Paris parks: eight gardens for a breather in the city
Paris has hundreds of green spaces, but some are really worth the trip on the Métro. Lawns, hills, a planted railway line, glasshouses: here are eight places to walk, picnic and let the children run about.
Jardin du Luxembourg
The Senate’s garden, with its green chairs around the big pond, its statues and the Fontaine Médicis in the shade of the plane trees. A bandstand, beehives, children’s play areas: the whole neighbourhood meets here on Sundays. The handiest way in is from the Place Edmond-Rostand, opposite Luxembourg RER station.
Place Edmond-Rostand, 75006 Paris
Parc des Buttes-Chaumont
The hilliest park in Paris: up you go, down you come, and the view from the top rewards the effort. The lake, the cliffs and the little temple perched on its island make a very 19th-century postcard. The sloping lawns are perfect for a picnic, as long as you wedge the bottle in firmly.
Place Armand-Carrel, 75019 Paris
Jardin des Plantes
The great botanical garden of the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, free to enter, between the Gare d’Austerlitz and the Grande Mosquée. Flower beds, century-old trees, statues and, for those who want to stay longer, the menagerie, the great glasshouses and the galleries. You can spend an hour here or a whole day.
57 rue Cuvier, 75005 Paris
Coulée verte René-Dumont
A 4.5 km walk along a former railway line, first raised above the Avenue Daumesnil, then through a string of gardens to the edge of the Bois de Vincennes. You walk at balcony height, away from the traffic. Start at the Bastille end and come down whenever you like.
34 rue de Lyon, 75012 Paris
Parc Monceau
The smart park of the Right Bank, opened under Napoleon III, with its gilded gates, mock classical ruins and statues of writers and musicians. Merry-go-rounds and playgrounds for the little ones, paths for joggers. A plane tree planted in 1814 is still standing.
35 boulevard de Courcelles, 75008 Paris
Parc de Belleville
Clinging to the hillside, this park offers one of the finest views of Paris from the Belvédère Willy-Ronis, right at the top. Steps, terraces, nearly 1,200 trees and shrubs, a big playground. Come late in the day, when the light settles over the rooftops.
47 rue des Couronnes, 75020 Paris
Parc Montsouris
The big English-style park in the south of Paris, all dips and hollows, with its lake, remarkable trees and Guignol puppet theatre. The Paris meridian runs through it. A neighbourhood feel, few tourists, lots of picnics.
2 rue Gazan, 75014 Paris
Parc de la Villette
Fifty-five hectares of meadows and themed gardens along the Canal de l’Ourcq, dotted with Bernard Tschumi’s red follies. People come to run, picnic, see the farm animals or stretch out on the Prairie du Cercle. Ideal with children who need to burn off some energy.
211 avenue Jean-Jaurès, 75019 Paris
Coming up here: Les Cris de Paris - Sù! (Tuesday 24 Nov, 8 pm), ENSEMBLE 2E2M : Roue libre (Thursday 10 Dec, 7 pm)
Updated 10 November 2026.