Our Amazing Visit to Claude Monet’s House and Gardens

Welcome back, Tartlets! We’re ending our French vacation today at Monet’s House and Gardens.

You’ve already heard me go on and on about the picturesque village of Giverny, France.

But I’m sure a lot of you were wondering why I didn’t talk much about the house of famous painter Claude Monet, which is located smack in the center of the town (on a street named after him, no less).

The reason is because Monet’s house and gardens deserve their own individual post. Join me, friends, on a journey.

Monet’s Garden and Water Lily Pond

Although it was gloomy when we arrived in Giverny, we were gifted a gorgeous day to tour the grounds at Monet’s house. The sky was a brilliant, clear blue. The clouds overhead were fluffy and white. The early summer sun was warm but not too strong. It was a perfect day for wandering around.

We signed up (last minute! Because we’re spontaneous now.) for a guided tour of the grounds. It was great because, like at the Louvre, we were able to scoot past the long lines and pass right into the gardens.

There are actually two separate gardens open to the public at Monet’s house. First, there’s the garden with the famous water lilies and Japanese bridge that you see in all the photos, and that Monet himself painted often. Everything here is lush and green, and there are various pathways over little streams that lead to the water lily pond in the middle of the garden.

Our tour guide told us a lot of information about the plants in the garden and the care that’s gone into restoring the grounds over the years.

Learning the history made us appreciate the carefully orchestrated beauty even more. 

After our tour, we were free to wander the garden until closing time. We found a bench in the Japanese Bridge garden and took a seat. 

Mr Tart was able to check an item off his bucket list: drawing in Monet’s Gardens.

While he drew, I walked around and took more photos, but I also just sat in silence and just….looked. Existed. Enjoyed living in the moment.

No phone, no screen, no talking. Not even writing or reading. 

Just me, sitting in this gorgeous space, overwhelmed with gratitude that we were lucky enough to be able to spend time there.

The Japanese Bridge

Monet’s Garden is probably most famous for its Japanese (-style) Bridge, which stretches over a part of the lily pond. Our tour guide told us that, in mid-May, we’d just missed the purple wisteria blooming on the bridge. However, the white wisteria was out in full force. 

It was pretty hard to snap a photo of the bridge without a bajillion people crammed onto it.

Mr Tart and I got a few photos of us on the bridge, but there are lots of strangers right next to us. There was one couple who was even taking what looked like engagement photos on the bridge.

It was nice to see such an iconic structure and painting subject, but the bridge wasn’t my favorite part of the gardens. I might have been more impressed if the purple wisteria had been blooming, since purple is my favorite color. 

We got our photos and we got out again to explore the many other parts of the gardens that were less insanely crowded. 

Monet’s Garden by the House

The other main garden section is right by Monet’s house, in a space that could be described as the “back yard.” This garden is filled with rows and rows of irises (all the heart eyes), and there are arches over several of the garden beds and paths. 

I think this was my favorite garden since I adore irises so much.

The house, with its iconic “Monet green” shutters, overlooks the house gardens and makes for a stunning backdrop in every photo.

Mr Tart and I are amateur gardening enthusiasts, and we were thrilled to learn that so many of the plants in our yard are also in Monet’s gardens.

Some of the highlights were irises (I took so many photos of them), peonies, rhododendrons, roses, hostas, day lilies, and pansies.

There was color, color everywhere, and it was magical. A feast for the senses.

Claude Monet’s House

The guided tour ended at the steps to the house. We joined everyone else in line and waited for our turn to walk through the house.

There was no guided tour available (that we saw) of the house; everyone was just walking through the rooms that were open to the public.

While Monet’s house was lovely, it wasn’t too different from a lot of the historic homes I’ve toured.

One big draw for the house itself, obviously, is the room that Monet made into his studio. It features many of his paintings, usually his favorites among the thousands he created in his lifetime.

Unfortunately, most of the artwork hanging on the walls in Monet’s house are reproductions; the originals are in museums all over the world.

Still, it was nice to see the space in which Monet worked, and to get a glimpse into what his favorite pieces were that he painted.

One of the best parts of the tour was the upstairs bedroom that overlooked the house gardens.

Just look at that view! Can you imagine living here and THAT being the first thing you see in the morning? No wonder Monet was so inspired. 

Oh, and let’s not forget about the kitchen.

While I don’t love the blue and white tile (I mean, I don’t hate it, either….), my eyes bugged out of my head at all the gorgeous copper cookware in this room. And, at that awesome cast iron antique stove. 

Admittedly, the blue and white looks fantastic with all that copper. So, whoever designed Monet’s kitchen knew what they were doing. 

Whoever runs the house/museum now also knows what they’re doing by making sure a staff member is present at all times so people don’t try to sneak a pot or pitcher into their purse…. 

C’est le fin

Well, Tartlets — that’s it. C’est finis! It’s been wonderful reliving my vacation through the photos as I put together these posts to share with you all. This experience made me miss France all over again! Which is a good thing, even though it sounds like it’s not. 

I hope you’ve enjoyed these glimpses of Paris, Giverny, Vernon, and Monet’s house and gardens. And, I hope that all of you have a chance to see these wonderful places in person. Au revoir!