Union Terrace Gardens is to close for five weeks while pits and holes are dug ahead of a £20million revamp.
The Victorian park will shut from Monday to allow construction workers to carry out ground investigations.
Outline plans for the rejuvenation were drawn up by London architecture firm LDA design, which was also behind London’s Olympic Park.
They feature walkways, new buildings and a “halo” floating light fixture.
The upcoming works will help inform the council of the scope and costs involved with the full project.
More detail will be gathered on the ground conditions around the proposed structures and the level of grading works required for a new embankment at the Rosemount end of the park.
They will also allow for the utility connections running through the ground beneath to be fully mapped.
An Aberdeen City Council spokesman said: “The investigation works were approved by the council earlier this year and the project team has liaised closely with the local authority’s events and maintenance teams to minimise the impact on operations.
“Officers had recommended carrying out a site investigation before appointing a construction contractor to provide greater certainty for the council about the project’s detailed cost and timescale.”
Dustin Macdonald, the chairman of Aberdeen City Centre Community Council, said: “Obviously it’s going to be closed for longer in the future for the works that are going to be done, but they do need to happen and they need to happen safely.
“It is unfortunate when we have to close off major attractions like Union Terrace Gardens, but that’s what is needing to be done.
“The council were much better waiting until after the summer to carry them out now, as there were a number of events on.”
The revitalisation of the park is one of 50 projects approved as part of the Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan in 2015.
The detailed planning application is currently awaiting determination, and is expected to go before councillors in the new year.
