Every year, between the first weekend in June and the first weekend in September, the Jardin du Lautaret opens its doors to the public for the summer season at an altitude of 2,100 metres, facing the glaciers of the Meije and bordering the Ecrins National Park!

A landmark on the Grandes-Alpes route, the Lautaret Garden was created in 1899 on the initiative of Jean-Paul Lachmann, Chair of Botany at Grenoble University. He chose to set up his botanical garden on the Col du Lautaret, at an altitude of more than 2,000 metres, because of the abundance of biodiversity there due to the altitude gradient and the area's rich geology and climate.

This Université Grenoble Alpes and CNRS garden is one of the oldest and most beautiful in Europe. Its purpose is threefold: to maintain a vast collection of Alpine plants, and to be a centre for scientific research and the dissemination of knowledge. A raison d'être that, 125 years on, has not aged a day!

A trip around the world

In an exceptional landscaped setting, 2,000 species of plants acclimatised to extreme living conditions are presented by geographical origin, living environment, botanical classification and medicinal, toxic or alimentary properties. Each step takes visitors to a new continent in this botanical and dreamlike world tour. Surrounded by 360° mountains, the garden winds its way through streams, pontoons, ponds, reconstructed environments, natural meadows, a historic chalet, century-old trees, a bird kiosk... All the way to a unique view of the glaciers of La Meije reflected in the water of a small pond with flourishing surroundings.

A cultural season at the top

Lectures, workshops, tours, film screenings, debates, concerts in partnership with the Messiaen Festival, a nocturne in the garden and the ONIRI show in partnership with the Hexagone Scène Nationale, exhibitions... almost fifty events are on offer! Once again this year, the Jardin du Lautaret is offering a rich cultural season. Between science, tourism and the dissemination of knowledge, some fifty cultural events are being organised between 7 June and 7 September 2025, in addition to the three daily guided tours of the garden.

A place of discovery and science

Every summer, 20,000 people visit this unique site, but the Jardin du Lautaret is much more than just a botanical garden! It is one of the scientific research centres of the Université Grenoble Alpes and the CNRS in the fields of ecology, the environment, the Earth and the Universe. Researchers from all over the world come here to study and experiment with the effects of global change, climate change and human practices in mountain areas. The garden also organises a wide range of training courses for students, doctoral candidates and socio-professionals.