Celebrate Hanami this year with a visit to the largest Japanese garden in Europe, the 29-hectare Parc Oriental de Maulévrier.
The Japanese festival of Hanami means literally ‘to contemplate the flowers’.
It is a tradition that goes back to the ninth century in Japan, and is strongly linked with the Shinto religion, which believes that the Sakura (Cherry Blossom Trees) are inhabited by kami, deities within, to which offerings should be made.
In its origin, Hanami was enjoyed primarily by the ‘Japanese Imperial Court’ and it was only during the Edo period (from 1603 to 1867) that it became a public festival and the Japanese, en masse, began to take flight each spring to sit under the cherry trees and picnic.
Today, up to 63 million people celebrate the festival, and the blossoming period creeps further forward each year.
Picnic under cherry blossoms
The Parc Oriental de Maulévrier, originally part of the domain of the Château de Colbert, is located near Cholet in the Maine-et-Loire.
Cherry blossoms in the Parc Oriental de Maulévrierphotofort 77/Shutterstock
The Parc opens at the earliest possible date – March 13 in 2025 – to ensure visitors do not miss the first of the season’s blooms.
The Parc Oriental breaks the normal ‘no picnicking’ rule during the Hanami period. Visitors are encouraged to spread their rugs and blankets – although your blanket does not have to be blue, the colour dictated by Hanami tradition!
It is also worth mentioning that modern Japanese Hanami parties are increasingly rowdy and frowned upon by the older generation for excessive alcohol consumption and laughter – behave yourselves!
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The Parc's history
The Parc Oriental, created between 1899 and 1913, was designed by Alexandre Marcel, an architect renowned for his Belle Epoque style, who created three pavilions for the Universal Exhibition in Paris of 1900 and worked internationally creating Japanese gardens and botanic structures for such clients as the King of Belgium.
Japanese architecture can be found around the ParcPixag0/Shutterstock
In 1913, he went to Tokyo to work on the French Embassy but was called back because of the outbreak of war.
The Parc Oriental later fell into ruin after the death of its creator, finally being purchased and rescued by the commune of Maulévrier in 1980.
It is now run by an association made up of volunteers, a permanent team of professionals and apprentices.
It is recognised throughout Europe as a model for the quality of its restoration and enhancement, which was based on photographs and memories of the original Marcel garden.
Sunny stroll through the ParcPixag0/Shutterstock
Academics from the universities of Tokyo and Niigata visited in 1987 and officially recognised 12 acres of the Parc Oriental as true evocation of a Japanese Edo ‘stroll’ garden.
A Jardin Remarquable
The park received Jardin Remarquable status in 2004.
The advisory relationship with Japan continues to this day by means of close ties with professors Makoto Suzuki (University of Agriculture, Tokyo) and Eijiro Fujii (University of Chiba).
Following the advice of these experts, a new area of the Parc was opened in 2020 called ‘The Island of the Setting Sun’.
In June 2022, the Parc Oriental saw the birth of the European Association of Japanese gardens, attended by the Japanese ambassador to France, Junichi Ihara.
The Parc also offers night time visits (from May - September) and hosted the first Festival Signature in 2024 after being voted as a finalist in the Prix de l’Art du Jardin.
Design rich in symbolism
The design of a Japanese garden is always rich in symbolism and the Parc Oriental uses water as a metaphor to describe the story of man’s journey through life: from the small lively stream of childhood to the large, placid lake of old age, complete with its famous reconstruction of Alexandre Marcel’s original red bridge, leading to the Islands of Paradise, representing the after-life.
Traditional red Japanese bridgepage frederique/Shutterstock
Look out for beautiful examples of Japanese topiary: cloud-pruned yews (niwaki) as they float against the backdrop of Prunus ‘Accolade’, and the organic forms of karikomi, shrubs clipped into billowing shapes to graze or roll like stones upon the slopes of the Hill of Meditations.
In the Pagoda, (restored from the original) you will find a detailed history of the garden and an explanation of the symbolism the visitor encounters (in English and French).
You can visit a ceramics exhibition and the glasshouse featuring a bonsai display, while in the shop young plants of ornamental cherry, maple and potential bonsai subjects are available, as well as compost and containers for bonsai cultivation.
The shop is manned by expert staff who can respond to queries on all things Japanese gardening.
Parc Oriental de Maulévrier opens on March 13 - November 16, 2025: weekdays and weekends 10:30 - 18:30. The ticket office shuts an hour before closing time.
Standard day entry costs €10.50 for over 18s; reduced rates for students and young people are set at €9.50; free entry for children under 12 years.
