PRACTICAL INFORMATION
CONTACT
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
PRESS AREA
Business tourism
Accessibility
SEARCH
A JOURNEY INTO THE MYSTERIOUS WORLD OF PERFUME
Grasse – Mouans-Sartoux – 1 day
Do you want to learn all about the marvelous history of perfume, that mystical substance that is the very essence of the Pays de Grasse? Touch, smell, listen, contemplate, create – float on floral fragrances in this journey of discovery into the secret world of the experts who make perfume. A one-of-a-kind sensory experience that takes you into the very heart of the magical world of perfumery.
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
The highlights:
1 : A fragrant stroll through the garden of a thousand scents
2 : Picnic in the Tuscan style countryside
3 : Discover the marvelous history of perfume
4 : SET YOUR CREATIVITY FREE BY BECOMING AN APPRENTICE PERFUMER
Highlight #1:
A FRAGRANT STROLL THROUGH THE GARDEN OF A THOUSAND SCENTS
«International Perfume Museum Gardens »
Touch, smell, listen, contemplate ...
10:00 a.m.
Here, the air is more fragrant, more inspiring, more creative, even more passionate than anywhere else.
nce you pass through the reception area, a symphony of scents leads you into the happy, glowing world of springtime. Let your eyes join your nose in this scenic sensory feast! Centifolia roses form a backdrop, already tinging the magnificent landscape with pink. Everywhere you look, the floral pointillism of fuchsia, red, coral, and champagne tells you that this garden is a natural marvel!
More than seven acres of land designed to smell, admire, touch.
As you do, you’ll be warmed by the sympathetic smiles of the guardians of the temple, the gardeners: Yes, you can crumple the leaves or delicately pick the flowers to sniff them. Because that is the magic of these plants! Your senses are awakened, childhood memories and emotions bubble up. Centifolia rose, jasmine, tuberose, lavender, rose geranium, and orange blossom reveal their unique notes. Each fragrance family has its own section, its own world. The invigorating, fresh, and lemony scent of verbena responds to our fingers’ touch, the mint garden coolly tickles our nostrils. Further on, floral notes waft over to us, released by the countless roses from here and afar, like a feminine perfume that reminds us that the first fragrances used by man came from plants.
A journey through a land of fragrances...
Peppery, green, fruity, and woody notes surround you, while potent white flowers like tuberose, honeysuckle, and jasmine saturate the air with their persistent perfume – every corner of the garden is home to an explosion of color and scent. Lavender blooms in rich rows of blue-violet tips on gray-green foliage, not far from more exotic plants, the vetivers, with their unusual smell that is at once smoky, earthy, and creamy – the odor of a dandy or an elegant explorer!
Helpful hints and information:
-
Free parking in front of the garden entrance
-
Wear comfortable shoes. In summertime, bring a sunhat and water.
-
For full information:www.museesdegrasse.com
Advice from an expert
Take a tour of the gardens with our gardener, or enjoy a family workshop with a cultural interpreter. A moment of sheer delight!
Time: 1 to 1½ hours, reservations required.
A tour with our gardeners is a wonderful adventure, a time to explore the garden using your senses.
With our cultural interpreter, take part in an unforgettable sensory experience in natural surroundings, where touching, smelling, contemplating, tasting, and listening are actively encouraged! Discover the different ways plants are used, learn more about biodiversity to understand the relationships between plants and insects, hear stories about mythological flora. You will enjoy an exquisite experience listening to anecdotes about perfume plants as you appreciate their natural qualities with your own senses.
Highlight #2:
PICNIC IN THE TUSCAN COUNTRYSIDE STYLE
"Mouans-Sartoux - International Perfume Museum Gardens"
Francesca, the director of the Gardens, gave us the following tip – and we’re so glad we took her advice: take a lunch break in the gardens. It’s a down-to-earth way to conclude your floral adventure. We took our basket to the back of the gardens, where there’s a picnic area in the shade of century-old cypresses, with olive and citrus trees all around, representing the agriculturally inspired garden. It’s a setting on a par with Tuscany, ideal for taking a nap, offering a breathtaking 180° view over the hills of Grasse to the red rocks of the Estérel. The icing on the cake: an expansive panoramic view of the gardens, spread out before us like an Impressionist painting.
Shhhh…. it’s time to look and listen…
Nearby, our ears pick up the splash of water. And there it is, a large stone-rimmed pond covered with lotus and water lilies, a few bees that come to feast in the blooms, and the clattering song of the cicadas, reminding us that we are indeed in Provence. It is at once fascinating and soothing, a simple pleasure, yet one so rare that it becomes unique.
Pro tip
Reserve your picnic basket with a chef specializing in cooking with flowers and you will have an incomparable culinary experience. Flowers give the cuisine subtle flavors and contrasts of color and taste. From sweet to savory, it's a truly incredible experience for your taste buds.
Highlight #3:
DISCOVER THE MARVELOUS HISTORY OF PERFUME
"Grasse - International Perfume Museum"
2:30 p.m
Now it’s time to explore the mysterious world of perfume. We continue our journey in the remarkable realm of fragrance by travelling to Grasse, the perfume capital of the world, a few miles from Mouans-Sartoux.
From the moment we arrive in the historic city center, we are surprised and fascinated by the spirit we sense in Grasse: The cathedral rises high above the city, with an adjacent episcopal palace. The 18th-century facades and mansions remind us of Grasse’s grand past and flourishing industry in every dimension of perfumery. The strange characters of Patrick Süskind’s novel, Perfume: The Story of a Murderer, may be right around the corner. We are tangibly surrounded by this ambiance of old, the days when the perfume factories were running full tilt and flower crops were grown in the nearby fields.
Travel without leaving town...
We arrive at the International Perfume Museum. Its daring architecture stands proudly above the 15th-century rampart. As soon as we cross the threshold, we plunge into a world of sensory wonder. As we follow the recommended visitor path, we encounter enlightening videos and interactive, olfactory, and educational displays helping us understand how perfume has been used across human civilization. From Antiquity to Mesopotamia, from Greece to the Far East, from Roman times to the Industrial Revolution, this is the marvelous history of perfume.
As we move from room to room, the museum slowly opens like a treasure chest, as the objects it shelters are precious beyond measure: the exquisite set of travel essentials having belonged to Marie-Antoinette, the surprising boxes crafted of bergamot bark, reflecting Grasse savoir-faire, perfume bottles from Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece.
Throughout the museum, we smell and share unexpected olfactory experiences, including addictive scents like tobacco, whiskey, coffee, cannabis. Perfume is unquestionably an expression of human memory.
A special treat:
Visit the greenhouse, filled with botanical raw materials from near and far, such as patchouli, ginger, rockrose (cistus), vanilla, and wild thyme. Having experienced the scent of their essential oils, we now know what these plants actually look like. Throughout the entire visit, we revel in the refinement, excitement, inventiveness, and art to be found in the museography.
Every detail adds another facet to this world of fragrance, and a clear highlight of any tour is the sunny, 18th-century Orange Tree Garden, the perfect spot for a break. Savor the breathtaking views of the Tanneron mountain range, which glows a warm yellow in late winter from the carpet of mimosa blooms, the floral symbol of the sun and gold, covering the hillsides. When our visit comes to an end, our heads are spinning as we try to digest so many novel notions. But we now understand that, while poetic and romantic, perfume is a very technical art.
An added advantage:
To help keep little ones entertained, the museum has a special visitor route for youngsters age 7 and up, with interactive terminals and games of touch and smell, all ways to better understand the mysteries of perfume.
Advice from an expert:
When planning your visit to this fabulous museum, choose the guided olfactory tour, which will introduce you to the culture and tradition of scents, perfume production secrets, and ways that fragrances are used to treat ailments, communicate, and persuade.
HIGHLIGHT 4: :
SET YOUR CREATIVITY FREE BY BECOMING AN APPRENTICE PERFUMER
"Grasse - Artisanal perfumery"
4:30 p.m
Create a made-to-measure scent of your very own. We continue this wondrous journey by learning about the art of perfume-making in a scent-creation workshop. Like an apprentice perfumer, we learn about and experiment with the ingredients used to compose a fragrance, under the guidance of an expert. Which notes create harmony, which create contrast? Top note, heart note, bottom note – we learn to draft a formula, but also learn the different fragrance families. The first part of the workshop covers the theory, to help inform our subsequent blending, but it is an exciting and educational introduction to the essence of scent creation. Then we take the plunge, under the watchful eye and nose of our “master perfumer.” The ambiance is both studious and fun. And there’s no risk of being disappointed with the fragrance we create, because the actual process is simplified by the fact that we combine olfactory accords prefabricated by the House. You will end up with a scent you’ll want to wear every day.
