Botanic Garden - Attractions
Main Garden
Summer lighting in the main garden
The Main Garden contains several major plant collections and seasonal beds. It is at its best in spring when there is a blazing mass of 25,000 tulips, and in early summer. The Main Garden begins just inside the Founders gates on Glenmore Street and includes the Duck Pond. There are several walking tracks - many forming circuits - stemming from the Main Garden.
- Botanic Garden Map (446Kb PDF)
- Location Map
Begonia House
Begonia House
The Begonia House contains tropical and temperate displays, including seasonal displays of orchids, tuberous begonias, cyclamen, ornamentals, and others. The tropical end also features a lily pond containing aquatic plants and a giant water lily.
Botanic Garden Shop
The shop is in the Begonia House. It has an extensive selection of New Zealand gifts and crafts, practical garden products, accessories, books, cards and hand-made jewellery.
Shop Hours
| October - March: | 9.00am - 5.00pm |
| April - September: | 9.00am - 4.00pm |
(Closed 1 and 2 January, Good Friday, 25 April until 1.00pm, and 25 and 26 December)
Sensation Walk - Braille Trail
Honouring the bicentenary of Louis Braille's birth, this new 20-minute self-guided walk goes from the Treehouse to the Lady Norwood Rose Garden. Features on the trail engage senses other than sight and are marked with Braille posts and tactile footpath markers.
Brochures explaining the walk's features (in print and Braille) are available from the Botanic Garden Shop and Treehouse visitor centre.
Expanded Directions for the Blind (22Kb PDF)
Lady Norwood Rose Garden
Lady Norwood Rose Garden
This award-winning garden has 110 formal beds, each representing a different variety of rose. It includes newly released roses and traditional favourites. The design is geometric with colonnades on three sides, creating a striking contrast to the backdrop of bush and sloping lawns.
Botanic Garden Café
Picnic café is in the Lady Norwood Rose Garden.
| Phone: | (04) 472 6002 |
| Website: | www.picniccafe.co.nz |
Refreshments, snacks and meals are also available at The Skyline café at the top of the Cable Car - phone (04) 475 8727, or at the restaurants and cafés in nearby Tinakori Road.
Children's Play Area
Minutes from the Treehouse Visitor Centre, the children’s play area is a perennial favourite with generations of Wellingtonians. It is particularly popular with families and school groups.
There are double slides, a rocktopus, flying fox and more. There are also picnic tables, toilets and an enclosed play area for small children.
Duck Pond
The fenced-off pond, with seating, is in the Main Garden.
Glow-Worms
There are glow-worms in the Main Garden, from the Duck Pond up to Glen Road alongside Pukatea Stream.
They can only be seen at night; the best time to spot them is in spring, after rain.
Guided glow-worm tours are available at various times throughout the year. Check the events calendar for details.
Botanic Garden - Events Calendar
Art Work
There are many sculptures and carvings in the gardens. Artists featured include Henry Moore, Andrew Drummond and Chris Booth.
There are also several unique fountains and sundials gifted from other countries.
Innovation Garden
The Innovation Garden is a horticultural ‘installation space’ where new works are produced annually. It profiles creative designs by local gardeners, landscape architects and artists.
To submit a design, contact the Treehouse Visitor Centre (details below).
Peace Garden
The Peace Flame
The Peace Garden's flame comes from fire created by the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima at the end of World War II.
The flame was presented by the people of Japan to New Zealand in recognition of our efforts to halt the spread of atomic weapons.
Joy Fountain
The Joy Fountain
This popular fountain is located in the Main Garden along William Bramley Drive, near the Glenmore Street entrance.
Carter Observatory
The Carter Observatory has astronomy displays which provide a window into the night sky.
There is also a planetarium, shop and audiovisual displays.
The Carter Observatory is currently closed for refurbishment.
More Information
| Treehouse Visitor Centre | |
| Phone: | (04) 499 1400 |
| Fax: | (04) 499 1903 |
| Email: | treehouse |
Related Links
Department Details:
Parks and Gardens
