This is my 100th post! It’s been slightly over a year since I restarted this blog. Last month I wrote a little over 1/4 of the whole blog’s post as part of the A-Z challenge. I enjoyed that challenge so much, that I decided to make up my own challenge for May. Twice a week, I write a post about an attraction we’ve visited and haven’t written about before here.
Why? To encourage people to travel or to help someone trying to learn a little more about a place on their to-do list. See, for me, my travel researching style includes reading posts about what people did at a place. From there, I’ll usually make a decision that it’s a good fit – or that it’s a bad fit. The problem is there’s nothing I can say about our time at Le Jardin d’Acclimation in Paris, France that would justify a decision either way.
The tale of why my recommendation of Le Jardin d’Acclimation is not too reliable
If you’re unfamiliar with this park – it’s part botanical garden, part amusement park, part zoo, part playground and completely everything that could possibly answer “what would a child like to spend their day doing”.
And that would be reason enough to go.
I first heard about it long before we even moved to France. A blogger I read at the time celebrated her daughter’s first birthday in Paris and wanted to do something very Parisian that day. After some research, she discovered there was no more-Parisian way to celebrate a first birthday than by going to the garden opened by Napoleon III in 1860. And when we moved to Germany and had a baby, I figured, well this sounds amazing.
And that would be reason enough to go.
We spent a week in the city of love, loving on our little soon-to-be-one-year old boy. Our days were filled with trips to parks, towers, museums, coeurs, rues, baguette shops, and – oh, yeah – we also spent a day at Disney. On the one year anniversary of my son’s birth, the day before we left, it decided to rain. The rain was not torrential and we went anyway. Unfortunately, non-torrential rain means one thing: the park is still open, but most of the rides are not. On a good note: most people in Paris seem to skip Le Jardin when it’s wet – there were no crowds. Plus, our one year old, didn’t really care.
And because of this, I can’t say that our experience is a good indicator either way of if you should go or not.
We had a great time. We looked at the animals, ate some croque monsieur, spent a few Euros to ride the petit train – a train that takes you from the park to the parking lot, and made notes on how very Parisian this place was. Coming from Orlando, where rides continue in most weather scenarios, this place was as far away from everything the Orlando parks are known for – and that would be reason enough to go.
Thinking about going?
- Le Jardin d’Acclimation is in the 16th Arrondissement in the Bois de Boulogne. For those taking public transportation, which I recommend, it’s the Sablon metro station exit 2. Follow Rue d’Orleans until you get to the park. There are plenty of signs.
- Entrance fees, and attractions are inexpensive. Purchase a book of 15, 25, or 50 tickets to save even more money. Kids under 3 do not pay to enter.
- You do not need to have a car parked in the parking lot to ride the Petit Train, but I suppose this ride could be busier on warmer days.
Who should visit?
Le Jardin d’Acclimation is definitely a park for families. Because the rides are aimed towards younger children, this may not be the right choice for older kids. It is definitely a park that can take a whole day to visit, however you can also be comfortable spending only a few hours there because of the low entrance fees.
Great links for further reading
- We visited Le Jardin d’Acclimation on a rainy day, here are other things to do in Paris when it’s raining.
- Since the garden dates back to 1860, there is a lot of history in the place. Check out the official website and hit “google translate” to learn more. Be on the lookout for: the famous other at the inauguration, the zoological society’s purpose for the acclimation garden, the “Pigeons of the Republic”, which country’s successful amusement park encouraged the garden to add attractions, and which other countries are represented within the gardens.
- Here’s a pdf of the brochure in English.
Good info! I realize I must be the only person on the planet that isn’t head over heels for Paris (I know, blasphemy, right?!) and I’ve been there twice. We are toying with the idea going a third time next year for the Paris Marathon my husband will be running- but I am still on the fence if we should all go. I think this is something good for us- a family that has seen the ‘big stuff’ and has little boys to run around 🙂
I’m not in love with it – but I have to admit I fall more in love each time I go. And this park is a definite must see – even if I don’t have the photos to prove it.
Next time I’m in Paris….it seems I’m always writing that, and I hardly ever go to Paris since I like the rest of France so much better. We will be driving through this summer…and maybe, just maybe we’ll stop! Croque Monsieur always sounds good.
For me, it’s the traffic. And I agree, there are other nice places in France that make it easy to bump the capital. So if you do end up there, give it a try! (I feel like it’s kind of on the outskirts, though I’m sure anyone staying in the 16e would disagree – but that’s just how I felt.)
Interesting park. I have been to Paris twice, and honestly don’t think I would go back. Maybe if I had spent more time at places like this, and less time dealing with crowds I would love the city.
Congrats on hitting 100! I think we visited this park while in Paris but I can’t be completely sure. One thing I do know is I never saw those colourful sculptures and I’m really bummed now because they look very cool 🙂