France's President Opens Elysee Garden to Public Hundreds of Parisians and tourists lined up Sunday to get a rare chance to visit the gardens of France's presidential palace. Visitors were taking advantage of a new policy inaugurated by President Francois Hollande to open the 18th-century Elysee Palace gardens to the public every last Sunday of the month. In the past, the palace and gardens were only open to the public once a year on France's Heritage Days weekend in September. Access to the gardens is just off the Champs Elysee avenue via an ornate wrought-iron gate topped with gilt rooster, the French national symbol. The gardens are open from noon to 5 p.m. the last Sunday of the month from October to March, and from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. from April to September.