Palais-Royal

Palais-Royal Review

This most romantic and quiet of Paris gardens, enclosed within the former home of Cardinal Richelieu (1585-1642), is an ideal spot to while away an afternoon, cuddling with your sweetheart on a bench under the trees, soaking up the sunshine beside the fountain, or browsing the 400-year-old arcades, now home to boutiques ranging from quirky (toy soldiers to music boxes) to chic (Stella McCartney and Marc Jacobs). One of the city's oldest restaurants is here, the haute-cuisine Le Grand Véfour, where brass plaques recall regulars like Napoléon and Victor Hugo. Built in 1629, the palais became royal when Richelieu bequeathed it to Louis XIII. Other famous residents include Jean Cocteau and Colette, who wrote of her pleasurable "country" view of the province à Paris. Today, the garden often plays host to giant-size temporary art installations sponsored by another tenant, the Ministry of Culture. The courtyard off Place Colette is outfitted with a strange collection of black-and-white columns created in 1986 by the artist Daniel Buren.