Paris has always been a poet’s delight. Frequented by couples who walk hand along the Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower, it is perhaps not wrong to say that Paris is perhaps one of the most romantic places on earth.

Located some 80 miles from Paris, on the border between the province of Normandy and the Île-de-France, is a quaint but equally beautiful village known as Giverny. This village became famous thanks to internationally acclaimed artist Claude Monet’s garden and home.

Monet came to reside in Giverny way back in 1890. He bought the land to realize his dream of creating the magnificent gardens he wanted to paint. The artist continued to stay there until his death in 1926.

Giverny

Giverny is located on the “right Bank” of the River Seine. The village is situated on the border between the province of Normandy and the Île-de-France.

It is interesting to learn about how Monet came to reside in this quaint village. He saw this village while traveling on a train. He fell in love with this place, and decided then and there, to move there.  He rented a house and the area surrounding it. After saving enough money, he would buy the house and land surrounding it in the year 1890. He then set out to realize his dream of creating the wonderful gardens he wanted to paint.

Living in Giverny is like opening a pandora’s box, only that the box is full of magnificent surrounding area such as exotic gardens, beautiful parks, luscious rose gardens, and imposing castels. This village still has a medieval atmosphere.

About Monet Garden

For nature lovers, a garden is God’s creation of heaven on earth. The full bloom of flowers, the towering luscious green trees swinging to the tune of the wind, and the chirping of the birds are a feast for the eye. And when we speak of gardens, how can we overlook the Monet Garden in Giverny, France?

Monet’s Garden is located in Giverny, France – about fifty miles west of Paris in the Euro Department in Normandy. Named after Claude Monet, this garden is visited not only by tourists, but is also frequented by the locals as well. Claude Monet was a founder of French impressionist painting. He was extremely fond of painting controlled nature. He was also the most consistent and prolific practitioner of the movement’s philosophy of expressing one’s perceptions before nature. In fact, the term ‘Impressionism’ is derived from the title of one of his paintings – the Impression, Sunrise.

Giverny is a commune of the Euro department in northern France. It is best known as the location of Claude Monet’s garden and home. Giverny was also home to Claude Monet and his family. Monet spend the years between 1883 until his death in 1926 in Giverny. Some of his most famous paintings, such as his water lily and Japanese bridge paintings were of his garden in Giverny.

The Beauty of the Garden

Monet’s Garden is the colorful garden of an artist, by an artist. One look at Monet’s garden and you would also want to paint the lilies and its reflections. The garden is made up of two parts; the flower garden called Clos Normand which lies in the front of the house, and a Japanese inspired water garden which lies on the other side of the road. Access between the parts is through a tunnel. Dazzling drifts of color greet the eye as one enters the flower garden. Here one can find a kaleidoscope of flowers of all kinds. Violets and daisies blend well with tulips, irises and poppies. The pansies, crocus, chrysanthemums, and forget-me-nots provide a riot of colors to the eye.

Monet’s garden has a colorful characteristic of its own. The garden is made up of a riot of flowers of all colors and variety, which became his favorite model for painting.

The garden had several areas, each unique in its beauty and charm. The entire garden comprised of the walled garden, which was planted in accordance to Monet’s own design, and the Water Garden, covered by weeping willows. The Japanese Bridge, with its pond and water-lilies, added to the charm and beauty of this section.

Monet loved flowers and this showed amply in the beauty of his garden. The garden had six bridges, and it was the biggest bridge that Monet painted most often. This garden was a source of inspiration for some of his well-known and internationally acclaimed paintings such as the water lily and Japanese bridge paintings. Monet spend hours just gazing at the water, and admiring the ever changing color of nature.

In the spring season one can witness a riot of colors as the Japanese cherry, apple and apricot trees are in full bloom. The yellow Mermaid, which was Monet’s favorite climber, adorns the walls reaching his bedroom window, and fills the air with a heady perfume. The autumn witnesses a rich hue of colors consisting of red and orange dahlias, and violet asters. The saucer sized sunflowers presume the center of attraction.

The garden is divided into flowerbeds. Cluster of flowers of various heights are used to create volume. Fruit trees or ornamental trees dominate the landscape. The central area is sheltered by iron arches on which climbing roses grow. Rose trees can also be found along the railing along the house. Monet mixed the simplest flowers such as daisies and poppies, with the rarest varieties, to create a spectacular effect. Monet’s garden has a special appeal for artists and photographers.

The Water Garden

Visitor Information

Perhaps the best time to visit the garden is during the months of April to October. Flowers of all types bloom as if vying for attention.  It is during this time that the garden is filled in hues and shades of ever-changing colors of rich foliage. In summer, one can witness the spectacular beauty of all the annual flowers as well as of the well-known Nympheas (Water-lilies).

The autumn months of September and October adds its own charm as the gardens is flooded with huge giant flowers of splendid colors.

The Water Garden

One of the most spectacular sections is the Water Garden. Here, Claude had a dock decorated by arches of climbing roses. The Water Garden, on the other side of the road and railway, consists of a pond and a Japanese bridge.

When Monet created his water garden, he imagined a pond with floating islands of colorful nympheas. During summer in late June and early July, this section grows in beauty as the roses are in full bloom, adding shades of pink to the green foliage. The area has a wide array of flowers and plants such as water lilies, weeping willows, wisterias, bamboos and herbaceous plants. For a place so famous, it is surprisingly small. The pond is extremely photogenic, and a painter’s delight! The apple green bridge and boats can be seen in some of Monet’s paintings.

During Monet’s stay, a boat used to be anchored at the dock. The boat was used by the gardener, who was devoted to the water garden. This gardener had an exceptionally unique job; he had to wash the water lilies every morning as the road nearby made them dusty. Monet wanted his lilies to be spotless when he painted them.

The gardener used to get up very early in the morning, before the master would come, and tour the pond in the boat to push the flowers under the surface with the row to clean them.

Getting There

Address:

Musee Monet, Giverny, Haute-Normandie, France, 27620

There is no train service that goes directly to Giverny village. However, you can take the train service available from Gare St. Lazare in Paris to Vernon. You would need to take the Rouen-bound train and get off at Vernon. The ride to Veroon takes 45 minutes. Giverny is around four miles from Vernon. Local buses and taxis are available here. You could even rent a bicycle (Cafe du Chemin de Fer) and ride to Giverny. Alternately, you can enjoy a long walk all the way to Giverny, halting at one of the scenic spots for a picnic.

Visitor Information:

The garden is open to public daily between 9.30 a.m. to 6.00 p.m. from April 1st through November 1st. The last entry is at 5.30 p.m.

Hotel Accommodations

There are a number of hotels and B&B accommodations available. One can find accommodations from as low as 55 euro to 150 euro.

Tours

‘Giverny and Monet’ Tour

There are several guided tours that one can take to explore the wonders of this garden. The ‘Giverny and Monet’ tour is a half day tour on which you will see Monet’s restored home, garden and workshop at Giverny. This tour will also include a ride through the scenic Normandy countryside, and the charming country village of Giverny. The tour is available from April 1 to October 31, and leaves on all days except Sunday and Monday. The tour which takes around 5 hours, commences at 1.45pm.

Inclusions/Exclusions

The tour price includes transportation by AC coach, enterence fees, and a professional guide. It does not include hotel pickups, food and breverages, and any gratuities (which are optional).

Giverny and Monet’s Garden Bike Tour

This tour is a wonderful way to explore the beauty of the area. For this tour, you would first have to travel by rail and pass along the luscious sunflower fields of Normandy, along the lazy Seine river, all the way to the village of Vernon. At Veron, you could buy a scrumptious picnic meal from one of the farmers, and pedal across the banks of the river to enjoy the same. A recommendation – you must sample the local drink, the cidre.

After the meal, you can start your 5 km ride to the village of Giverny and the world-famous gardens of Claude Monet. Once you arrive at the garden, spend about an hour and a half, exploring the beauty of Monet’s gardens, his house and the famous water lily pond. Ensure that your camera, and extra batteries as you may want to capture every aspect of beauty of this spectacular garden.

This tour is available between April 01 to May 15 every Wednesday and Saturday.

From May 16 to September 30, the tour runs every Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. The tour reverts back to its twice weekly schedule of Wednesday and Saturday from October 1 to October 31. The tour leaves at Gare St. Lazare 10:00am, and lasts for approximately 8 hours.

Inclusions/Exclusions

The tour price includes the use of bicycle, helmet, and local guide. It also includes roundtrip train tickets to and from Paris, and the entrance to Monet’s House and Gardens. It does not include gratuities (optional), hotel pickup and drop-off, and food and drinks.  Rain gear is available for an additional nominal fee, and is refunded if not used.

Each part of the isle has its won charm to attract you for your fist visit here and the appeal that will make you want to come back here again.

Location

Off the west coast in Scotland, in the Inner Hebrides, is the Isle of Skye, the largest of the Inner Hebrides islands and the second largest Scottish island, after the island of Lewis and Harris. It spreads to about 1,656 square kilometers of land.

How to reach

The Skye Bridge links Scotland to the Isle. From Mallaig, you can reach Armadale in Skye by a ferry and from Glenelg to Kylerhea. Tarbert on the Harris Island, North Uist’s Lochmaddy and Rassay too have ferries connecting them to Uig and Sconser respectively.

There are bus services between Inverness and Glasgow and on the island too. You can also take a train in Scotland, from Kyle of Lochalsh that’s at the end of the Skye Bridge to get to Inverness in the Isle of Skye. Trains also serve between Glasgow to Mallaig and from there, there are ferries to Armadale. Private Aircrafts use the small aerodrome at Ashiag near Broadford.

There are trunk roads that connect the Skye Bridge to other surrounding areas of the Isle of Skye.

Climate

The isle enjoys a mild ocean climate under the influence of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf Stream. Temperatures are cool, with an average of about 6.5 degree Celsius in January and about 15.4 degree Celsius in July. In comparison to Scotland, frosts are fewer here and snow is seldom owing to its sea level.

Like most of islands off the western coasts of Scotland, the Isle of Skye too records a high rainfall of about 1500 to 2000 millimeters on an average annually. There are considerable differences between the north and the south, with the areas in the north like Broadford being comparatively dry.

The Scottish islands are worth a visit throughout the year, though April to September is the peak tourist season.

Attractions

In Armadale, you must check out the seal island, the forest trail, The Shed; a seafood takeaway /café, The Bay pottery as well as art galleries like the Nigel Grounds gallery full of his paintings.

You could try out the boat trips here to places like Rum & Canna.   The Armadale Castle Gardens and the Museum of Isle are major attractions.  The ruins of knock castle on way to Aramdale are worth a watch.

At Isle Ornsay here is the An Talla Dearg Gallery, displaying sculptures of wild life like otters by Laurence Broderick in stone and bronze. There’s also the Heaven’s Ocean, an art studio with paintings, sculptures and other works on display and the Gaelic Whisky shop. .

On the southern coast of the Isle of Skye, to the north of Kylerhea, is the Kylerhea Otter Haven.

The village of Kyleakin has ruins of the 14th century Castle Maol. The name of the village comes from Kule- a narrow water strait between Skye and Scotland that Haakon IV, the Norwegian king sailed through in the 13th century when defeated by Hebrides at the Battle of Largs.  For a good view of the place, there is a hillock here.

To get an insight of the local lighthouse and wildlife through displays, you should visit the Bright Water Visitor Centre here in Skye. From here, you can go for a boat trip to the island of Eilean Ban which has the Maxwell museum, named after Gavin Maxwell.

There are underwater tours from Kyleakin and Kyle of Lochalsh with extended cruise to the World War II shipwreck, a 500 feet long minelayer that sank in 1940 and other such ruins, for a breathtaking diving experience.

Broadford in Skye is a good place to stay with numerous restaurants like Creelers, shops etc. In the Old Mill here is the Skye Serpentarium, a reptile exhibition and breeding centre. There are boat trips you could enjoy here too.  Just outside Broadford is The Dancing Dolphin, an organic aromatherapy body centre that offers care products as well as therapies like Reiki and Reflexology.

The 45 minutes drive away from Broadford to Elgol, has panoramic view such as that of Blaven Mountain about 3000 feet high, a ruined Pre-Reformation church at Kilchrist and the Skye marble Quarry at Torinn. Kilmarie, also on way, is home to the ruins of Dun Ringill, a stronghold of the Mackinnons.

The Elgol village is known for its pebble beach, the Camasunary Bay; a little far away, the Suidhe Biorach cave to its south and the Spar cave to its east.  On a boat trip from here, you could explore Loch Coruisk or the isles of Rum, Canna, Sanday and Soay when you can also spot dolphins, whales and sharks.

The Cuilin mountain ranges in Scotland have about 20 Munros and the Red Cuilin and the jagged Black Cuilin.

Portree is a busy port and the Isle’s capital with the Portree Craft Gallery, The Aros Experience that is a cultural center and a number of entertainment evenings.

The Trotternish Peninsula, the Strorr Lochs, the Bearreraig Bay are other attractions nearby.14 miles to the north of Portree is Lealt which has the magnificent The Mealt Waterfall, 300 feet high and the Kilt Rock at the same site. There is a fossil museum nearby at Ellishader.

At Staffin, 19 miles north of Portree is a Corran dating back to 8,500 years and beach.  Further north is the Quiraing Mountains, the ruined Duntulm Castle.

The Skye Museum of Island Life at Kilmuir, illustrate highland life a century ago. The Waternish Peninsula in the Skye has a number of craft centers and shops.

The Dunvegan Castle belonging to the Chief of Clan Macleod dates back to about 9th century and is said to be the oldest castle in Scotland. On display here are family portraits, antique furniture, weapons, relics such as lock of Bonnie Prince Charlie’s hair, trophies, the famous fairy flag etc.

At Glendale are the Colbost Croft Museum; a black house that depict the life in 19th century and a well-preserved old illegal whisky. Other cultural centers around this place include the Raven Press Gallery, the Toy Museum, the Borreraig Park Museum and the popular Glendale Watermill.

The Carbost village has the Talisker whisky distiller, the Talisker Bay and a waterfall.

For excursions, you could go to Isle or Raasay, off the east coast of Skye. The Dun Cann here is 1,456 feet high extinct volcano with a flat top. You could spot wildlife like golden eagles, buzzards, red deer and orchids as well here. A number of historical places can be explored here, like the Dun Borodale, the 13th century St. Mouluag’s Chapel, the Brochel Castle and the cave of the oars. Inverarish is village here that dates back to World War I, originally built as a POW camp.

Other good excursions are to Isle of Rona, Isle of Harris and Lewis and Uists.

The Isle of sky has everything to make it a picture-perfect destination.