Botanic Gardens of Belfast

Belfast, United Kingdom

The Botanic Gardens of Belfast opened in 1828 as the private Royal Belfast Botanical Gardens. It continued as a private park for many years, only opening to members of the public on Sundays prior to 1895. Then it became a public park in 1895 when the Belfast Corporation bought the gardens from the Belfast Botanical and Horticultural Society.

Occupying 28 acres (110,000 m2) of south Belfast, the gardens are popular with office workers, students and tourists. The gardens' most notable feature is the Palm House conservatory. It was completed in 1840. It is one of the earliest examples of a curvilinear cast iron glasshouses in the world. The Palm House consists of two wings, the cool wing and the tropical wing. Lanyon altered his original plans to increase the height of the latter wing's dome, allowing for much taller plants. In the past these have included an 11 metre tall globe spear lily. The lily, which is native to Australia, finally bloomed in 2005 after a 23-year wait. The Palm House also features a 400-year-old Xanthorrhoea.

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Founded: 1828
Category: Miscellaneous historic sites in United Kingdom

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4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Severine AIME (6 months ago)
The Botanic garden is a very well maintained public park. It is soothing??? there is a flowers everywhere outside and inside the magnificent palm house built if I m not mistaken in 1840 and still in great condition. Whether you are nervous, stressed, sporty, whether you simply want to go for a walk alone or with your lover or take your child for a walk... the Botanical Park soothes and satisfies everyone, it is a natural medicine to him alone. Thank you people who maintain it you do a great job ??.
Jason D (7 months ago)
It's difficult to articulate the vibe of these Gardens as a visitor to this city. On the one hand, they are meticulously maintained, even in the off season such that you can clearly sense how beautiful this place would look at full bloom. On the other hand, this park holds pragmatic functionality for this city - a field house on the one side, with a lovely green house on another, and the museum and ferris wheel on yet another serving to attract locals and tourists alike, for many different reasons. Certainly worth visiting, no matter the season. - one of the better free admission city gardens I've visited.
Craig Smith (8 months ago)
Botanic Gardens in Belfast are a free to visit public facility and attraction consisting of the outdoor gardens, original palm glasshouse, rose garden and updated tropical ravine house. At the time of my visit there was also a ferris wheel offering great aerial views but it wasn't open. The original glasshouse contains many tropical plants over two separate rooms. It's easy to walk around. It's made of cast iron and glass with a central dome and looks impressive from the outside although it appears a bit tired and in need of a bit of maintenance this is to be expected given the age. The plants inside are lovely. The tropical ravine is a modern building emulating tropical rainforest and doesn't take long to walk round. Again plants are interesting with some pretty specimens. Both the glasshouse and ravine buildings are humid and warm but not uncomfortable. I am not a fan of roses so didn't visit the rose garden but given the variety of plants and flowers in the rest of the gardens I am sure it's as lovely. Would recommend a visit if you are in Belfast. Additionally the Ulster Museum is in the grounds of the Botanic Gardens so you can visit two attractions in the one place.
Fazil Omer (8 months ago)
Belfast Botanic Garden is right next to Queen's University Belfast, and it's a great place to take a walk or just relax. The university's library and sports center are nearby, and so is the Ulster Museum. This big park has lots of paths, flowers, and benches, so you can sit down and enjoy the view. In the summer, you can even get ice cream or coffee from kiosks. Just be careful about the time, because the park closes early in the winter, usually around 4 PM. You can find the closing time posted near the entrance gates. Whether you're looking for a quiet place to sit or a beautiful spot for a long walk, Belfast Botanic Garden is the perfect place to go.
Tegan Leigh (9 months ago)
Beautiful gardens and greenhouses. Loved the way the path runs through. Very well maintained. Enjoyed looking for wild life including bees and squirrels. Great free activity. Also possible to enjoy some of it in the rain with the greenhouses offering some shelter.
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