Jardins du ChÂteau D'Ainay-le-Vieil

About the garden

The gardens of Ainay-le-Vieil are classified as both a Historical Monument and a Remarkable Garden. They reflect three different periods of garden design: Renaissance water gardens, ancient architectural enclosures built for fruit production and contemporary gardens.

Set within a 19th-century landscaped park, the 13th-century medieval fortified castle is flanked by nine towers and surrounded by a moat. In front of it, the Renaissance water gardens invite visitors to discover the art of gardening, as contemporary gardens were created after a storm in 1985, replacing those that had disappeared. In front of the Renaissance pavilions, the rose garden offers a profusion of colours and perfumes.

Strolling along the canals that surround Square Island, visitors arrive at the Chartreuses – old architectural enclosures originally built to ensure optimal fruit production. Each enclosure houses a different type of garden: a mixed-border, a regular orchard with espaliers, a medieval meditation garden, a renaissance cloister and a formal boxwood garden.