Like the Bois de Vincennes, this is a collection of parks set in a wood of 2,000 acres. Two big lakes with a waterfall between them, two racecourses, another waterfall and miles of woodland walks. Of the actual parks, the biggest are: Le Pré Catelan, an informal garden with smooth lawns, including the Shakespeare Garden, where all the plants and trees are the ones mentioned in Shakespeare’s plays; Bagatelle, the garden of a château built, to win a Queen a bet, in 64 days and still standing – once the home of Sir Richard Wallace, a famous English art collector, remembered in Paris for the decorative drinking-fountains he installed over town; and the Jardin d'Acclimatation, of which more below.

The best way to get to the Jardin d'Acclimatation is on the Petit Trai from Porte Maillot. A friendly policeman stops the traffic as the train crosses the road.

JARDIN D’ACCLIMATATION.

This is known as ‘Le Paradis des Enfants’, and a children’s paradise it is. Originally, it was the place where plants and animals new to France were brought to acclimatise. As new animals are often babies, it became a sort of kiddies’ zoo, and other attractions have been built round it. Two adventure playgrounds, a fire-engine and an aeroplane to play with, a zoo, two farms, distorting mirrors and a puppet theatre - all these included in the derisory entrance fee of about 3F. For a little extra there’s a fairground, a magic river, go-karts, a road-safety training track run by the Police, crazy golf, a circus and sea-lion performances in summer, pony rides, bowling, and enough ice-cream, candy-floss, waffles and toffee to make you sick for a month. All this is approached from Porte Maillot by a ride through the woods on a miniature train. Just next-door, with an entrance in the Jardin d’Acclimatation, is the Museum of Popular Arts and Traditions, sumptuously modern and audio-visual. Also in the Bois de Boulogne are the Parc des Princes, the Stade Roland Garros and lots of other sporting facilities.

Bois de Vincennes

Château de Vincennes

Parc Floral

Zoo de Vincennes