Monceau Park (in French, Parc Monceau) is a charming public park in the northwest part of Paris. It’s part of the 8th arrondissement, one of the richest areas of the city, known for its high number of designer stores, luxury hotels, and headquarters of big companies.

Monceau Park is one of the countless green spaces in the French capital, covering more than 8 hectares. Here, you can venture along asphalt trails dotted with artists’ statues, visit an 18th-century colonnade, and even discover a decorative pyramid!

So, do you want to know How To Visit Monceau Park In 2024? Keep reading!

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Brief History of Monceau Park

During the reign of Emperor Napoleon III (1852-1870), the city of Paris was the target of a megalomaniac urban reform program, which became known as the “Haussmann Renewal”. It takes its name from Georges-Eugène Haussmann, who was largely responsible for this dramatic transformation of the French capital.

In 1860, the 19th and 20th arrondissements were annexed to the city and Georges-Eugène Haussmann decided that these areas further away from the center also needed public parks. That’s why he hired the engineer Adolphe Alphand, who designed (or helped to restore) countless green spaces in Paris:

• Bois de Boulogne, in the 16th arrondissement
• Bois de Vincennes, in the 14th arrondissement
• Jardins des Champs-Elysées, in the 8th arrondissement
• Jardins du Trocadéro, in the 16th arrondissement
• Parc des Buttes-Chaumont, in the 19th arrondissement
• Parc Monceau, in the 8th arrondissement
• Parc Montsouris, in the 14th arrondissement
• Square des Batignolles, in the 17th arrondissement
• Square du Temple, in the 3rd arrondissement

The land where Monceau Park is located today belonged to Louis Philippe II, Duke of Orleans. Between 1769 and 1773, the then Duke of Chartres commissioned the architect Louis-Marie Colignon to create a two-story octagonal pavilion surrounded by a French garden.

From 1773 to 1779, Louis Philippe II decides to expand his garden in Anglo-Chinese style and hires the painter and landscape architect Carmontelle, who designs a “land of illusions” full of follies: a Gothic castle, a Swiss farm, a Dutch mill, a Chinese pagoda, an Egyptian pyramid, etc.

Finally, from 1781 until the death of the Duke of Orleans in 1793, it was the turn of Scottish gardener Thomas Blaikie to reimagine the green space as an English garden. After being confiscated during the French Revolution, Monceau Park became national property in 1793.

How to Get to Monceau Park

The easiest and fastest way to get to Monceau Park from the center of Paris is by metro. This is because the public park is served by line 2 (Monceau station), which takes you directly to the main entrance on Boulevard de Courcelles.

No entanto, o Parque Monceau tem cinco outros acessos: Avenue Van Dyck, Rue Rembrandt, Avenue Ruysdaël, Avenue Velasquez e Avenue de Valois. Se preferires viajar de autocarro, podes usar as linhas 20 ou 93 (paragem Malesherbes – Courcelles), 30 (paragem Monceau), ou 84 (paragem Murillo).

However, Monceau Park has five other accesses: Avenue Van Dyck, Rue Rembrandt, Avenue Ruysdaël, Avenue Velasquez, and Avenue de Valois. If you prefer to travel by bus, you can use lines 20 or 93 (Malesherbes – Courcelles stop), 30 (Monceau stop), or 84 (Murillo stop).

Opening Hours & Ticket Prices

Monceau Park is open every day, from 7 am to 10 pm (from May to August), from 7 am to 9 pm (in September), or from 7 am to 8 pm (from October to April ). Access is free and the park allows the presence of dogs if they are kept on a leash.

Although there’s a snack kiosk inside the site (Chalet Monceau Snack), you can always take a picnic and eat in nature – especially because Monceau Park has several drinking water points!

What to See at Monceau Park

Rotonde

The Rotunda of Monceau Park (in French, Rotonde du Parc Monceau) is a pavilion that was designed as a barrier to the Wall of the Fermiers Généraux (in French, Mur des Fermiers Généraux), to collect a tax on goods entering the city.

Surrounded by a peristyle of sixteen columns, the Rotunda of Monceau Park housed the Ferme Générale offices on the ground and first floor, while the Duke of Chartres had the upper terrace to enjoy the view of his garden.

The Chartres Barrier is one of four propylaea preserved during the expansion of Paris in 1860 and the subsequent demolition of the Wall of the Fermiers Généraux!

Carrousel

The Carousel of Monceau Park (in French, Carrousel or Manège du Parc Monceau) is a children’s ride dedicated to Jules Verne. Considered one of the most beautiful carousels in the French capital, it includes the Nautilus submarine, a spaceship, a yellow tram, a fire truck, etc.

Located to the left of the central entrance, approximately 75 meters from the Rotunda, the Carousel is flanked by the Monceau Snack Chalet and the Swings of Monceau Park (in French, Balançoires du Parc Monceau), another of the attractions for the youngest in this green space.

Sculpture de Guy de Maupassant

The Sculpture of Guy de Maupassant (in French, Sculpture de Guy de Maupassant) is a marble bust that celebrates the French writer, literary journalist, and poet Guy de Maupassant, who stood out mainly in the novel and short story genres.

Active in the second half of the 19th century, Guy de Maupassant is one of the many writers represented through decorative statues in Monceau Park. His monument was made by the French sculptor Raoul Verlet, between 1895 and 1897.

Pont

The Bridge of Monceau Park (in French, Pont du Parc Monceau) is a stone structure imitating marble, whose purpose is more ornamental than functional. Even so, this bridge crosses a stream that meanders through the garden, between Naumachia and the Rock.

The Bridge of Monceau Park was added during restoration work at Monceau Park under the direction of French bridge and road engineer, administrator, and botanist Adolphe Alphand. These intervention works culminated in its inauguration on August 14, 1861, by Napoleon III.

Naumachie

The Naumachia of Monceau Park (in French, Naumachie du Parc Monceau) is the grandest element that has survived from the “land of illusions” of Carmontelle. This oval water basin takes its name from the show in which a naval battle was staged and the space where it took place, in Ancient Rome.

The Naumachia of Monceau Park is partially delimited by a ruined Corinthian colonnade, which formed part of the Rotunda of the Valois (in French, Rotonde des Valois) – a funerary monument imagined by Queen Catherine de’ Medici in 1559 for her husband, King Henry II of France!

Pyramide

The Pyramid of Monceau Park (in French, Pyramide du Parc Monceau) is a tribute to Ancient Egypt, in the same way that the Naumachia is an honorable mention to Ancient Rome. Built between 1769 and 1773, it’s a miniature replica of the Pyramid of Cheops (or the Great Pyramid of Giza).

When it was inaugurated, the Pyramid of Monceau Park housed a statue of the Egyptian goddess Isis – now missing. With pharaohs carved at the entrance, it’s one of the most curious details of the so-called “Folie de Chartres”, the theme park that is now Monceau Park!

Sculpture de Charles Gounod

The Sculpture of Charles Gounod (in French, Sculpture de Charles Gounod) is a marble bust that commemorates the composer, pianist, music teacher, and conductor Charles Gounod, who today is seen as one of the greatest exponents of French romantic music (especially, opera and oratorio).

Active since the mid to late 19th century, Charles Gounod is one of the many musicians represented through decorative statues in Monceau Park. His monument was made by the French sculptor Antonin Mercié in 1902.

Rocher

The Rock of Monceau Park (in French, Rocher de la Grotte du Parc Monceau) is a recreation of the first false rock, dating from 1861 and which also included a cave with fake stalactites and an artificial waterfall. The current Rock was created for the 1889 Universal Exhibition.

Made of Jura limestone, the Rock of Monceau Park resembles a cliff with its exposed rocks. Today, it forms a giant flower bed, while its clear water cascade feeds the stream that runs through the garden and ends in the Naumachia basin.

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