botanic garden

The second oldest in France, the Strasbourg Botanical Garden is unique for this fact alone. Covering an area of three and a half hectares, it is lined with buildings belonging to the Loiuis-Pasteur University, which also uses it for research purposes. However, it is open to the public - and is an unparalleled gem for both locals and visitors to Strasbourg.

A little paradise in the heart of the city

About one kilometre from the Cathedral and only about two kilometres from the Rhine, the Strasbourg Botanical Garden is truly in the heart of the city, more precisely in the so-called Imperial Quarter. The entrance is on the Goethestraße and can be easily reached by bus lines 2, 12 and 32 (bus stop Arnold-Platz). The university buildings around it almost all date from the Wilhelminian period, except for the new faculty building of the botanical institute, which is relatively new - it dates from the second half of the 20th century. In the garden itself there are numerous greenhouses and greenhouses, one of which is the only surviving one from the 19th century. There is also an arboretum, many exotic plants and trees worth seeing, for example a giant sequoia or a pecan tree. In the two-storey tropical house, visitors can discover the flora of distant countries.

A long tradition

The botanical garden was founded as early as 1691, albeit in a different location at the time. It was given its present form and location in the 1880s. It was established on the site of the former city wall as part of the construction of the university as the second botanical centre after Berlin. The only surviving greenhouse from this period is called "Serre de Bary", after the professor who created the botanical garden. It was listed as a historical monument in 1993. Here, interested visitors can admire tropical plants from Asia - and a pond with a diameter of seven metres. The Amazon giant water lily is successfully bred here - and never fails to delight visitors to the botanical garden.

Strolling along winding paths

The tall trees, which provide plenty of shade in summer, the varied plant life and many benches invite visitors to linger. The park paths lead strollers through the garden, past a small lake lined with reeds. A walk through the botanical garden is an experience at any time of the year, but especially in spring an almost unbelievable splendour of blossoms awaits the visitors. More than 15,000 different plants belonging to 6,000 different genera grow here - outdoors or in the greenhouses. In autumn, the colours of the changing leaves shine brightly and in summer you can find shade under the large treetops. So a visit is always worthwhile.