AMB Cote d'Azur

Apart from the park's amazing size, over 7 hectares of land, the reknown of Parc Floral Phoenix is of course its immense greenhouse, one of the largest in Europe and known as “Le Diamant Vert”, the Green Diamond. This amazing glass and metal tent-like structure, 22 meters high and extending over 7,000m², houses the most complete range of plants ever assembled in Europe and offers the visitor seven different tropical and sub-tropical climates. Designed by architects Selme and Tampon-Lajariette, it was built in 1989 and opened in February 1990 and is Nice's most orginal architectural feature since the disappearance of the Casino de la Jetée-Promenade in 1943.

The entrance to Parc Phoenix is located west of Nice, a stone's throw from the airport and within the Arénas district, Nice's bustling business quarters adorned by tall mirror-façade buildings complete with hotels, restaurants, and shops. Nestled in this modern urban glass and cement city you'll find the entrance to the park located just next to the Museum of Asiatic Art.

Last year over 500,000 visitors passed through its turn-styles and it is now the most visited botanical garden on the Cote d'Azur, with Monaco's Jardin Exotique in second place and Eze's Jardin Exotique a close third.

While it is certainly a wonderful day's outing for families with small children, anyone remotely interested in gardens would enjoy coming here and strolling around the grounds. Its been cleverly designed to suit all needs and, while certainly a child's paradise, there are also quiet, secluded areas where the only sound you'll hear is birdsong and an overhead plane or two . . .

To appreciate the park at its best and so as not to miss any of its attractions, do make sure you're given a map at the time you pay your admission fee. I didn't receive one on my first tour, but luckily picked up a used copy abandoned on a bench towards the end of my visit, which I brought home with me. Studying the map in more detail I realised I'd missed several areas of the park, notably the rather interesting circular craters and other theme gardens. The map is also very useful when you're inside the Diamant Vert itself.

Oddly, with the high number of visitors, at present there are only two ticket kiosks available which in turn can lead to long queues during school holidays. However, I visited at the end of September on a Sunday and simply sailed through. Note that the main entrance and underground car parking is located at the north end (Entrée Arenas) while the south entrance is reserved for large buses and coach parties. You can park your car without charge for up to two hours at weekends.

Once you've received your tickets (and map) and gone through the turnstiles you'll find yourself directly in front of the park's central feature: an enormous 6,000m² lake. Interestingly, the Museum of Asian Arts, with its large glass windows, is built on this same lake and adds a somewhat oriental feel to the start of your tour. As a byline, I drove past the Museum on my way to the underground parking and then took the elevator up to ground level. For some silly reason, once inside the park, I simply couldn't fathom what the glass building standing in the lake was and wondered if it wasn't some sort of conference building linked (somehow) to the park. It was only when I revisited Parc Floral Phoenix a week later that the penny dropped and I realised that it was indeed the Museum of Asian Arts; I obviously hadn't expected it to be so close.