Photo : Wikimedia Commons
Domaine du Rayol
The Domaine du Rayol, or Jardin des Méditerranées, is a botanical garden on the Corniche des Maures, at Le Rayol-Canadel-sur-Mer, in the Var. The estate covers about twenty hectares, of which about seven are laid out as gardens, facing the sea.
Its original property was a holiday home, built by a Parisian couple, Alfred and Thérèse Courmes, then passed into the hands of the aviation industrialist Henry Potez. Threatened by a property development project in the 1970s and 1980s, the site was bought in 1989 by the Conservatoire du littoral. The landscape designer Gilles Clément then imagined a garden evoking the landscapes and flora of regions of the world with a Mediterranean climate.
The route thus presents atmospheres of California, Chile, South Africa, Australia, the Mediterranean basin and other comparable regions. The estate also hosts guided tours and activities around nature.
