Might you imagine a park in Courbevoie offering respite from city life? This is Parc des Pléiades a tranquil oasis. It invites locals and tourists to immerse themselves in nature. Parc des Pléiades covers 2.4 acres. It is celebrated for walking and family activities.
The park sits behind the town hall and old town hall. It connects the city center to Place des Pléiades. From there you can reach the La Défense business district via Parc Diderot. The park also provides access to the Charras parking area. You can also get to the new market hall from the town hall.
The old town hall is at the park’s main entrance. Architect Paul-Eugène Lequeux built it between 1855 and 1858. Inside the wedding hall, you can see Alexis Séon’s eight paintings. They depict the four seasons. These are remnants from the 1889 Exposition Universelle.
Parc des Pléiades has an esplanade with a stable surface. It regularly hosts events. Behind it are orangerie tubs. They contain ornamental apple trees. A lawn used to feature a sculpture. It showed two wild geese in flight. The City of Freudenstadt gifted it. Freudenstadt has been twinned with Courbevoie since 1961. This lawn is in front of a grove of tall evergreen sequoias. Nearby is a hornbeam maze on a gray granite paved surface. It sits at the foot of a large-flowered magnolia tree. Its low branches arch gracefully next to a children’s playground.
An amphitheater of bricks acts as a setting for the Marius Guerre hall. It is in the basement of the town hall. On either side grow two magnolias. There are also handkerchief trees and rose laurels. You will also find euphorbias and agapanthuses. A striking cascade feeds a pond planted with arums from Ethiopia and bamboo. It provides a pleasant murmur.
An often-overlooked garden sits between the town hall and old town hall. It features tree ferns and blue-flowered hydrangeas. You will also find fuchsias and variegated elder. Other plants include Caucasian forget-me-nots and camellias.
The rest of Parc des Pléiades is mostly wooded. It includes catalpas and Indian chestnut trees. There are also Japanese pagoda trees and tulip trees from Virginia. Among the notable trees is a weeping pine from the Himalayas. You can also find a Henry lime tree and a common plane tree. The latter was transplanted in 2018. This was to prepare for construction at Square de la Balance.
The park also features a dovecote. It allows the city to control the bird population. A small grove of silver linden trees grows north near the Charras parking area. There is a book box and a donation box near the perennial and grass beds.
The name Pléiades references the seven daughters of Atlas. Zeus transformed them into stars. This was to save them from Orion. Here, it echoes the “Le Zodiaque” real estate complex. Its buildings are dedicated to zodiac constellations. These include “Le Bélier”, “Le Capricorne”, and “Les Poissons”.