From 1 April, the French Garden of the Rundāle Palace Museum will begin the tourist season. Besides seasonal blooms, which will delight visitors from mid-April to autumn, there will also be an opportunity to participate in the traditional garden events of the Rundāle Palace Museum, as well as to assist in the garden maintenance works.
The summer months – June, July and August – are the flowering times of the roses. In June, the garden will be blooming with historical varieties of roses, which are distinguished by a strong fragrance and blossom only once, not twice a year as modern roses. From July to August and September, around 30 different varieties of hortensia will embellish the garden.
This year, several traditional garden events will take place – Spring and Autumn Plant Fairs, as well as the main summer event – Garden Festival.
The Spring Plant Fair will take place on 7 May, welcoming visitors to combine shopping with relaxation in the garden and appreciation of the tulip flowers. Traditionally, the Spring Plant Fair offers annual flower, vegetable, fruit and rose seedlings, garden equipment and decorative elements. Whereas in the Autumn Plant Fair on 10 September, the offer of market traders will be dominated by bushes, fruit trees and berries.
This year’s Garden Festival will take place on 2 July, focusing on the theme of historical reconstruction of the Palace Garden. The festival will offer educational and entertaining activities for children and adults, as well as a festive market with a wide range of rose seedlings and a special evening event – a performance of the early German opera maker, composer Johann Adam Hiller’s opera Die Liebe auf dem Lande (Love on the countryside), led by conductor and interpreter of ancient music Maris Kupčs. The event will be concluded by the reconstruction of the historic fireworks.
The French Garden of Rundāle Palace is the most beloved place of visitors of the palace complex. 26 employees will be involved in the maintenance of the park this season and will be joined by school children in the summer. However, volunteer assistants wishing to contribute to the maintenance of this historic garden are also welcome. Currently volunteers can apply to help gardeners only on weekdays, but in the future, it is planned to organise garden maintenance works during the holidays.
From 1 April, visitors to the French Garden must purchase an entrance ticket. Tickets can be bought via the Rundāle Palace Museum’s website or at the Ticket Office or at the terminal. Entrance fees are listed on the Rundāle Palace Museum’s website. We advise you to follow the most up to date information on the Museum’s website and social networks, as during the events the entrance fee may vary.