Jardin des Plantes

Botanical garden Paris, Ile-de-France, France

What to expect

The Jardin des Plantes, also known as the Jardin des Plantes de Paris, is the main botanical garden in France. It is situated in the 5th arrondissement, Paris, on the left bank of the river Seine, and covers 28 hectares. The garden includes four buildings containing exhibited specimens, which are officially considered as museums. These buildings are the Grande Galerie de l'Évolution, the Galerie de Minéralogie et de Géologie, the Galerie de Paléontologie et d'Anatomie Comparée, and the Galerie de Botanique. In addition to the gardens and the galleries, there is also a small zoo, the Ménagerie du Jardin des Plantes, founded in 1795. The Jardin des Plantes maintains a botanical school, which trains botanists, constructs demonstration gardens, and exchanges seeds to maintain biotic diversity. About 4,500 plants are arranged by family on a one hectare plot. Three hectares are devoted to horticultural displays of decorative plants. An Alpine garden has 3,000 species with world-wide representation. Specialized buildings, such as a large Art Deco winter garden, and Mexican and Australian hothouses display regional plants, not native to France. The Rose Garden, created in 1990, has hundreds of species of roses and rose trees

Plan your family visit to the Jardin des Plantes with these blog insights 👇

...Paris with your kids

This family's experience:

Activities: We walked through the Botanical garden. We went to the adventure playground, the merry-go-round, and the menagerie (small zoo)

Highlights: There are plenty of things to do for young people: adventure playground, old and pretty merry-go-round, and the menagerie (small zoo) with its orang-outang, Nénette, a real star! ✨

Guide to Paris with Toddlers | Visiting Paris with Toddlers

This family's experience:

Activities: We visited the Jardin des Plantes, which encompasses botanical gardens, a natural history museum and a zoo on its grounds

Highlights: Our toddler enjoyed the small playground and the zoo, and we enjoyed the intimate setting of the Les Belles Plantes café-brasserie ✨

Paris by boat

This family's experience:

Activities: We visited the botanical garden, where we saw the natural history museum with its paleontology section, including big dinosaur skeletons

Highlights: Our kids were excited to see the dinosaur skeletons ✨

Paris meta Top for families

This family's experience:

Activities: We visited the botanical garden and the Grande Galleria dell’Evoluzione

Highlights: The kids enjoyed the animal exhibits, and the adults appreciated the beautiful gardens ✨

Greenhouses of the Jardin des Plantes: nature visit in Paris with the family

This family's experience:

Activities: We strolled through the Jardin des Plantes before visiting the Grandes Serres, the oldest in Europe and the world. We walked through the botanical school garden and saw some flowers like birds of paradise, ipomoeas, and beautiful varieties of ferns

Highlights: The kids were happy to see a stegosaurus in a corner of the garden! ✨

THE MENAGERIE

This family's experience:

Activities: On Sunday, after the Jardin d'acclimatation, we went to the Jardin des Plantes and spent the day there before taking the train

Highlights: We were at the Jardin des Plantes on a Sunday with the children. The animals always please the kids ✨

THE GARDEN OF PLANTS

This family's experience:

Activities: We visited this "very special" botanical garden, created in 1593. It was a great walk for the family with no vehicles nearby, which was a great asset. There were many places for the children to run, climb, and have fun. We went to the cactus greenhouse

Highlights: It's a beautiful place for a family outing. The children enjoyed the many places to run, climb, and play without swings or slides. "Enormous crush on the cactus greenhouse" ✨

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This family's experience:

Activities: We visited the park and went to the zoo, museums and playground

Highlights: We enjoyed the variety of activities in the park and our daughter enjoyed the zoo and museums ✨

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This family's experience:

Activities: We visited the park and enjoyed the two museums and the zoo

Highlights: We enjoyed the museums and the zoo. We will return to the zoo and the museums ✨

A Review of La Grande Galerie de l’Evolution, Paris

This family's experience:

Activities: We walked through the gardens, enjoying the sprinkler system and stopping by the playground and a crepe stall

Highlights: G loved running through the sprinkler system, while we enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere and the tasty crepes ✨