Harry P. Leu Gardens, a 50-acre historic estate and botanical garden in downtown Orlando, is a kaleidoscope of colors throughout the year. Stroll the walkways that wind through butterfly, herb and rose gardens, past dozens of species of azalea, bamboo and banana plants, showcasing a prized Camellia collection that has more than 2,000 plants and is considered one of the best in the U.S. The gardens also include a number of whimsical sculptures, a native wetlands garden and nearly 400 species of palms.
Parking at Leu Gardens
Ample free parking is available.
Best and worst time to go to Leu Gardens
Although the park is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., visit in early morning to avoid Florida's afternoon heat and thunderstorms, especially from spring to early fall. The gardens have free admission on the first Monday of each month, with added bonuses on those days including a sidewalk cafe on the patio and a popsicle stand in the gardens. The gardens are closed only on Christmas Day, although the Leu House Museum is typically closed each July for restorations.
Admission to Leu Gardens
Park admission is $10-$12, with students in grades K-12 admitted for a nominal fee and children 4 and under free. Discounted rates are available for larger groups.
Must see/do at Leu Gardens
Don't miss the guided tours of the Leu House Museum, a restored 19th-century home overlooking Lake Rowena that shows what life was like in Central Florida at the turn of the century. The tours, which start on the hour and half hour beginning at 10 a.m., last about 25 minutes and are complimentary with admission. The last tour starts at 3:30 p.m. On your walk through the gardens, make sure to visit the Citrus Grove, which showcases Central Florida's roots with more than 50 types of citrus trees. Numerous other varieties of tropical and subtropical fruit trees dot the gardens, including avocado, guava, mango, papaya, pear, pineapple and star fruit.
Other places to visit near Leu Gardens
For a romantic dining experience after your visit to the gardens, try Santiago's Bodega, a laid-back tapas-style restaurant and bar with soups, salads, desserts and more than 30 small plates, or the Funky Monkey Wine Company on North Mills Avenue, where you can enjoy an extensive wine list, sushi and American cuisine with an Asian flair. Both are within 1.5 miles of Leu Gardens.
Insider tip for visitors to Leu Gardens
For a romantic night out, surprise your significant other with Date Night at Leu Gardens. Held on the first Friday of each month from February to December, the event includes discounted admission to the garden at 6 p.m., followed by a free movie for which you can bring a lawn chair or blanket. Popcorn and other food items are available for purchase, or pack your own picnic basket with wine, cheese and fruit.
Author's bio: Kevin Adams is a freelance writer who has lived in Orlando for more than a decade and has had travel articles appear on USAToday.com and in Golfweek magazine.
A short drive from downtown Asheville, the North Carolina Arboretum is a 434-acre natural protected environment featuring 65 acres of cultivated gardens for all ages to enjoy. The Arboretum offers miles of self-guided walking, hiking, and biking trails with a variety of difficulty levels as well as educational programming and exhibits throughout the year. Guided walking trails are available April through November.
Parking and public transportation at the North Carolina Arboretum
Parking at the North Carolina Arboretum is $14 for personal vehicles, $50 for commercial vehicles, and $100 for busses or motor-coaches. The Arboretum's Education Center, exhibit center and gardens are wheelchair accessible. Annual membership passes are available.
Best and worst time to go to the North Carolina Arboretum
The North Carolina Arboretum features plants in bloom year round. Because many of the exhibits are outdoors, the best time to visit are during the spring, summer and fall months. However, during rainy days, the Arboretum offers educational opportunities inside.
Admission to the North Carolina Arboretum
Aside from parking, there is no admission fee to the North Carolina Arboretum.
Must see/do at the North Carolina Arboretum
The Arboretum features the Bonsai Exhibition Garden, which opened in 2005 and includes more than 100 diverse bonsai trees from around the world. Due to weather conditions, the Bonsai Exhibition Garden is open from mid-March through mid-November. Other popular exhibits include the quilt garden, native azalea garden, and a winter outdoor lighting exhibit.
Other places to visit near the North Carolina Arboretum
The Arboretum is located at the entrance of the Blue Ridge Parkway off of Highway 191 in South Asheville. Visitors can travel north or south on the Parkway to see amazing views of the Southern Appalachia. Guests are also encouraged to visit the Asheville Outlet Mall on Highway 191, near Interstate I-26.
Insider tip for visitors to the North Carolina Arboretum
The North Carolina Arboretum hosts many national exhibits throughout the year that encompass art, history, science and culture. Many are indoors and can be enjoyed year-round. Visit their website at ncarboretum.org for a list of current exhibits.
Author's bio: Carolyn B. Fraiser is a freelance journalist, photographer, and publications specialist in Asheville, North Carolina. Follow her on Twitter @carolynbfraiser.
The Denver Botanic Gardens, located in the Cheesman Park neighborhood of Denver, features North America's largest collection of plants from cold temperate climates around the world. It is known for it's beautiful plants as well as fun activities like touring exhibitions from visual artists like Dale Chihuly, a summer concerts series and Christmas lights in the winter.
Parking and public transportation
The Denver Botanic Gardens has both an above and below ground parking garage as well as street parking in the very safe and secure surrounding neighborhoods of Cheesman Park and Congress Park.
Best and worst time to go to Denver Botanic Gardens
While the Gardens to have a greenhouse and several indoor attractions, most of the viewing is done outside. Visit the park in the spring or summer where the plants are blooming and the weather is nice. While holiday lights are available towards the end of the year, winter is not an ideal time to visit.
Admission
Admission is free to members and children under 2. Discounts are given to seniors, military and students. For a full list of pricing as well as membership information, visit http://www.botanicgardens.org/.
Must see/do at Denver Botanic Gardens
Seeing a concert at the gardens is a truly memorable experience and one of the most comfortable and beautiful settings you can see one in. The genre's of music are vast and family friendly. Check out the full lineup here: http://concerts.botanicgardens.org/
Other places to visit near Denver Botanic Gardens
Cheeseman Park, located to the West of the Gardens is one of Denver's best kept parks and, as legend has it, very haunted. Board a Banjo Billy's Bus Tour and have them tell you all about the spirits that roam the area.
Insider tip for visitors to Denver Botanic Gardens
A Denver B-Cycle Station is listed right outside of the gardens and is a convenient and fun way to get there. Also, if you have children, be sure to visit the Kid's Area located across the Gardens on York Street.
Author's bio: Andy Thomas is a Colorado native. He is a journalist and touring musician. He has most likely slept on a floor in your hometown.
If you appreciate flowers, plants, trees, and their relationship with the environment, consider visiting the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden. This is a 127-acre space with fountains, lagoons, strolling peacocks, and peaceful trails that will fill your senses with color and aromas.
Must see and do at the Arboretum
Queen Anne Cottage – This Victorian style house that was built in 1885 by Elias Jackson Baldwin can be toured on Fridays and Saturdays. Other than its architecture, this house is famous for being in the opening credits of the TV show "Fantasy Island" and for the everlasting rumors that it may be haunted.
Hugo Reid Adobe – The original adobe was built in 1840 using the labor of Native Americans that had lived in the area for many years prior. It was reconstructed in the mid-1900s using their original techniques. You can learn about its history, and of the Tongva Indians, by walking about the structure.
The gardens – They are organized geographically so that you will appreciate the differences between the flora from the Mediterranean, for example, to that of the Americas, Africa, Australia, and more.
Best and worse time to go to the Arboretum
Admission is free on the third Tuesday of the month. However, there are no tram tours on that day.
You may want to catch a lecture, a workshop, or a music concert. There are many listed on the park's calendar at Arboretum.org. On the flip side, if you are not interested in a concert, plan your visit on a different day. They fill up the parking lots to capacity and what is usually free becomes pricey.
Admission to the Arboretum
Admission is under $10. You can pay with cash or with credit card. Some workshops and lectures may have an additional cost.
The Arboretum is located in the City of Arcadia, about 30 minutes northeast of downtown LA. There is public transportation available. You can plan your visit on metro.net.
Wildlife at the Arboretum
Hundreds of peacocks live at the Arboretum. Take some time to admire them as they walk freely throughout the park. They are unafraid of humans because Arcadia has been their home since the late 1800s. You will be amused.
Insider tip of the Arboretum
Wear comfortable shoes as you will do a lot of walking. California's sun is often bright so a hat and sun glasses may be useful.
From June through September the Pasadena Symphony and Pops holds its season at the Arboretum. It is a fabulous way to enjoy a classical music concert under the stars of a balmy California evening. See if your visit matches one of their dates at PasadenaSymphony-pops.org.
Author's Bio: Dena Burroughs has lived in Los Angeles for almost 30 years. She loves palm trees, peacocks, and dancing Salsa. VidaSalsera.com is her own website.
With more than 2,000 animals representing more than 350 species, Riverbanks Zoo and Garden in Columbia, South Carolina -- named for its setting along the Saluda River -- is one of the Palmetto State's top attractions, surpassing 1 million visitors annually. Chosen multiple times by TripAdvisor as one of the nation's best 10 zoos, Riverbanks is home to species such as African elephants, giraffes, gorillas, African lions, Siberian tigers and zebras. The zoo also boasts a renowned 70-acre botanical garden that is an attraction unto itself.
Best and worst time to go to Riverbanks Zoo
Open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, with slightly later hours on spring and summer weekends. The weather in spring (April and May) and fall (late September to early November) is the most pleasant, with colorful blooms bursting forth in spring and brilliant red, orange and yellow hues accompanying the cool, crisp days of late fall. Columbia is notorious for its sweltering summers, so avoid afternoons from mid-June to August, when the animals are also trying to stay cool and may be less active.
Must see/do at Riverbanks Zoo
Be sure to tour the zoo's 20,000-square-foot Aquarium Reptile Complex, divided into a quartet of galleries -- Desert, Tropics, Ocean and South Carolina -- representing the habitats of amphibians, fish, invertebrates and reptiles. Riverbanks' Australian Animals exhibit transports you Down Under on a walkabout filled with lorikeets, koalas, red kangaroos, wallabies and Aussie reptiles. Also save time for a trip through the adjacent botanical gardens, separated into several themed gardens and boasting more than 4,200 species of native and exotic plants. From the gardens, you can access the Woodland Walk, a half-mile scenic trail that winds along river shoals and past the ruins of a 19th-century mill.
Admission to Riverbanks Zoo
Tickets are $14 to $17 for adults and include membership to the zoo and botanical garden, with slight discounts for purchasing online or for military, senior citizens and children ages 2-12. Children under 2 are admitted free. A number of attractions -- such as animal feedings, pony rides, rock climbing, a carousel, the Spots & Stripes children's train and a vertical ropes challenge -- have extra costs ranging from $2 to $7, or you can purchase an unlimited rides and attractions wristband for about $20. Another extra: Zip the Zoo, zip-line canopy tours over the animal attractions and the river that cost $55 to $80. Annual zoo memberships provide discounted year-round admission for individuals or families.
Parking at Riverbanks Zoo
The zoo and botanical gardens have separate parking lots. On busy weekend days, spaces in the main zoo lot can fill up by mid-morning, so plan to arrive early. An overflow parking lot is available on nearby Rivermont Drive. Or you can park in the garden lot and start your visit there. A complimentary tram runs every 10 to 15 minutes between the garden's amphitheater and the Saluda River footbridge that leads to the zoo.
Public Transportation to Riverbanks Zoo
The COMET, Columbia's public transportation system, has a daily route -- 34B Bush River Road/Saint Andrews -- that stops once per hour at the corner of Greystone Boulevard and Stoneridge Drive, a half-mile north of Riverbanks and about a 10-minute walk down Greystone to the zoo entrance. Visit catchthecomet.org to view connecting routes and times from various sections of the city.
Food at Riverbanks Zoo
The zoo has two year-round restaurants with expansive menus. Ndoki Pizza features stone-fired pizza, fresh-salads and artisan sandwiches, while Tuskers -- adjacent to the Aquarium Reptile Complex -- offers salads, chicken tenders, burgers, sandwiches and pizza, plus Starbucks coffee and other drinks. For a real Southern treat, sample the fried pickles at Solo's Market. Several other stops, open seasonally from spring to fall, offer ice-cream and other snacks such as popcorn, cotton candy and pretzels.
Insider tip for visitors to Riverbanks Zoo
If you're in town for the holidays, bundle up and check out the zoo's Lights Before Christmas, held most evenings from mid-November through December. The event includes nearly 1 million lights, animated images, choreographed music-and-lights displays, a nightly bonfire, visits with Santa, hot chocolate and other holiday fare.
Author's bio: Kevin Adams is a freelance writer who is a South Carolina native and has had travel articles appear on USAToday.com and in Golfweek magazine.
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden is a beautiful oasis in Richmond boasting over 50 acres of meticulously cultivated land. The gardens are maintained year round and contain thousands of plant varieties from around the globe, and they are home to the only classically domed conservatory on the East Coast. Visitors can expect to find seasonal attractions throughout the year, with one of the most popular being the GardenFest of Lights, a spectacular walk-through light show during the holiday season. In addition to the gardens, Lewis Ginter offers a library, garden shop, and two dining options, although their Robins Tea House is only open seasonally.
How to get to Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens
The entrance to the gardens is on Lakeside Avenue near the corner of Lakeside and Hilliard. It is easy to spot, and generous parking is available. There is separate parking for buses, and it is well marked and easy to find. From the parking lots, one building entrance leads to the garden shop and another to the main hall closer to the dining area, but everything is connected so it's easy to find your way inside. Tickets to access the gardens are sold at the desks in the main hall.
Best and worst times to visit Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens
Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens is open daily with the exception of Thanksgiving Day and December 24th and 25th. However, the gardens tend to be busier on weekends, so it is best to plan to visit during the week. GardenFest of Lights begins on Black Friday and extends through January, and it is busiest closest to Christmas. The best times to see the lights are just after sunset in early December and during the week after Christmas. Check ahead during special events, as some evenings are reserved for garden members only. Robins Tea House and The Garden Cafe have separate hours from the gardens, and it is recommended that you check the website or call ahead for their hours.
Admission to Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens
Members are admitted to the gardens for free, but for non members, access to the gardens is $12 for adults, $11 for seniors, $8 for children aged 3-12, and free for children under 3. Group rates are available, but you must call for details and pricing. The Robins Tea House, education center, and library are located inside the gardens, so paid admission to the gardens or a membership is necessary to access them. Reservations are recommended for dining at the Tea House. Admission is not required to access the Garden Shop or Garden Cafe.
Must-sees at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden
The conservatory is lush with tropical greenery, exotic orchids, and a wide variety of desert plants, as well as a fairy garden and seasonal exhibitions such as live interactive butterfly exhibits. The GardenFest of Lights is stunning, and includes model trains and mini villages built entirely from botanical materials. Additionally, the children's garden is exceptional and includes a handicap accessible tree house from which the entire garden and lake are visible.
Other places to visit near Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens
The gardens are only a short drive from downtown Richmond, and the Lakeside district is a charming residential area where you'll find antique and consignment shops, a unique pet store called Fin and Feather, and the seasonal Lakeside Farmers Market that operates from May through October. The gardens are also part of the Richmond Garden Trail, which includes 8 stunning gardens within 10 miles of one another.
Insider tip for visiting
The best spot for great photos is the Japanese garden outside of Robins Tea House. There is a little stream with a charming wooden bridge that makes a great backdrop for portraits, and that same path leads through an incredible circular gateway which looks fantastic in pictures. It's one of the most iconic settings in Lewis Ginter.
Author's bio: Kitty Lusby is an author and blogger from the Richmond area. She believes that travel is absolutely necessary and encourages exploration both abroad and in your own backyard.
Woodland Park Zoo has been hailed as one of the finest zoos in the world for its award-winning exhibits. The zoo is home to more than 1,000 animals, representing 300 species from across the globe, from tiny insects to the largest land mammal on earth, the African elephant. This cherished Seattle landmark, enjoyed by visitors of all ages, is best known for creating revolutionary naturalistic exhibits which mimic the natural habitats each animal is from, ultimately changing the face of zoos worldwide.
Best and worst time to go to Woodland Park Zoo
If you want to enjoy the animals when they're at their most active, and crowds are few, go to the zoo on a cloudy weekday morning when school is in session, from about mid-October to mid-April. If you have kids that are in school and can't make it then, your next best choice is a Sunday morning during NFL season when many families are busy watching the game. The worst time to go is in the middle of the day during the months of June, July and August, whether it's the weekend or a weekday. Not only do the animals tend to be more lethargic due to the heat, this is when the zoo packs in the biggest crowds.
Must see/do at Woodland Park Zoo
The Humboldt Penguins are a favorite with many visitors, especially when they're active. Look through the glass viewing window, and you might just get a close up look to see a penguin peering right back at you. The African Savanna exhibit, the first of its kind when it opened in 1980, is also a must-visit with the chance to see animals like zebras, hippos, lions, tigers, meerkats, gorillas and giraffe. If you time your visit right, you can even feed the giraffes while standing atop a raised platform from 10 to 11 a.m. and 3 to 4 p.m. daily, except Tuesdays. The Australasia section, just a short stroll away, is another must, home to wallaby, snow leopards, emus and kookaburras, as well as the Willawong Station. In this enclosed area, birds like parrots, cockatiels and parakeets fly free, and visitors can feed the birds buy purchasing a wooden stick with food on it.
Parking at Woodland Park Zoo
The zoo offers parking in five lots, with pay-for-parking kiosks in each lot. Arrive early as they fill up quickly, especially during the summer months. If you don't find a spot, you'll need to look for street parking in the surrounding neighborhood.
Food at Woodland Park Zoo
Concession stands can be found throughout the zoo, serving everything from popcorn to ice cream and pizza. The Rain Forest Food Pavilion is great for families, with a variety of dishes sure to please everyone, including kids' meals and even options for the health conscious like burgers made from hormone-free, grass-fed, free-roaming cattle. Seafood lovers will want to head to the Pacific Blue Chowder House, offering meals that include items like wild-caught shrimp and salmon.
Insider Tip for Visitors to Woodland Park Zoo
Before you go, be sure to check the "Today at the Zoo" section on the official zoo website. Here you can find out about special daily activities and specific schedules that can help you make the most out of your day at the zoo, including zookeeper talks, feeding experiences and more.
K.C. Dermody is a travel writer living in the Seattle area with hundreds of travel articles both online and in print. She has traveled the world and is the author of 'Best Travel Guide for First Time Visitors to Ireland,' but especially loves showing off the beautiful region she resides in.
A drive inland from Stamford brings you to private park with history. The Bartlett Arboretum offers great diversity of flora and fauna and even a spooky cemetery. There are organized events that take advantage of arts and crafts, plant sales, guided tours of the trails, fall foliage walks and children's events; this is a great place to get away. Private group tours also available. Dog-walking is allowed, but dogs must be leashed at all times and owner must pick up after the dog.
The Butterfly Place is large-scale aviary, housing more than 40 varieties of the brightly colored fluttering specimen. In an open-space greenhouse, visitors can observe these creatures in their element, with caterpillars walking about the flora and chrysalises adorning branches and stems.
