Tuileries Garden

What makes it special

The main path, the Grande Allée, runs in a straight line from the Louvre to Place de la Concorde and lines up with the Champs-Élysées. From the Louvre end you see the avenue continue west beyond the gates. Le Nôtre laid the garden out in three large sections in 1664.

There are two pools on the main path: a round one near the Louvre and an octagonal one near Concorde. On the octagonal Grand Bassin, a fleet of small sailing boats crosses the water, the picture the garden is known by. Around both, the green metal chairs are yours to drag into the sun, while the old cast-iron benches sit back in the groves and on the terraces.

Look at the statues as well as the water. Nearly twenty of them are by Maillol, and works by Rodin and Giacometti stand among them.

At the Concorde end stand two matching buildings, put up as an indoor ball court and an orangery. The Orangerie now holds Monet's Water Lilies, eight panels in two oval rooms lit by daylight.

Visiting

A walk down the Grande Allée is the whole visit. Come in at either end and follow the central path from the round pool by the Louvre to the larger pool near Concorde, where the sailboats are. On the way you pass the statues and several smaller ornamental fountains set off the main line.

There is no set route, so stop wherever a seat is free and cut into the groves and terraces on either side, where the old benches stand.

The Orangerie at the west end needs its own timed entry, so book a slot online before you go.

Guided or on your own

Museum staff from the Louvre lead walks through the garden on weekend and public-holiday afternoons from spring into autumn, starting at half past two. Join one if you want the layout and the statues explained. Otherwise the central line is easy to follow on your own, and nothing here needs a guide.

Tips

Pack a sandwich, because the garden has wide open lawns to eat on, and in summer bring a hat and sunscreen as well. In spring the flowerbeds are laid out in geometric patterns of daffodils, hyacinths and tulips, and a morning visit catches them before the paths fill. Seats by the water go first come, first served, so if they are all taken, walk on to the other pool.