Park of the Golden Head

In 1812, the Lyon authorities gave rise to the idea of creating a city park similar to the Bois de Boulogne. However, it started being implemented only in 1856 by the architect Christophe Bonnet.

It was necessary to create a special dam, which was supposed to resist the flooding of the territory. In 1857, the 117-hectare park was finally opened to the public. In the same year, one of the most beautiful botanical gardens in France appeared in this park. Initially, the botanical garden was home to about 4,000 plants. Today, it occupies an area of 7 hectares, housing a collection comparable to that of the Museum of Natural History in Paris.

There are more than 15,000 species of plants: various types of shrubs, peonies, alpine plants, water lilies, etc. The rose gardens with a collection of wild and varietal roses deserve particular attention. Besides, be sure to visit the greenhouse with tropical plants and admire the splendid century-old camellias.

The greenhouse pool is home to the Amazon water plants, and the Dutch greenhouse – to carnivorous plants. The botanical garden also has a small greenhouse with orchids and a cool pavilion with azaleas and cacti. This is a real paradise for flora lovers!

There is also a zoo with more than 1,000 species of various animals. It was originally intended as an educational one, consisting of only a couple of native animal species. Gradually, the zoo expanded and started accommodating animals from all over the world. For example, it is home to the Barbary lion, which has been considered extinct in the wild since 1922.