Domaine du Rayol, Le Rayol-Canadel

In 1910, Alfred Théodore Courmes, a businessman from Paris, decided to retire to Rayol where he built a house on a hill dominating the bay of Figuier. Around it, he created extensive gardens with subtropical plants such as palm trees, agaves and mimosas, near a vegetable garden and an orchard.

The domain went to different owners who renovated the house and gardens, until it was made public in 1989. Landscape gardener Gilles Clément turned it into a display of flora growing in Mediterranean climate, including species from south west California, central Chile, southern Africa or southern Australia, as well as the Mediterranean coast.

These gardens have been nurtured and loved to create a magical land filled with exotic and subtropical plants. A maze of paths take you through the grounds, which include an undersea trail (which you can explore with snorkelling gear) and a treasure hunt trail, and you can even get an audio guide to understand the gardens better. Many different activities are offered onsite, including exhibitions on the history and concept of the gardens, a botanical gallery, workshops for families, guided and themed tours and much more.

There is also a café and restaurant where you can have lunch and enjoy the creations of chef Cyril Dupoux, based on Mediterranean recipes and traditions, or just stop for a snack and a drink. The bookshop sells over 2,200 texts on plants, gardening, landscaping and other nature-related subjects. And you can even buy typical Mediterranean plants at their own nursery.