Luxembourg Garden: what to see, museum ticket price and how to get there
Paris doesn't begin with the Eiffel Tower, but with a garden where the city's own residents come to relax. The Luxembourg Garden lies between the Seine and the Latin Quarter, a short walk from the Panthéon. Here you can sit for free on green chairs by the basin, play chess, and listen to open-air music.
Admission is free, and the gates are open every day. You only pay for the museum and some of the activities. Before your visit, check two things: the garden's opening hours and the ticket price for the Musée du Luxembourg (as of 09/2026, museum rates).
We've put together the essentials: four fountains, the Senate palace, sculptures, and exhibition halls. Prices, opening hours, and transport were verified in September 2026 on the official garden and museum websites.
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Key things before you go
💡 In short:
- Admission is free, the garden is open daily; check the closing times in the table on the official garden website.
- The easiest way to get there is by metro to Odéon station (lines 4 and 10) or by RER B to Luxembourg-Sénat station.
- Prices and opening hours: 09/2026, verified on the official museum website.
Parisians' favorite place to unwind
The garden occupies an entire block between the palace, the Panthéon, and Rue de Vaugirard. In the morning, locals jog along the gravel paths; during the day, families stroll; in the evening, people read on the benches. There are about ten entrances, the main ones being Porte Odéon by the palace and Porte Médicis by the fountain of the same name (as of 09/2026, official garden website).
You'll quickly notice a local custom: people carry the green metal chairs over to the water or into the sun. Walking on the lawns is prohibited, but sitting is allowed, so in August the lawns look like a beach. Between Porte Gay-Lussac and Porte Observatoire there's an area where you can walk your dog on a leash.
Two to three hours is enough for the whole garden if you stick to this route: the Medici Fountain, the palace, the sculptures along the parterre, and the orangery. If you're there for a full day, take a break at the tea room by the museum.
How Marie de' Medici created the garden
The story begins with a personal discomfort. Marie de' Medici, an Italian and the wife of King Henry IV, lived in the Louvre and suffered from the stuffiness and cramped quarters. She remembered her childhood in Florence, the Pitti Palace and the gardens around it, so she decided to build her own palace with a park.
The land was chosen on the left bank of the Seine, next to a small mansion belonging to a local duke. Construction of the palace began in 1615 under the architect Salomon de Brosse, while the garden was laid out by Tommaso Francini, a Florentine hydraulic engineer (as of 09/2026, garden history on the official website).
In 1630 the plot was expanded, and the landscaping was taken over by Jean Boyceau, who had previously worked on the Tuileries Garden. He loved geometry: parterres, squares, long straight avenues. Even the central basin is octagonal rather than round. You'll appreciate the geometry as soon as you enter through Porte Odéon.
The garden after Marie de' Medici
Not all royal heirs valued this quiet harbor. The Count of Provence sold part of the land to raise money for palace repairs, and later the plot was confiscated and returned to the garden. The work was led by Jean Chalgrin, the architect of the arch on Place Charles de Gaulle, and he preserved some of the earlier plantings (according to the chronicle of Chalgrin's work).
After 1848, sculptures began to appear in the garden: rulers, artists, writers, saints, and even animals. Under Napoleon III, new paths were added, and the Medici Fountain was moved to its current location. The gates and the fence around the garden were designed by Gabriel Davioud, and you will easily recognize his work by the strict line of the railing.
Luxembourg Palace
© Luis Miguel Bugallo Sánchez (Lmbuga) · CC BY-SAPhoto: Luis Miguel Bugallo Sánchez (Lmbuga), CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0), Wikimedia CommonsThe palace was built in the early 17th century, and in 1791 it became national property. After the French Revolution, the Senate of France has met here, and that function continues to this day. Earlier, the building had served as a prison and as the residence of members of the Directory.
Tuscan motifs are visible in the west wing, where the queen's chambers were, and in the apartments on the east side, built for the future Louis XIII. The central staircase looks the most ceremonial. Part of the original decor has been lost, including because of reconstructions during the time of Napoleon Bonaparte.
The ceiling painting in the "Golden Book Room" has survived, although the name of the artist is unknown. There is a gallery of busts with portraits of senators and a library of roughly 400,000 volumes with an archive (as of 09/2026, Senate of France). You will view the palace from the outside: Senate offices operate inside.
Sculptures
Statues are scattered throughout the park, so do not look only at the pedestal by the main alley. Along the parterre stand female figures commissioned under Louis Philippe: Margaret of Provence, Valentina Visconti, Marie de' Medici, Bertha of Burgundy. Walk from south to north, and you will pass the entire series.
© Guilhem Vellut from Paris, France · CC BYPhoto: Guilhem Vellut from Paris, France, CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), Wikimedia CommonsFurther on, cultural and political figures begin: the painter Antoine Watteau, the composer Ludwig van Beethoven, the poet Charles Baudelaire. The most unexpected sculpture stands closer to the west: a reduced model of the Statue of Liberty, given to the garden in 1906 by the widow of the sculptor Frédéric Bartholdi (according to the garden sculpture collection).
Fountains
© Francis Bourgouin · CC BYPhoto: Francis Bourgouin, CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), Wikimedia CommonsThe garden's most famous fountain bears the name Medici and is done in the Baroque style. It was created in the early 17th century to a design by Tommaso Francini, at the end of the elongated basin on the northeast side of the park. The sculptural group depicts the myth of Polyphemus watching Acis and Galatea, with allegories of the Seine and Rhône rivers standing nearby.
In the 18th century the fountain was almost completely destroyed and was restored only under Napoleon Bonaparte under the direction of Jean Chalgrin. The fountain has occupied its current location since 1864 (as of 09/2026, history of the Medici Fountain).
Behind the Medici Fountain, in the shade, hides the Fountain of Leda. It was built in 1806, and the bas-relief repeats the myth of Leda and Zeus in the form of a swan. You will find this fountain if you walk around the sculptural group on the right.
The third fountain stands west of the palace: a rectangular basin with a bust of Eugène Delacroix and statues symbolizing time, fame, and genius. The fourth, the Observatory Fountain, is in the south of the garden. It was created in 1873 by Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux, Emmanuel Frémiet, and Gabriel Davioud, and the globe in the center is held by four female figures, symbols of the continents.
Object | Year | What to look for |
|---|---|---|
Medici Fountain | early 17th century | Polyphemus, Acis and Galatea, allegories of the Seine and Rhône |
Fountain of Leda | 1806 | Leda and Zeus in the form of a swan |
Delacroix Fountain | 19th century | bust of the artist, allegories of time and fame |
Observatory Fountain | 1873 | globe held by four continents |
As of 09/2026, garden guide.
Museum: exhibitions and tea room
© LPLT · CC BY-SAPhoto: LPLT, CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0), Wikimedia CommonsThe Musée du Luxembourg is open only during exhibitions. From September 16, 2026, it presents "Andy Warhol. La ligne et l'image": prints and silkscreens from the collection of the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh. The exhibition runs until January 10, 2027 (as of 09/2026, Andy Warhol exhibition).
The museum has no permanent collection, but it does have the Mademoiselle Angelina tea room at the entrance. After the galleries, get a hot chocolate and pastries, it's a convenient break in the middle of a long walk through the garden. In winter, you'll appreciate that the tea room is in a warm indoor space.
Tickets and opening hours
The museum is closed between exhibitions, so check the dates first. During exhibition periods it is open daily from 10:30 to 19:00, and on Mondays until 22:00. The doors do not open on May 1 and December 25, and on December 24 and 31 it closes at 18:00. Last entry is 45 minutes before closing (as of 09/2026, museum opening hours).
Ticket | Price |
|---|---|
Full price | 14 € |
Reduced (16-25 years, unemployed, large families) | 10 € |
Visitors under 16 | free |
Guided tour | 25 €, child 7 € |
Online booking adds a 1.50 € fee. On-site ticket offices sell tickets for the next available time slot, but on weekends you are better off reserving a slot in advance (as of 09/2026, full list of rates).
The garden schedule is different: opening and closing times are revised on the 1st and 16th of each month, so check the website for the current table. For city and regional tours, book Paris tours on GetYourGuide.
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Entertainment: theater, carousel, and orangery
The garden's infrastructure has long outgrown the scope of a park with fountains. Some entertainment is free: chess boards, concerts under the music pavilion, gardening lessons, and competitions in the old game "longue paume". The schedule is in the "Infos pratiques" section, in the activities program.
© The wub · CC BY-SAPhoto: The wub, CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0), Wikimedia CommonsPuppet theater. Théâtre des Marionnettes du Jardin du Luxembourg has been operating since 1933, with about 275 seats in the hall. Performances are aimed at children from 2 to 6 years old, and tickets are bought on site.
Carousel. The vintage carousel near the palace was designed by Charles Garnier in the 19th century. Children ride horses, elephants, and deer.
Orangery. Built in 1830 and considered a historic monument. Orange trees and palms grow here year-round, and some of the plants are more than two centuries old (as of 09/2026, orangery on the garden website).
Location and how to get there
Address: Jardin du Luxembourg, 75006 Paris. Entrances run along the perimeter from rue de Vaugirard, rue de Médicis, and neighboring streets. The metro is the most convenient: Odéon (lines 4 and 10), Mabillon (line 10), Saint-Germain-des-Prés (line 4). There is also RER B with the Luxembourg-Sénat station, and buses 21, 27, 38, 58, 82, 83, 84, 85, 89 (as of 09/2026, transport map).
For the museum, it is more convenient to approach from Saint-Sulpice (line 4), Rennes (line 12), or from the RER B exit toward the garden. Free toilets are located at the main gates, and bicycles and scooters must be left outside the fence: riding along the paths is prohibited (as of 09/2026, how to get to the museum).
Want to stay nearby? Then look for hotels in the Latin Quarter: Paris hotels on Trip.com.
Luxembourg Garden on the map
Check the entrance nearest your hotel: closer to the Seine are Porte Médicis and Porte Odéon, while from the Panthéon side Porte Gay-Lussac is more convenient.
⁉️🤔 Frequently asked questions
How much does entry to the Jardin du Luxembourg cost?
The garden is free to enter; a ticket is only needed for the museum and some of the attractions. A full ticket to the Musée du Luxembourg costs 14 €, the reduced ticket 10 €, and visitors under 16 enter free of charge. Current museum prices were checked in September 2026.
What time does the garden close?
There is no single closing time. Opening and closing times are revised on the 1st and 16th of each month: in winter the gates close earlier, in summer later. Check the current month's times in the opening hours table under "Infos pratiques".
What to see in the garden with children?
Head for the puppet theater, the carousel by the palace, and the playgrounds in the southern part of the park. The shows are aimed at children aged 2 to 6, so with teenagers go straight to the chess tables and the Observatory Fountain. All spots are marked on the garden map, which is available in the brochure and on the signs on site (as of 09/2026, family schedule).
Can you walk on the lawns and bring a dog?
Walking on the lawns and picking plants is prohibited, as is riding a bike or scooter along the paths. Keep your dog on a leash only in the area between Porte Gay-Lussac and Porte Observatoire. The full list is in the garden visitor rules.
How to get there from Charles de Gaulle Airport?
RER line B connects the airport with central Paris and stops at Luxembourg-Sénat station (as of 09/2026, RER line B to the garden). The exit leads toward the garden, so from the platform you can walk to the nearest gates.
In short: what to book
The garden does not sell tickets, so you only need to book the museum and accommodation. If you have two hours, get a ticket to the Musée du Luxembourg and the Angelina tea room. If you are traveling with children, add the puppet theater and the carousel. If you are staying in the city for several days, check hotels in the Latin Quarter on Trip.com. For a day of exhibitions, Paris museum and attraction tickets on Tiqets will come in handy.
Come at opening time, while the paths are empty, and do not forget the green chair by the pond.
A small editorial team writing guides for independent travel. We travel ourselves, but we haven’t been everywhere, so we check prices, opening hours and how to get there against official sources.