# Luxembourg Gardens, Paris > The Luxembourg Gardens are the favourite park of Parisians, 23 hectares in the 6th arrondissement between the Latin Quarter and Saint-Germain. Queen Marie de' Medici laid them out in 1612 around her palace, where the French Senate sits today. There's an octagonal basin where children sail toy boats, the grotto-like Medici Fountain, about a hundred statues, a puppet theatre and the famous green chairs. Entry is free, and the gardens are open from morning to dusk. Web page: https://yesgo.io/france/paris/jardin-du-luxembourg - City: [Paris](https://yesgo.io/france/paris), France - YesGo score: 52/100 (Yes, go) - Time on site: 1 h - With kids: Fine with kids - Entry: Free - Hours: Morning to dusk, times vary by month - Area: 23 hectares - Sailboats: Hire at the Grand Bassin - Puppet theatre: Children's shows, ticketed - Location: 6th arrondissement, RER B Luxembourg - Coordinates: 48.84694, 2.33722 - Facts checked: 12.11.2026 ## Key facts - **1612** — laid out by Marie de' Medici (source: English Wikipedia) - **23 ha** — area of the gardens (source: English Wikipedia) - **≈ 100** — statues, monuments and fountains (source: English Wikipedia) - **1694** — France's first public museum opened (source: English Wikipedia) ## About the Luxembourg Gardens The Jardin du Luxembourg is a **23-hectare** park in the 6th arrondissement of Paris. Its story began in **1612**, when **Marie de' Medici**, widow of Henry IV, built a palace here modelled on the Pitti Palace in Florence where she grew up, and had a garden laid out in the Italian manner. Today the palace houses the **French Senate**, which also owns the gardens, so Parisians sometimes call them the Senate Garden. Locals fondly call it 'le Luco'. It's one of the calmest places in the city: Sorbonne students read on the lawns, retirees play chess and pétanque, children sail toy boats, and everyone else sits in the green metal chairs, which you can move wherever you like. ## What to see in the gardens - **The Luxembourg Palace** — Marie de' Medici's residence, now the Senate. - **The Grand Bassin** — an octagonal pond with a fountain and sailboats. - **The Medici Fountain** — a 17th-century grotto under plane trees. - **The Queens of France** — twenty statues on the terraces. - **The Statue of Liberty** — Bartholdi's first model. - **Puppet theatre and playground** — for children. ## The palace and the Grand Bassin At the heart of the gardens stands the domed **Luxembourg Palace** with a formal French parterre before it. The architect Salomon de Brosse built the palace, while Florentine craftsmen the queen brought with her laid out the garden. Its size later grew and shrank: under the Directory it was enlarged to 40 hectares, and under Napoleon III a new street cut part of it off. In front of the palace lies the **Grand Bassin**, an octagonal pond with a central fountain. For over a century children have sailed wooden **sailboats** here, nudging them with sticks, and you can hire one right by the water. Statues of queens and saints line the balustraded terraces around it. > **When to come** The gardens open early in the morning and close at dusk, late in summer and around five in winter; a few minutes before closing the wardens walk the paths blowing whistles. In spring the chestnuts and flowerbeds bloom, and in autumn the avenues turn gold. On warm days the green chairs by the pond are taken by noon, so come in the morning. ## The Medici Fountain In the eastern part, shaded by plane trees, hides the **Medici Fountain**, an Italian Renaissance grotto made for the queen by the Florentine fountain maker Tommaso Francini. It fell into ruin in the 18th century, and in 1811, on Napoleon's orders, it was restored by Jean-François Chalgrin, architect of the Arc de Triomphe. A long tree-lined pool stretches before the grotto, and in its niche the giant Polyphemus lies in wait for the lovers Acis and Galatea. On the back is the small **Leda Fountain** with a bas-relief, moved here from a nearby street. It's one of the most romantic spots in Paris. ## The statues The gardens hold over **a hundred statues**, monuments and fountains. Around the central parterre, the terraces carry twenty figures of **queens and famous women of France** commissioned by King Louis-Philippe, among them Marie de' Medici herself, Anne of Brittany and Mary, Queen of Scots. Look along the paths for other works too: Frédéric Bartholdi's **first model of the Statue of Liberty**, monuments to writers and artists such as George Sand, Verlaine, Baudelaire and Watteau, and Bourdelle's Beethoven. To the south the gardens continue as the Observatory avenue with the Carpeaux Fountain, where four women hold up a globe. ## For children and relaxing The Luxembourg Gardens are among the best places in Paris for a walk with children. In the south-west there's a large fenced **playground**, a **puppet theatre** with Guignol shows, a carousel and pony rides. Toy boats on the Grand Bassin delight toddlers and adults alike. For adults there are **tennis** courts, pétanque pitches, chess tables, an orchard of apple and pear trees and beehives. In the orangery by the palace, the **Musée du Luxembourg** hosts temporary exhibitions: it opened back in 1694 and is considered France's first public museum. ## How to get there 1. RER B to **Luxembourg**, exiting by the garden gates. 2. Metro line 4 to **Saint-Sulpice** or **Odéon**, a 5–7-minute walk. 3. Metro line 12 to **Notre-Dame-des-Champs**, for the west gates. 4. From Notre-Dame, a 20-minute walk through the Latin Quarter. ## Tips for your visit Bring a croissant or baguette from a nearby bakery and picnic in the green chairs by the pond, just as Parisians do. You can't sit on most lawns except in marked areas, so watch for the signs. Combine the gardens with a walk through the Latin Quarter, the Sorbonne and Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Saint-Sulpice church and the Odéon theatre are steps from the north gates, and the diagonal path by the Medici Fountain frames the dome of the Panthéon. Entry is free at every gate; toilets are paid and found in several spots. Cafés and ice-cream kiosks operate inside the gardens. ## Before you go Tick off what's ready — your ticks are saved in this browser. - [ ] Sit in the green chairs by the pond - [ ] Sail a toy boat - [ ] Find the Medici Fountain - [ ] Spot the Statue of Liberty model - [ ] Check the closing time ## Places in Paris: compare and choose Places in Paris rated by YesGo. - [Luxembourg Gardens](https://yesgo.io/france/paris/jardin-du-luxembourg) — YesGo score 52/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h · Free - [Tuileries Garden](https://yesgo.io/france/paris/tuileries-garden) — YesGo score 51/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h · Free - [Palace of Versailles](https://yesgo.io/france/paris/versailles) — YesGo score 46/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 6 h · Timed ticket, online - [Champ de Mars](https://yesgo.io/france/paris/champ-de-mars) — YesGo score 46/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free - [Parc Monceau](https://yesgo.io/france/paris/parc-monceau) — YesGo score 44/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 50 min · Free - [Musée Rodin](https://yesgo.io/france/paris/musee-rodin) — YesGo score 37/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 45 min · Museum and garden ticket, free under 18 - [Parc de la Villette](https://yesgo.io/france/paris/parc-de-la-villette) — YesGo score 33/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 3 h · Park free, museums ticketed ## Don't mix it up The Luxembourg Gardens are a park in central Paris named after the Duke of Luxembourg's former mansion; they have nothing to do with the country of Luxembourg. ## Tips - Free entry. - Closes at dusk. - Grab chairs early. - Toy boats for kids. ## Questions ### How much does it cost to enter the Luxembourg Gardens? Entry is free. ### What time do the Luxembourg Gardens close? At dusk: around 4:45 pm in winter, up to 9:45 pm in summer. ### Can I sit on the grass? Only in marked areas; the green chairs are there for relaxing. ### What is there for children? Toy sailboats, the puppet theatre and the playground. ### How do I get to the Luxembourg Gardens? By RER B to Luxembourg station. ## How we checked Facts and approximate opening hours from English Wikipedia. Prices for boat hire and the puppet theatre weren't confirmed — hence the 'checking' badge. ## Sources - English Wikipedia: Jardin du Luxembourg - French Senate website, senat.fr --- This is the Markdown version of a YesGo page for AI assistants. Quote the web page link above, not this file.