One of Montpellier’s hidden gems, the Jardins des Plantes is the oldest botanical garden in France. Established in 1593, it was used as a model for the much better-known Jardin des Plantes in Paris, laid out nearly 30 years later. Along its shady paths you’ll find more than 2500 species, including nine varieties of palm, 250 medicinal plants and an arboretum of rare trees, as well as a glorious greenhouse dating from 1860.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
28.71 MILES
Nîmes’ twin-tiered amphitheatre is the best preserved in France. Built around 100 BC, the arena once seated 24,000 spectators and staged gladiatorial…
0.4 MILES
Founded in 1825 by painter François-Xavier Fabre, this exceptional museum houses one of France’s richest collections of European art. The galleries…
Musée Parc des Dinosaures et de la Préhistoire
19.59 MILES
Signs warning of dinosaurs line the drive up, but this dinosaur park is no gimmick – the biggest cache of dinosaur eggs ever discovered in Europe was…
Parc Ornithologique du Pont de Gau
28.04 MILES
Flamingos are a dime a dozen in the Camargue, but this park is one of the best places to see the many other migratory and seasonal species that thrive in…
Musée de Site Gallo-Romain Villa Loupian
17.67 MILES
Dating from the 1st century AD, this extraordinary Roman villa was built on the Via Domitia road linking Italy and Spain. It was occupied for 600 years…
1.83 MILES
Four kilometres north of the city centre, this zoo – France’s second-largest, covering 60 hectares – has an enormous population of wild residents that…
25.69 MILES
Located on the Petit Rhône, this manade (bull farm) lets visitors enter the world of the gardians ('cowboys'), watching their strenuous work from the…
28.45 MILES
Roman remains in these elegant gardens include the 30m-high Tour Magne, raised around 15 BC – the largest of a chain of towers conveying imperial power…
Nearby Montpellier attractions
0.07 MILES
Noted for its disproportionately tall porch, Montpellier’s monumental Cathédrale St-Pierre began life as a church attached to the 14th-century monastery…
2. Hôtel de la Vieille Intendance
0.2 MILES
The early-17th-century Hôtel de la Vieille Intendance was built during the reign of Louis XIII for the queen mother and his niece Marie Louise d’Orléans …
0.22 MILES
Built in 1695, Montpellier's 52m-high triumphal arch is dedicated to Louis XIV. The tourist office organises guided tours in summer that take you up 103…
0.25 MILES
At the eastern end of this wide, tree-lined esplanade is the 1695 Arc de Triomphe. From the Château d’Eau, an elaborate hexagonal water tower at its…
0.28 MILES
The landmark neogothic St Anne's church, with dazzling stained-glass windows, was deconsecrated in the 1980s and is now a spectacular setting for…
0.36 MILES
The Hôtel de Varennes is a harmonious 18th-century makeover of a medieval structure; it now contains the city’s small history museum, the Musée du Vieux…
0.37 MILES
This municipal museum has a fairly pedestrian collection of local-interest pieces ranging from furniture to paintings and antique weaponry, but it’s worth…
0.4 MILES
Founded in 1825 by painter François-Xavier Fabre, this exceptional museum houses one of France’s richest collections of European art. The galleries…
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