The boat leaves the Canal latéral à la Loire, enters a 2.8 km branch, passes through two locks, and then the plane trees of the Port de la Jonction come into view. The city reveals itself this way, through its former commercial basin, a few minutes' walk from an old core that the Loire runs alongside without ever crossing. The former capital of the Nivernais has kept from its ducal past a silhouette like no other: a palace that looks like a château, a cathedral with two apses and lanes where faience still fills the shop windows.

From the Port de la Jonction to the old centre

From the quay, a walk of about fifteen minutes is enough to reach the old quarters. The path climbs gently toward the old town, set on a hillside overlooking the river. Along the way, the old houses draw closer together, cobblestones replace asphalt and the bell towers serve as landmarks. The city bears the Ville d'art et d'histoire label, and this is borne out on every street corner: a turret here, a carved doorway there, a half-timbered façade a little farther on.

The Ducal Palace, a château before the châteaux

Facing a vast esplanade, the Ducal Palace lines up its turrets and ornate dormer windows. Built at the end of the 15th century for the counts, later dukes, of Nevers, it is often presented as one of the first châteaux of the Loire. Its pale façade, punctuated by a central tower adorned with bas-reliefs, can be photographed from afar as well as up close. The interior now hosts exhibitions, and the neighbouring terrace opens onto a wide view over the rooftops and the river.

One cathedral, two apses

A stone's throw away, the Cathedral of Saint-Cyr-et-Sainte-Julitte surprises with its construction: a Romanesque apse to the west and a Gothic apse to the east, united in a single nave. Bombed in 1944, it received over the following decades a remarkable collection of contemporary stained-glass windows by several artists. The coloured light streaming through the nave creates a rare dialogue between medieval stone and modern creation.

The Porte du Croux and faience

Continuing west, the Porte du Croux raises its silhouette of a 14th-century gate tower, a remnant of the ramparts, surrounded by greenery. Nearby, the Frédéric Blandin Museum of Faience and Fine Arts holds a major collection of Nevers faience, a craft established here at the end of the 16th century by Italian potters. The famous Nevers blue appears on platters, vases and figurines; a few local workshops carry on the craft and open their doors to the curious.

Bernadette Soubirous, the city's other face

The Loire city is also a pilgrimage stop. Bernadette Soubirous, the visionary of Lourdes, lived for thirteen years at the Saint-Gildard convent, where she died in 1879. Her body rests in a glass reliquary in the chapel of the Espace Bernadette, about a ten-minute walk from the old quarters. Believer or not, the place impresses with its calm and the gardens that surround it.

To finish, the river

Before returning to the boat, the Loire quays are worth a detour. The wide, still-wild river flows between sandbanks; a stone bridge crosses it and herons fish beneath the old walls. Here are a few useful pointers for planning your walk:

• Port de la Jonction — historic centre: about 15 min on foot
• Ducal Palace and monuments of the old centre: grouped within a small area
• Porte du Croux and Faience Museum: 10 min farther west
• Espace Bernadette (Saint-Gildard convent): 10 to 15 min walk

The port call often ends with the return along the water, when the evening light catches the slate roofs and ancient towers. Nevers does not seek to dazzle; rather, it leaves the impression of a city that has crossed the centuries without rushing, and invites you to do the same for a day.