Today I want to tell you about an exotic garden that we visited in the municipality of Monaco.

Usually, the acquaintance of many tourists with Monaco is limited to the ascent to Monaco-Ville and a visit to Monte Carlo. But there is another, no less interesting place: a rock, nicknamed for its shape Tete de chien (which means "Dog's head" in French), on the slope of which there is an extraordinarily beautiful Exotic Garden, which is one of the main attractions of the country.

Because our legs were naturally tired after a long 5-hour walk, and the car was in the parking lot near the station, we got from Monte Carlo to the Exotic Garden by bus number 2. Exotic Garden is located in the western part of Monaco, about 600 meters from the border with France. That is, not far from the entrance to the country. So, you can start getting acquainted with the principality from here, if, of course, you arrive by car. Moreover, such Monaco you can see only here, and not on a rock at the Prince's Palace or near the entrance to the casino. And we liked this feature of the garden no less than the flora presented in it.

The entrance to Exotic Garden is located on the boulevard x/ - Boulevard du Jardin Exotique.

It is open all year round. The opening hours of the garden depend on the season. From May to September, that is, during the warmest and "tourist" period of the year, it is open from 9am to 19pm.

One standard entrance ticket to the Exotic Garden costs 7.2 EUR. I note that with these tickets you can also go to the Museum of Prehistoric Anthropology, but my husband and I decided that such topics would hardly interest us, so we did not use the offered opportunity.

Exotic Garden was opened to the public as early as 1933. The name of the prince, by whose order it appeared on the map of Monaco, is Louis II. But, however, the story is not about him, but about what you as tourist can see in this amazing place.

Due to the features of the relief, multi-tiered and "loop" layout, the Exotic Garden seems immense, although its area is only about a hectare. Plants in the exotic garden are collected from all over the world. Their number is more than 6 thousand. Beautiful plants are matched so perfectly that some of them always bloom.

The Exotic Garden of Monaco is famous for its richest collection of succulents.

Creators brought them from South Africa, Mexico, the USA, South American countries and the Arabian Peninsula. In this collection of plants, the collection of cacti stands out. It's collection is considered, if not the best, then at least one of the best in the world.

Even in the first seconds of our walk through the garden, it became clear that the plants are feeling more than comfortable there: both in terms of climate and in terms of care. I must say that the team of garden designers, who were led by Louis Notari, not only perfectly made the garden to fit into the relief, but also came up with many wonderful decor elements. And everything blends perfectly with the vegetation: pergolas, bridges, railings, fences...

The first thing we appreciated in the garden - magnificent views of the surroundings.

In my opinion, this is the best miraculous presentation of the principality. It reveals all the facets of garden's beauty - both natural and human-induced. We fully felt all the charm of Monaco here, as if there had never been any walks through its space before.

Monaco-Ville, when viewed from this vantage point, is stunningly picturesque, photogenic, and cinematic.

In this place, it is just right to shoot some kind of fantasy about the confrontation between two kings, personifying the forces of good and evil... Or maybe about rescuing a beautiful princess, languishing in a castle on an impregnable rock.

In this perspective, massiveness, gloominess and an abundance of gray disappear. The ring of thick fortress walls slips down a little, greenery is added, and the Prince’s Palace, which previously seemed faceless and gloomy, begins to resemble a carved box of warm creamy color. And you can see absolutely everything - in great detail, including the Cathedral and the Museum of Oceanography in the background.

And Monte Carlo looks completely different than from Monaco-Ville.

So, it is not surprising that many visitors of the garden forget about the purpose of their visit for a while. Who will remain indifferent to such incomparable views? Here they are like ready-made frames for a video called "Monaco - the kingdom of dreams and heaven on earth."

Look at the beautiful cacti and succulents.

Views from the Exotic Garden trully impress, but I will nevertheless move on to a story about its contents. One of the garden's virtues is that the collection of succulents and cacti has been arranged and placed in such a way that they create the effect of year-round flowering.

For those who are not in the know, succulents are plants that originate predominantly from countries with an arid climate. So, they are able to accumulate and retain moisture in the stems and leaves. Cacti and succulentscan grow not only in gardens, but also in ordinary city apartments. A large company of them lives on this site: yucca, agaves, cacti, bokarney, crassula.

I already mentioned that Monaco, due to its rocky terrain, is characterized by long-line buildings. The cemetery, which we saw from the garden, also has a multi-level layout. But the beach in the distance is no longer Monaco, but France, the town of Cap d'Ail.

The park features numerous species of evergreens and cacti. Next to them, there are signs with information about a particular plant. Various sculptures delighted our eyes throughout the park.

Separate stormy applause deserve the views of the industrial area of Fontvieille.

On the roofs of houses, there are zones for gardens. As you can see, the roofs of many houses are decorated with full-fledged green areas with lawns and trees, and in some places, with pools. Or at least tubs with plants.

A huge building with an unusually shaped tiled roof is a stadium named after the same Prince Louis II, who commissioned the Exotic Garden. Louis II was going to "marry for love", but this attempt ended in a major scandal. However, I will not develop the theme of the unfortunate princely love story, so we better return to the world of plants.

You must visit so-called Observatory Grotto - a cave with stalactites and stalagmites.

The cave got its name because earlier in these places, there was really an observatory. The cave was discovered during archaeological excavations at the beginning of the 20th century, when workers, hired to lay out and improve the Garden, accidentally found the remains of ancient animals on its territory.

The Exotic Garden is a treat for cactus lovers.

Cacti are left and right, on the top and bottom, small and human-sized. A walk along the alleys with tall cacti also brought considerable pleasure. Before us were real bombs of botanical origin. In Monaco, they seem to have an excellent life.

I was impressed by the park's cleanliness and well-kept environment.

All lawns are neatly mowed. Walking around the space, you don't see a cigarette butt, a piece of paper, or any other garbage. You can climb into the park after visiting the Oceanographic Museum, next to which, right on the rock, there is a parking lot, several floors in size. So, I think that the park in Monaco is a must-see when traveling along the Cote d'Azur.

A visit to the Exotic Garden is a great opportunity to see another, not glamorous Monaco. Monaco, which loves nature immensely and makes a lot of efforts to create the most pleasant park oases that look like paradise. And all this, let me remind you once again, is done in a tiny space, packed with rocks and having a total area of 200 hectares! The results of this work is brilliant.

With love, @madeirane Photos are taken by me. © 2023

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