Hamilton Gardens
I’ve been debating all morning whether or not I should still post this or put something up about the tumultuous events in the US. I don’t want to diminish anything that is happening in my home country right now, but I’m still processing and will put together something to post soon. So for today, it is yet another post about fun things we’re doing over the summer break! I’m amazed at the sheer number of different places to explore within a short drive of Auckland, and honestly, this is one of the things that we loved about the city. This week I took the kids south to Hamilton to explore the Hamilton Gardens. This free activity is a series of unique garden designs that highlight different ways of showcasing and conserving plants in the region.
The drive down SH1 is not particularly exciting, but the kids were thrilled to get to watch their iPads for the hour and forty five minutes it took us to get there. There are two parking lots, and we chose the more popular of the two at Gate 1. This put us right next to a large pond with some of the most spectacular water lilies ever, a Hispanic Culture plot, the cafe, the information center, and the entrance to the main gardens. The other option is to park next to the playground. If you’ve got young kids who need an immediate outlet, this might be the better option for you.
There are five large categories with several “rooms” of gardens to explore:
Paradise Collection, including the Indian Char Bagh Garden, Italian Renaissance Garden, Japanese Garden of Contemplation, Chinese Scholar’s Garden, English Flower Garden, and Modernist Garden.
Productive Collection, including the Te Parapara Garden, Sustainable Backyard, and Herb Garden
Fantasy Collection, including the Surrealist Garden, Picturesque Garden, Tudor Garden, Tropical Garden, Chinoiserie Garden, Concept Garden, and Mansfield Garden. This collection was our favorite by far!
Cultivar Collection, including the Rogers Rose Garden, Hammond Camellia Garden, Rhododendron Lawn, and Victorian Flower Garden
Landscape Collection, including the Bussaco Woodland, Valley Walk, Hamilton East Cemetery, and Echo Bank Bush
The different gardens meander and wind one into the other. Sometimes there are tunnels, archways, or plazas that separate one garden from the next. You could quickly walk through each garden in just a few minutes, or take your time exploring all of the plants and hidden treasures in each outdoor room. The whole thing feels very escapist and - especially when you get to the fantasy gardens - a bit like Alice falling down a rabbit hole. (Side note - keep a close eye on kids! It is very easy to lose them in the maze of gardens. Fortunately the staff is well coordinated on how to reunite kids and parents who have become separated which I unfortunately learned from personal experience…)
Around lunchtime we headed to the cafe for lunch. This place was packed! We ended up abandoning our first attempt at lunch because there was no way the kids were going to wait in the line. About a half hour later we returned to a much shorter line, and I was grateful that I had packed some snacks to tide us over. The food was typical New Zealand attraction food: sausage roles, French fries, sandwiches, and lots and lots of coffee options. Nothing particularly great, but nothing particularly horrible either. We were able to find some seats at a shared table despite how busy it was and received our food about twenty minutes after ordering.
After lunch we headed over to the playground, and it was a standout of the trip! There were lots of big trees to shade the play scapes and many different options of things to choose from including a huge performance stage. It is aimed at a younger crowd - my 7 year old was not quite to big for things - but my 5 year old adored it, especially the hidden miniature kids’ playhouse that was hidden behind a tunnel in a tree. Truth be told, this hidden corner of the playground was the playhouse of dreams and my inner child swooned all over it.
The Hamilton Gardens were an awesome way to spend a day. In hindsight, I should’ve picked a less blazingly hot one to explore because by the end, we were hot sticky, and in need of ice cream - which was fortunately available at the cafe. If you need a place to escape for a day trip or happen to be in the Hamilton area, it is worth checking out!
