Love Locks in Paris andAround the World

Couples engrave their names or initials and sometimes the date on a padlock, lock it on a fence near the Seine River and toss the key into the Seine River.  This symbolizes eternal love.

Paris became the center of this romantic ritual dating back over 100 years. Here's how Love Locks became popular in Paris and around the world.

Although this trend of placing a “love lock” on a bridge actually began over 100 years ago during World War 1 when a schoolteacher in the tiny town of VrnJacka Banja fell in love with a Serbian officer who left for war that didn’t end well.  Other women in the tiny town created a romantic gesture of going to the place on the bridge where the schoolteacher always went to meet the officer and placed a lock on the bridge at that spot throwing the key into the water to symbolize their eternal love.

Love locks can be found on fences around Lle de la Cite (Island of the City) in Paris. Couples pledge their eternal love by engraving their initials or names on the locks. Lock them to a fence and throw the key into the Seine River.

The tradition from that small place snuck into focus in Italy when Federico Moccia wrote a romantic novel, I Want You, in 2006 about a couple placing a padlock on a lamppost on the Ponte Milio bridge in Rome. A movie was made from Federico Moccia’s book in 2007.

By 2008 the ritual took off in popularity.  Locks began to appear in many locations throughout Europe.  So many locks were placed on the Pont des Arts pedestrian bridge near the Louvre that over a million locks were accumulated by 2014.  The weight of all the added metal accounting for an additional 45 tons of immense weight was compromising the safety of the bridge’s structure. It caused a section of the bridge to collapse in 2014!!!!

By 2015, Paris removed all the locks, officially forbid people to place locks on bridges, and took steps to make their bridges lock-proof. It makes total sense the Hallmark would then turn around in 2017 and create the Hallmark movie, Love Locks!  Today, people continue to attach love locks to other fences and lampposts on or near Lle de la Cite (Island of the City).  Presently, Notre Dame Cathedral is a particularly popular location for Love Lock placement.

The Travel Empress, Pam at the iconic landmark, The Eiffel Tower, in Paris. Paris, the city of romance! The Hallmark movie, Love Lock, is set in Paris.

Romance is always in style!  Eventually, love locks can be seen throughout the world!  Sometimes on bridges, fences, gates, lampposts, and trees. Look for them when you travel. The romantic story of Love Locks is based on a true story. (Algiers/  Winnipeg, Canada/ Cranberra, Ausrtalia/ Melvourne, Australia/ Norfolk, Virginia/ Oceanside, California/ Canfield, Ohio/ Vancouver Island, Canada/ New York City/ Bamberg, Germany/ Florency, Italy/ Dublin, Ireland/ Edinburgh, Scotland/ Beaulieu Palace House, UK/ Recife, Brazil/ Grand Canyon National Park/ Fengyuan, Taiwan/ Montevideo, Uruguay)

~Travel Empress Pam

Founder and Owner of Travel Serendipity

pam@event-serendipity.com

Romance is always in style. Couples engrave name and date. Lock it to the fence and throw the key into the Seine River to symbolize eternal love. Find love locks as you travel throughout the world. It all started over 100 years ago!