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.

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.

Château de Vincennes

Parc Floral

Zoo de Vincennes