Grand Rond garden in Toulouse: guide & practical information
It is one of the green lungs of the city with its neighbours, the Jardin des Plantes and the Jardin Royal. the Garden of the Grand Rond de Toulouse was built, like the last named, between 1752 and 1754 as part of the major urban planning project imagined by Louis de Mondran.
Toulouse residents also know it as Boulingrin, a legacy of the English, bowling-green. This is a reference to the lawns of the Grand Rond garden on attributing to amateurs to play bowls. Nowadays, bowlers have given way to various and varied activities. On a beautiful sunny afternoon, it is therefore possible to come across joggers, gymnastics enthusiasts going about their business on a lawn under the watchful eye of a coach, tourists taking photos and of course walkers aged 7 to 77 years old…
History of the Grand Rond Garden in Toulouse
Le Grand Rond, also called Boulingrin is a public green space located in Toulouse, France. It was created to the south-east of the city center of Toulouse, between 1752 and 1754. The garden takes the form of a very large roundabout approximately 200 meters in diameter from which spring five large alleys, the Jules-Guesde, Forain-François-Verdier, Paul-Sabatier, des Soupirs and Frédéric-Mistral alleys. This roundabout is so vast (4 hectares) that it ended up being converted into an English garden in the 19th century.
As a reminder, the Grand-Rond was part of a major urban planning project launched by Louis de Mondran in the 1750s. On December 17, 1751, the Capitouls, the magistrates of Toulouse, validated the project and the work began. were completed in 1754. The garden is thus presented in an oval shape with six paths 58 meters wide. The wrought iron gates dating from 1785, which make the charm of the Grand Rond Garden were placed at the entrance in the 19th century. For the record, they were initially installed at Cours Dillon. Finally, these wrought iron gates are classified in the Palissy database. This is a database of French furniture heritage. This census was created in 1989 and put online in 1998 by the Ministry of Culture.
What to do in the Jardin du Grand Rond in Toulouse?
Admire the statues of the Grand Rond garden in Toulouse
When visitors enter the garden of the Grand Rond de Toulouse via the entrance to the François Verdier alleys, they fall under the gaze of the statues of the dog and the wolf which face each other, fierce, almost ready to do battle. A sculpture that leaves no passerby indifferent, and whose symbolism is just as important. And for good reason, Toulouse tradition wants this face-to-face to be the symbol of the struggle of Alsace and Lorraine against the enemy, the wolf. However, the works were acquired before the War of 1870, rendering this explanation obsolete. Indeed, they were acquired on the occasion of the 1865 exhibition. They were made by Pierre Louis Rouillard in 1858 and cast in cast iron by the Durenne foundries in Sommevoire in Haute-Marne.
The she-wolf and the dog were sometimes turned with their heads towards the interior space, sometimes their heads turned towards the entrance to the garden of the Big Round of Toulouse. She welcomes you with her mouth open, threatening despite her necklace. She breastfeeds her puppies… Although connected to a chain and the breasts swollen with milk, nothing peaceful emanates from this statue. The work of Pierre Louis Rouillard, dating from 1858, could even have inspired Conan Doyle for his Hound of the Baskervilles.
Elsewhere in the Toulouse Grand Rond park, more peaceful statues watch despite the one celebrating the victory of David against Goliath while the winner of the cockfight shows off. The writers Louis Vestrepain (1809-1865) and Lucien Mengaud (1805-1877) are also entitled to their stone tributes. In the middle of all this, a little red man, the Attrape-Cœur, by the famous Toulouse sculptor James Colomina has invited himself into the flora of the Grand Rond garden in Toulouse.
Visit the unmissable kiosk in the Grand Rond garden
Majestic, the Toulouse Grand Rond bandstand, integrated for the Universal Exhibition of 1837, sits proudly just a stone’s throw from the water jet basin, also duly dating from the 19th century. Trees, wrought iron gates, benches are part of the harmony of these three hectares of green space. In addition, the footbridges and the Wallace fountain.
Statue of Louis Vestrepain by Antonin Mercié © Marion Bernard/L’Opinion Indépendante
The bar in the garden of the Grand-Rond in Toulouse offers walks a very pleasant moment of refreshment during the beautiful reds. The setting of the garden seems to have come straight out of the work of a painter, so harmonious are the volumes and the colors. These change with the seasons, and offer varied shows, to the delight of visitors. A feeling of tranquility and balance characterized the place. The traffic of the Boulingrin roundabout becomes only a distant background sound. For all these reasons, the garden of the Grand Rond in the Pink City is indeed one of Toulouse’s favorite corners of greenery!
What can be found in the Jardin du Grand Rond in Toulouse?
Visitors can enjoy different places within the park itself. The Independent Opinion you list them:
- A Wallace Fountain
- The Chained Dog with her Puppies; opposite, the wolf with one of the terrified puppies she has just stolen;
- two statues of Pierre Louis Rouillard facing each other which open the path on the north side
- Louis Vestrepain by Antonin Mercié
- Winner of Alexandre Falguière’s cockfight, listed as a historical monument
- David slaying Goliath by Antonin Mercié, listed as a historical monument
- Le Réveil de Morphée by Léo Laporte-Blairsy, listed as a historical monument
- Monument to Lucien Mengaud de Laspagin L’attrape-Cœur (2019) by James Colomina
Practical information on the Jardin du Grand Rond in Toulouse
How to get to the Jardin du Grand Rond in Toulouse?
By transportation:
by metro: line B – Carmes station.
By tram: Lines T1 and T2 – Stop: Palais de Justice.
By bus: Lines: 14, 29, 319, 357, 44, L1, L7, L9
Where to park near the Jardin du Grand Rond in Toulouse?
- Parking Saint-Étienne Indigo, Rue Riguepels, Place Saint-Étienne, 31 000 Toulouse
- Parking Carnot – Indigo, 21 Boulevard Lazare Carnot, 31000 Toulouse
- Parking des Carmes – Indigo, Place des Carmes, 31 500 Toulouse
- On-street parking: paid, yellow dotted zone – Toulouse
The opening hours of the Grand Rond garden in Toulouse
The Grand Rond garden is open Monday to Sunday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Around the Grand Rond de Toulouse garden:
For the most curious, it is possible to organize a short getaway near the Grand Rond garden. Ideally located close to the Garonne and many emblematic monuments of Toulouse such as the Saint-Étienne Cathedral and the War Memorial, to François Verdier.
There are many places to discover:
- the gallo-roman rampart of toulouse
- Monument to the glory of the Resistance
- War memorial Saint Michael
- The Museum
- Garden plants
- Not to mention the unmissable Place du Capitole, and the Jean-Jaurès alleys.
Restoration points around the Jardin du Grand Rond in Toulouse:
The Grand Rond garden has a plethora of restaurants, as its location in the city center is privileged. Here is a non-exhaustive list of establishments near the Grand Rond garden in Toulouse.
- Le Soulier 3 Place Montoulieu, located 0.1 km from the Jardin du Grand Rond
- Kiosque 77, Allées François Verdier, located 0.1 km from the Jardin du Grand Rond
- Le Perchepinte, 1 Rue Vélane located 0.3 km from Jardin du Grand Rond
- Les Mecs Au Camion (Foodtruck) located 0.2 km away from Jardin du Grand Rond
- L’Emulsion, 21 rue Perchepinte located 0.3 km from the Jardin du Grand Rond
Hotels near the Jardin Grand Rond de Toulouse:
2-star hotel:
Hotel Royal Wilson, 6 rue Labéda, 31000 Toulouse, 05 61 12 41 41
Hotel le Cousture, 40 Boulevard Lazare Carnot, 31 000, 05 34 40 29 00
3 star hotels:
Ibis Styles Toulouse Canal du Midi, 5 Boulevard de la Gare, 31 500 Toulouse, 05 61 34 11 71
Mama Shelter Toulouse, 54-56 Boulevard Lazare Carnot, 31000 Toulouse, 05 31 50 50 05
Urban Style Hotel Saint Claire, 29 Place Nicolas Bachelier, 31 000 Toulouse, 05 34 40 58 88
4 star hotels:
Mercure Toulouse St-Georges Center Rue St-Jérôme 31 000 Toulouse 05 62 27 79 79
Mercure Toulouse Wilson 7, rue Labéda 31 000 Toulouse 05 34 45 40 60
Grand Hotel de l’Opéra 1, Place du Capitole 31 000 Toulouse, France 05 61 21 82 66
Courtyard By Marriott 4bis, rue Alain Fournier 313700 Toulouse 05 34 39 80 00
5 star hotels:
Pullman Toulouse Center 84, Allées Jean Jaurès 31 000 Toulouse 05 61 10 23 10