The Rocher des Doms is a rocky promontory rising above the Palais des Papes, now laid out as a formal garden with ponds, peacocks, and a belvedere looking north over the Rhône. The views from the terrace take in the Pont d'Avignon below, the ruined tower of Villeneuve-lès-Avignon on the far bank, and the Alpilles hills beyond — on clear days the profile of Mont Ventoux is visible in the east.
The garden is free to enter and popular with Avignon residents as much as tourists. The café by the pond is a reasonable stop. The elevated position makes the garden the best place to understand the city's geography: the walled town below, the river curving around it, and the flat Provençal plain stretching south. The rocky hill itself was the original settlement site, inhabited since the Neolithic period — the city was built downslope from what is now a public park.