Menton

Menton France has been calling me ever since I first saw photos of their annual Lemon Festival which takes place the end of February every year. If you are in Menton in the summer, they also have a music festival every August that has been going on since 1950: the French Chamber Opera Festival.

Menton Lemon Festival photo courtesy of the Office de Tourisme http://www.tourisme-menton.fr/

Menton’s tourism website describes the town as “cool squares [and] narrow little streets cascading toward the sea”. If that doesn’t make you want to explore the town then read what one of our readers has to say about her visit to Menton. My thanks to Linda from Let’s Go Travel  for sharing with us her explorations of some of the many gardens to be found here in Menton.

The gardens of Menton are truly inspiring. In fact, so much so, that I recently purchased a Menton Lemon tree for my home garden just so I would always remember Menton!

Menton viewed from the Mediterranean

Jardin d’Argrumes du Palais Carnole’s

….was once a summer residence of the princes of Monaco and is surrounded by Europe’s largest citrus tree collection. More than 100 varieties of fruits are produced here and in February & March the famed Fête du Citron is held, where you can feast your eyes on 11 kinds of lemon, 6 of citron, 20 of orange, 8 of lime and mandarins, clementines, kumquats, bergamots, Seville oranges, grapefruit and pomelo.

The park is beautifully lined with palm trees and contemporary sculptures with exotic tree ferns adding interest.

Jardin Fontana Rosa 

…is another Menton garden that is a bit eccentric with its portraits of literary giants. The garden was created in 1921 and today encompasses 1,700 square meters. Two villas and a vegetable garden sit within an olive grove on the upper level, while on the lower level the most striking features are an aquarium with ceramic friezes showing marine fauna.

Paths are lined by bronze busts of literary figures. The scenery changes constantly, Pergolas and columns interlaced with climbing roses or wisterias and elsewhere there are echoes of the exotic landscapes.

Jardin Maria Serena

…sprawls along the end of the seafront of Menton, being the last property before the Italian border. The plans for the Riviera villa that sits on this beautiful property were drawn up by the same architect that designed the Paris Opera House.

Reported to be the most temperate garden in France (never dropping below 5^o C/41^o F), this garden overlooking the sea and the old town has magnificent magenta-colored bougainvilleas, among masses of vivid green! Palm trees, dragon trees and so much more await your visit.

Check out the garden website links before your visit for current hours and times of tours – a tranquil addition to any visit to the South of France!