  11. Nov5of 7: a trip from Tue 3 Nov
  12. Dec3of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec

Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.

Typical weather, not a forecast, and not the river's level: a month that is often good to be outside may still be low water.

Map

put-in, take-out, its town

Each place wears its best day on these dates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

More kayaking near here

2 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Le Paillon

A river section on the Le Paillon, from a put-in down to a take-out. Grade II, on the international scale. It runs 2.7 km along the river. Suits new paddlers and up, by its grade. 1 paddling school, club or hire within 10 km, the nearest 9.6 km away. The town to stay in is Nice. Within 5 km we also list 2 surf spots, 2 wind sports spots and 1 kayak spot.

  • River Le Paillon
  • Grade Grade II, on the international scale.
  • Length 2.7 km along the river.
  • Who it suits Suits new paddlers and up, by its grade.
  • Access No source states the access rules: check locally.
  • Schools, hire 1 paddling school, club or hire within 10 km, the nearest 9.6 km away.

Spots and rivers: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Whitewater sections © Rivermap (rivermap.org), Riverzone and Jonathan Riddell, ODbL.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,320–US$2,500 each

about US$1,320–US$2,500 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, stay, food, kayak hire.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 2 November 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to NCE, estimated from distance and season, changing at CDG, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$497–US$1,040
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$27–US$40
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$329–US$543
Food7 days eating outabout US$315–US$584
Kayak hire5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$154–US$289
Totalabout US$1,320–US$2,500

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Nice

Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn

Closest

Nice

8 min by car · 386 places to stay

about US$121/nightcountry average

See 386 places to stay in Nice · Booking.com

About Nice its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$121 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 2 November 2026.

Getting there: about 17h 30m

About 17h 30m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → NCE, changing at Charles de Gaulle International Airport (CDG), then 30 min by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.

On the water

River level

River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go.

Paddling schools, clubs and hire nearby

The nearest named schools, clubs and kayak or canoe hire within 25 km, in a straight line. Listings, not a recommendation. Schools, clubs and hire: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Credits