Parc de la Garenne, Royal park in Nérac, France

Parc de la Garenne is a royal park along the Baïse, developed from 1510 when Henri Ier d'Albret acquired land for a warren and garden. It is crossed by a flat metal footbridge with a crisscross lattice railing, and its paths pass ancient fountains such as the Fontaine du Dauphin (1602) and trees over 200 years old.

Henri Ier d'Albret began developing the royal warren and garden in 1510, and the park became a private space for the court of Navarre. Around 1560, Jeanne d'Albret and Antoine de Bourbon enclosed it with a wall. Marguerite de Valois later added a second enclosure and the 3,000-step avenue along the Baïse. After Henri IV's death, the estate declined until the 19th century, when it became municipal property and was restored.

Marguerite de Valois described in her memoirs the park she had laid out with an alley of three thousand steps along the Baïse, where the court walked after attending services in a chapel inside the grounds. The park was also used for jeu de mail, an early form of croquet. The Fontaine du Dauphin, dated 1602, is among the old fountains still passed on a walk.

The park is open year-round without entrance fees, with information boards helping visitors understand the history and key locations. Well-maintained pathways allow visitors to explore different sections, though some areas may be more shaded or muddy depending on weather conditions.

Archaeological work in the 1800s uncovered Roman mosaics beneath the park grounds, which were then reburied to shield them from weather damage. These hidden artifacts hint at the area's occupation long before the royal estate was established.