Just when you think the City of Light can’t get any prettier, spring arrives, and the bloom of the Paris cherry blossom makes everything look a little more magical.
Paris in the spring is something I’ll never get tired of. My eighth visit here was all about one thing: finally seeing the cherry blossoms in Paris. I had seen them before, scattered here and there, but this time, I wanted to experience the city fully in bloom over the course of a couple of weeks. Now, after over a dozen trips to Paris, I can honestly say there’s nothing quite like walking through Paris under a canopy of pink petals.
I timed my visit for late March into early April, hoping to catch them at their peak. Some spots, like the trees near the Eiffel Tower and the Jardin des Plantes, were easy to find. Others took a little more searching, but that was part of the fun.
Watching the city transform with each passing day felt like a celebration of spring. If you’re wondering where to find them, I’ll share the best places, along with all the spots I found in a curated Google Map.
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Quick Reference: Where to Find Cherry Blossoms in Paris
Cherry blossoms are scattered all over Paris, from well-known gardens and parks to small neighbourhood squares and streets you might otherwise walk straight past. Some locations have just one or two trees, while others are worth making a special trip to see.
I’ve created a curated Google Map with all the cherry blossom locations I’ve found across the Right Bank, Left Bank and the two islands in the middle of the Seine River, along with a few worthwhile places just outside Paris.
A word of advice before you start planning: don’t try to see them all. Cherry trees don’t bloom at exactly the same time, and weather can move things along surprisingly quickly. On my late-March and early-April visits, I’ve found some trees already in full bloom while others were only beginning to open.
Instead, use the map to see what is close to places you already want to visit. If you’re spending the morning around the Louvre, for example, the Tuileries are easy additions. If you’re exploring the Latin Quarter, several blossom spots can be combined without crossing the city.
Below, I’ve highlighted the locations I think are most worth knowing about, including the ones I would prioritize if your time in Paris is limited.
Cherry Blossoms on the Right Bank
There are many more cherry trees on the Right Bank than the five I’ve included here, and you’ll find all of them on my Google Map. These are the ones I personally love and recommend you prioritize for their setting, the number of trees, or because they fit easily into a day you may already be planning in Paris.
Jardin des Tuileries
The Tuileries is one of the prettiest places to see cherry blossoms in central Paris. The trees are scattered through the garden rather than concentrated in one grove, with the Louvre, fountains and classical statues giving you that unmistakably Parisian backdrop.
I especially like this one because you don’t have to plan your day around it. If you’re visiting the Louvre, Musée de l’Orangerie or walking toward Place de la Concorde, simply include the gardens along the way. I prefer coming earlier in the morning, before this very central stretch of Paris becomes busy.
Petit Palais and Jardin des Champs-Élysées
This is one of my favourite areas for cherry blossoms. The trees around the Petit Palais and Avenue Winston Churchill are especially pretty against the ornate Beaux-Arts architecture, and there are more blossoms to look for as you continue through the Jardin des Champs-Élysées.
It’s also an easy place to make more of the stop. Visit the Petit Palais, walk across Pont Alexandre III or continue along the Seine. If you only want to see blossoms that fit naturally into sightseeing you were already going to do, this is one I would choose.
Parc Monceau
Parc Monceau gives you a very different setting. The blossoms appear among curved pathways as you walk through the gardens.
I like this choice if you’re spending time in the 8th or 17th arrondissements and want to make the blossoms part of a longer stroll. It feels much more like spending time in a neighbourhood park than arriving somewhere just to photograph a tree. I wouldn’t necessarily cross Paris only for the blossoms here, but combined with exploring this part of the city, it is well worth adding.
Coulée Verte René-Dumont and Allée Vivaldi
Choose the Coulée Verte if you would rather walk among spring flowers than simply stop for a photograph. This elevated promenade follows a former railway line through the 12th arrondissement, with cherry trees appearing along the route with Paris architecture in the background.
I would concentrate on the stretch around Allée Vivaldi, then continue onto the Coulée Verte for as long as you feel like walking. The blossoms are part of the experience rather than the only reason to come, which is exactly why I like it. This is a good option if you have already seen central Paris and want somewhere different to spend part of an afternoon.
Jardins du Trocadéro
For cherry blossoms with the Eiffel Tower in the background, Trocadéro is hard to beat. It is also one of the places where I would set expectations before going: this is an iconic Paris photo location, so you are unlikely to have it to yourself.
If photography matters, go early. Otherwise, I wouldn’t worry about trying to recreate an empty Instagram photograph. Walk through the gardens, look for different angles through the trees and enjoy the view. If seeing the Eiffel Tower is already part of your day, the blossoms make spring an especially good time to approach it from this side of the Seine.
Cherry Blossoms on the Left Bank
Some of my favourite blossom locations are actually the smaller squares and streets of the Left Bank. Several sit close enough together that I wouldn’t visit them as individual destinations. I would use them to create a spring walk through the Latin Quarter or Saint-Germain.
Square Paul Langevin and Rue Monge
This is one of my personal favourites. Several cherry trees turn this small Latin Quarter square and the surrounding stretch of Rue Monge pink, but what I like most is the setting. It feels like something you happen upon while walking through the neighbourhood rather than a major blossom attraction.
It also combines beautifully with Jardin des Plantes. I would start around Square Paul Langevin and Rue Monge, then continue toward the garden rather than treating either as a separate excursion.
Square Gabriel Pierné and Square Honoré-Champion
These two small squares are close enough that I always think of them together. Square Gabriel Pierné, behind the Institut de France, is particularly pretty in spring, with its cherry blossoms, book-shaped benches and old-fashioned lamps. It is one of those small Paris places I return to whenever I’m staying in Saint-Germain.
Square Honoré-Champion gives you another blossom stop nearby. Neither is somewhere I would tell you to cross Paris specifically to see, but that is part of their appeal. If you’re walking Rue de Seine, visiting Saint-Germain-des-Prés or crossing the Pont des Arts, they take very little effort to add.
Rue Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre, Square René-Viviani and Square Pierre-Gilles de Gennes
Rather than thinking of Square René-Viviani as one isolated blossom stop, I would explore this pocket of the Latin Quarter as a small cluster.
Start around Square Pierre-Gilles de Gennes, which is right in front of Shakespeare and Company and the Seine.
From here you can continue along Rue Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre and Square René-Viviani.
This is one of the easiest areas to combine with places you may already want to see, including Notre-Dame and perhaps the blossoms you find in Square Jean XXIII at the base of the Cathedral.
Jardin des Plantes and Jardin Tino-Rossi
If you want one of the more spectacular blossom stops in Paris, I would put Jardin des Plantes high on the list. Some of the trees here are enormous, with branches spreading low and wide beneath masses of pink and white flowers. This is a place I will happily make a special trip to during blossom season.
It is also easy to turn into a longer walk. After the garden, head toward the Seine and continue through Jardin Tino-Rossi, where you’ll find more flowering trees along the river. At peak bloom, expect Jardin des Plantes to attract plenty of photographers and other people who have come specifically for the blossoms.
Allée Adrienne Lecouvreur and Jardin de la Tour Eiffel
If you want cherry blossoms with the Eiffel Tower in the background, I prefer walking along Allée Adrienne Lecouvreur and through the Jardin de la Tour Eiffel rather than staying in one spot. There are several opportunities to frame the blossoms with the tower as you move through the gardens, and the setting changes depending on which side of the trees you’re standing.
This is also one of the busiest areas on this list, so I would come early if photographs matter to you. Otherwise, make it part of your Eiffel Tower visit rather than a separate blossom stop. Walk the gardens, continue toward the Seine, or cross over to Trocadéro to see the blossoms from the opposite side of the river.
Should You Leave Paris to See the Cherry Blossoms?
Parc de Sceaux is often mentioned as one of the best places to see cherry blossoms near Paris, but I wouldn’t automatically add it to your itinerary.
There are enough beautiful cherry blossom locations within Paris itself that, on a first or shorter visit, I would rather spend that time exploring the city. I would make the trip outside Paris if seeing cherry blossoms is one of the main reasons for your spring visit, you’re staying in Paris for a week or longer, or this is a return trip, and you’ve already seen many of the major sights.
Parc de Sceaux
If you do decide to go, Parc de Sceaux is the place I would choose for sheer spectacle. This is very different from finding one or two flowering trees in a Paris square. The park has two large cherry groves, including around 160 Japanese Kanzan cherry trees in the northern grove and a separate grove of white-flowering cherry trees.
I visited during an April trip specifically to see them, and the scale is impressive. But that popularity comes with a trade-off. The annual Hanami celebration attracts large numbers of people, particularly around peak bloom, with picnics and special events throughout the park.
For me, Sceaux makes sense when the blossoms themselves are the experience you are travelling for. If you’re simply hoping to enjoy cherry blossoms as part of a spring trip to Paris, I would stay in the city and use the locations on my map instead.
Musée Albert-Kahn
For something different, consider Musée Albert-Kahn in Boulogne-Billancourt. Its contemporary Japanese garden has several varieties of sakura, set within a much larger collection of Japanese, French and English-style gardens. The museum notes that its cherry blossoms tend to appear earlier, with March being the better time to look for them.
I would choose Albert-Kahn for the garden itself rather than going solely in search of cherry blossoms. That makes it a better fit if you’re interested in Japanese gardens, landscape design or simply want something different on a repeat visit to Paris.
A Cherry Blossom Walk Along the Seine
If you want to have a lovely spring day looking for cherry blossoms, this is the route I would choose.
Begin at the Jardin des Tuileries; from here, cross the Seine and continue toward Saint-Germain to the beautiful Square Gabriel Pierné. It’s one of my favourite small squares in Paris. It’s so small, you only need a short stop before continuing east toward the Latin Quarter.
Next stop is Square Pierre-Gilles de Gennes, the tiny garden in front of Shakespeare and Company on Rue de la Bûcherie. Around the corner is Square René-Viviani and Rue Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre, which has one of the loveliest views of the cathedral from the Left Bank but also charming medieval buildings.
From the Seine, make a short detour into the Latin Quarter toward Rue Monge and Square Paul Langevin. This is one of my favourite areas during cherry blossom season. The trees along Rue Monge and around the square give you a neighbourhood setting without the crowds you find around some of Paris’s better-known spring locations. Square Paul Langevin sits directly on Rue Monge, making it an easy stop before continuing toward Jardin des Plantes.
Jardin des Plantes is where you’ll find one of the most impressive cherry trees in Paris. Its enormous Shirotae Japanese cherry spreads its branches almost to the ground when in full flower. From the garden, return to the Seine and walk through Jardin Tino-Rossi. I like this part of the route because you’re back beside the river and can simply continue walking toward the islands.
Cross onto ÃŽle Saint-Louis and finish at Place Louis-Aragon, at the western tip of the island overlooking the Seine.
There is only one cherry tree here, but that is part of why I like it. After seeing some of the larger displays earlier in the walk, this one feels like a fitting last stop, with the river surrounding you and central Paris just across the water.
From here, I would stay on ÃŽle Saint-Louis for a while. Have lunch, stop for an ice cream or simply walk the length of the island before deciding where the rest of the day takes you.
Planning a Spring Trip to Paris
What I like most about visiting Paris in spring is that it gives you a reason to leave a little space in your plans. A garden you meant to walk through becomes your entire romantic day in Paris, or a neighbourhood you’ve visited before suddenly gives you something new to notice. No matter where you choose to stay in Paris, you are bound to be near several of these spots for cherry blossoms.
That is also how I approach planning Paris trips. Rather than filling every hour, I help you choose the places that are worth your time and build a route that leaves room for moments like these. If you’d like help creating a Paris itinerary that feels thoughtful, personal and well-paced, you can learn more about my trip planning services here.
