Carrières-sous-Poissy (78): floating cottages on the Galiotte pond threatened with destruction

A postcard setting, unique in the Paris region... And yet, the famous floating cottages on the Etang de la Galiotte, in Carrières-sous-Poissy(Yvelines), are threatened with extinction. The cause? The site's renaturation project, led by the département, which calls for the destruction of these cabins by the end of 2025.

The floating cottages on the La Galiotte pond in Yvelines, a real postcard landscape
For a complete change of scenery in the heart of the Île-de-France region, head for the Parc du Peuple de l'Herbe in Carrières-sous-Poissy, in the Yvelines department. With its 113 hectares of wilderness and picturesque ponds, including the étang de La Galiotte dotted with floating chalets, this oasis, just a stone's throw from Poissy station, offers an authentic experience just a Navigo pass away! [Read more]

Clinging to their corner of paradise for some fifty years, these 37 floating cottages create a bucolic and atypical landscape, ideal for strolling and relaxing. But they're now in the hot seat: the département is pointing the finger at illegal occupation of the banks and maintenance problems, despite some ecological improvements undertaken by the residents. " It's the fact that we're on banks with unauthorized construction (...) and without using specialized companies that means that today, we have a bank that's sinking," Sophie Danlos, director of the Yvelines environment department, explained to France 3. The stated aim is to return nature to nature and open up the pond to the general public.

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For this haven of peace in the midst of turmoil, the end of the occupancy agreement is set for December 31, 2025. By this date, the owners must have dismantled their cabins at their own expense. But the L'Étang de la Galiotte association is determined to stay the course! It is defending an alternative to destruction by proposing a cultural and educational project: artist residencies, school visits and ecological awareness-raising. A petition has been launched to prevent the lake from sinking.

So, will the mythical cabins of the Etang de la Galiotte soon be consigned to history, or will they be able to write a new chapter? To be continued...