The lush green setting of the Fontvieille district
Covering a total area of four hectares, the Fontvieille Landscape Park is one of the Principality of Monaco’s green lungs, alongside the Monaco Exotic Garden, the Jardins Saint-Martin & Sainte-Barbe, and the Jardins du Casino de Monte-Carlo. Whilst part of this space is home to the Espace Fontvieille Big Top, the venue for the legendary Monte-Carlo International Circus Festival, a network of paths allows visitors to stroll through the park from the Heliport to the charming Place du Campanin. Rows of palm trees, Mediterranean trees and a water feature enhance walks through this haven of peace, situated below Monaco-Ville and close to the Port of Fontvieille.
In the centre of this lush garden stand, majestically, the famous roses that have earned the Princess Grace Rose Garden its worldwide reputation. Created in 1984, this space is home to over 450 varieties of roses, spread across 5,000 m², with areas dedicated to specific types of flowers: Roses from the Grimaldi family, award-winning plants from the Monaco International New Rose Competition, and ground-cover and shrub varieties all thrive together in this unmissable attraction in the Principality.
A landscaped park ideal for families
For many years, the landscaped park was home to venerable swans, which helped build the site’s reputation. Today, the garden’s main pond, known as the ‘Fontvieille Pond ’ and renovated in 2020 with a walkway accessible to people with reduced mobility, is also home to turtles, fish and ducks in crystal-clear water. You can also spot dragonflies here, a sign of the rich ecosystem that thrives around the park’s water features.
A playground, situated between the Rose Garden and the Big Top, allows family visits to be enhanced with a relaxing break for the children. Slides, swings and climbing walls are set up in two areas, one for children under five and the other for those aged six and over.
An artistic journey
An aesthete and patron of the arts, Prince Rainier III turned Monaco into an open-air museum. The Rainier III Chemin des Sculptures, maintained by the Heritage Institute, comprises nearly 200 sculptures on display throughout the Principality’s neighbourhoods. The Fontvieille Landscape Park thus serves as a setting for some twenty works scattered along its paths. The ballerinas of *Passo a due* , not far from the Princess Grace Rose Garden, sculpted by Sauro Cavallini, remind visitors to the park of Monaco’s passion for the art of dance. Another sculpture, another theme: the Universal Fountain of Children’s Rights, unveiled in 2000 and created by Franco Maschio, depicts a clown surrounded by five children (symbolising the five continents). A lovely way to honour this important cause and to highlight the fountain’s proximity to one of the world’s leading circus venues!
And near the ducks, swans and other animals in the Fontvieille pond, keen observers can admire one of the most famous sculptures in the Fontvieille Landscape Park: *La Grande Laveuse*, sculpted by Richard Guino based on a design by Pierre-Auguste Renoir. This lovely bronze sculpture with an aquatic theme is reminiscent of the many bathers painted by the famous French artist, who turned his hand to sculpture towards the end of his life.
Blake Ward, André Masson, Victor Ochoa, Roberto Barni… Some of the greatest names in modern and contemporary sculpture feature amongst the bronzes to be discovered in the Fontvieille Landscape Park. Whilst out for a stroll, simply activate the geolocation feature on your phone and use the interactive map to wander amongst the works dotted along its paths, lawns and ponds…
Fancy extending your walk? Other parks and gardens invite you to discover new green oases in the Principality. Click here to explore them.