16 gardens, 2 free
Gardens to visit in South West England
Mild, wet weather lets subtropical plants thrive in Cornwall and on the Isles of Scilly, while Wiltshire and Gloucestershire are home to some of England's best known landscape and Arts and Crafts gardens.
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Paid entry
Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens
Abbotsbury, Dorset
A sheltered 30 acre garden close to Chesil Beach, begun in 1765 as a walled kitchen garden and now home to over 6,000 plant species, including camellias, magnolias and subtropical exotics.
Adults £15, children (5 to 15) £7.50, under 5s free; disabled visitors and carers half price
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Free entry Bath and North East Somerset Council
Bath Botanical Gardens
Bath, Somerset
A free botanical garden in the corner of Bath's Royal Victoria Park, known for plants grown on limestone, with a rock garden and pool, herbaceous border, old roses and the Great Dell woodland garden.
Free
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Paid entry National Trust
Cotehele
St Dominick, Cornwall
The Edgcumbe family's Tudor house above the River Tamar, with formal terraces, a Valley Garden with a medieval dovecote and stewpond, old orchards and a free estate leading down to a historic quay.
House and garden: adults £19.80, children (5 to 17) £9.90, family £49.50 with Gift Aid; £18, £9 and £45 without (until 1 November 2026). Christmas and garden from 2 November: adults £12.10 with Gift Aid. Estate and quay free; parking from £1.50 for non members
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Paid entry Eden Project
Eden Project
St Austell, Cornwall
Two huge covered Biomes set in a reclaimed Cornish china clay pit, holding rainforest and Mediterranean plants, surrounded by outdoor gardens of crops and temperate planting.
Adults £39.50 on the door or £35.50 online; students £35.50 on the door; children (5 to 15) £15 on the door or £12.50 online; under 5s free (2026)
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Paid entry National Trust
Glendurgan Garden
Mawnan Smith, Cornwall
A sheltered Cornish valley garden made by the Quaker Fox family, famous for its 1833 cherry laurel maze and a path down to the hamlet and beach at Durgan on the Helford River.
Adults £15.40, children (5 to 17) £7.70, family £38.50 with Gift Aid; £14, £7 and £35 without; under 5s free (2026)
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Paid entry National Trust
Hidcote
Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire
An Arts and Crafts garden in the north Cotswolds, made by Lawrence Johnston from 1907 as a series of hedged outdoor rooms, each with its own planting and character.
Adults £22, children (5 to 17) £11, family £55 with Gift Aid; £20, £10 and £50 without (14 March to 1 November 2026). Winter prices are lower: adults £13.20 with Gift Aid from 2 November
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Paid entry Cartwright-Hignett family
Iford Manor Gardens
Bradford on Avon, Wiltshire
Harold Peto's own Italian style garden, made between 1899 and 1933 on a steep slope of the Frome valley, with terraces, colonnades, cypresses, statuary and a cloister. Open April to September.
Paid entry, see website for current prices (2027 prices to be announced in early 2027)
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Free entry Cornwall Council and Plymouth City Council
Mount Edgcumbe Formal Gardens
Cremyll, Cornwall
Free 18th and 19th century formal gardens in Italian, French and English styles at the Cremyll end of Mount Edgcumbe Country Park, looking across Plymouth Sound, with later New Zealand and American gardens.
Free entry to the country park and formal gardens; house and Earl's Garden paid (adults £14 in 2026); pay and display parking
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Paid entry Royal Horticultural Society
RHS Garden Rosemoor
Great Torrington, Devon
The Royal Horticultural Society's Devon garden, set in the Torridge valley, with rose gardens, an arboretum, fruit and vegetable gardens and wide woodland surroundings.
Adults £17.40 on the day or from £13.60 booked online; children (5 to 16) £6; under 5s free; car free visitors £12.20
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Paid entry National Trust
Stourhead
Mere, Wiltshire
An 18th century landscape garden where a circuit walk around a lake reveals classical temples, a grotto and a Palladian bridge, set within a large Wiltshire estate.
Adults £25.30, children (5 to 17) £12.70, family £63.30 with Gift Aid; £23, £11.50 and £57.50 without; under 5s free. Parking £4.50 for non members; wider estate free
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Paid entry Heligan (privately run, leased from the Tremayne family)
The Lost Gardens of Heligan
Mevagissey, Cornwall
A Cornish estate garden lost after the First World War and brought back to life in the 1990s, with working kitchen gardens, a subtropical Jungle valley and woodland walks.
Paid entry, see website for current prices; children (5 to 17) £10, students £15.70, under 5s free
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Paid entry Trebah Garden Trust (registered charity)
Trebah Garden
Mawnan Smith, Cornwall
A steep subtropical valley garden near Falmouth that drops 26 acres through gunnera, bamboo and rhododendrons to its own beach on the Helford River. Dogs on leads are welcome.
Adults £19.25, children (5 to 15) £9.65 with Gift Aid; £17.50 and £8.75 without; under 5s free (1 March 2026 to 28 February 2027)
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Paid entry National Trust
Trelissick
Feock, Cornwall
A National Trust house and garden on a peninsula above the River Fal, with lawns, borders, exotic planting, an orchard and miles of dog friendly woodland and parkland walks.
Adults £19.80, children (5 to 17) £9.90, family £49.50 with Gift Aid; £18, £9 and £45 without; under 5s free. Parking £6 for non members
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Paid entry Tresco Estate (Dorrien-Smith family)
Tresco Abbey Garden
Tresco, Isles of Scilly
A walled island garden on Tresco, begun in 1834, where thousands of exotic plants from the southern hemisphere grow outdoors around the ruins of a medieval priory.
Adults £18, concessions £17, under 16s £5, under 5s free, family £40, weekly ticket £25; free for Tresco overnight guests
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Paid entry University of Bristol
University of Bristol Botanic Garden
Bristol, Bristol
The university's botanic garden in Stoke Bishop, with collections on plant evolution, Mediterranean climates, useful plants and rare local natives, plus glasshouses with orchids, cacti and giant water lilies.
Weekends £9 per adult (£9.90 with Gift Aid); weekdays and bank holidays pay what you can in 2026 (from £0); under 18s and students free
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Paid entry Forestry England
Westonbirt, The National Arboretum
Tetbury, Gloucestershire
A Victorian arboretum near Tetbury with around 15,000 trees and shrubs across 600 acres, best known for its autumn colour, Japanese maples and treetop walkway. Dogs are welcome in Silk Wood.
Peak autumn (25 September to 15 November 2026): adults £19 weekdays, £22 weekends; children (5 to 18) £5; under 5s free. From 16 November: adults £14 weekdays, £19 weekends
Prices and entry in South West England
A side by side summary. Prices and opening times change, so follow the link to each guide for details and sources.
| Garden | County | Entry | Price | Run by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens | Dorset | Paid entry | Adults £15, children (5 to 15) £7.50, under 5s free; disabled visitors and carers half price | Not stated |
| Bath Botanical Gardens | Somerset | Free entry | Free | Bath and North East Somerset Council |
| Cotehele | Cornwall | Paid entry | House and garden: adults £19.80, children (5 to 17) £9.90, family £49.50 with Gift Aid; £18, £9 and £45 without (until 1 November 2026). Christmas and garden from 2 November: adults £12.10 with Gift Aid. Estate and quay free; parking from £1.50 for non members | National Trust |
| Eden Project | Cornwall | Paid entry | Adults £39.50 on the door or £35.50 online; students £35.50 on the door; children (5 to 15) £15 on the door or £12.50 online; under 5s free (2026) | Eden Project |
| Glendurgan Garden | Cornwall | Paid entry | Adults £15.40, children (5 to 17) £7.70, family £38.50 with Gift Aid; £14, £7 and £35 without; under 5s free (2026) | National Trust |
| Hidcote | Gloucestershire | Paid entry | Adults £22, children (5 to 17) £11, family £55 with Gift Aid; £20, £10 and £50 without (14 March to 1 November 2026). Winter prices are lower: adults £13.20 with Gift Aid from 2 November | National Trust |
| Iford Manor Gardens | Wiltshire | Paid entry | Paid entry, see website for current prices (2027 prices to be announced in early 2027) | Cartwright-Hignett family |
| Mount Edgcumbe Formal Gardens | Cornwall | Free entry | Free entry to the country park and formal gardens; house and Earl's Garden paid (adults £14 in 2026); pay and display parking | Cornwall Council and Plymouth City Council |
| RHS Garden Rosemoor | Devon | Paid entry | Adults £17.40 on the day or from £13.60 booked online; children (5 to 16) £6; under 5s free; car free visitors £12.20 | Royal Horticultural Society |
| Stourhead | Wiltshire | Paid entry | Adults £25.30, children (5 to 17) £12.70, family £63.30 with Gift Aid; £23, £11.50 and £57.50 without; under 5s free. Parking £4.50 for non members; wider estate free | National Trust |
| The Lost Gardens of Heligan | Cornwall | Paid entry | Paid entry, see website for current prices; children (5 to 17) £10, students £15.70, under 5s free | Heligan (privately run, leased from the Tremayne family) |
| Trebah Garden | Cornwall | Paid entry | Adults £19.25, children (5 to 15) £9.65 with Gift Aid; £17.50 and £8.75 without; under 5s free (1 March 2026 to 28 February 2027) | Trebah Garden Trust (registered charity) |
| Trelissick | Cornwall | Paid entry | Adults £19.80, children (5 to 17) £9.90, family £49.50 with Gift Aid; £18, £9 and £45 without; under 5s free. Parking £6 for non members | National Trust |
| Tresco Abbey Garden | Isles of Scilly | Paid entry | Adults £18, concessions £17, under 16s £5, under 5s free, family £40, weekly ticket £25; free for Tresco overnight guests | Tresco Estate (Dorrien-Smith family) |
| University of Bristol Botanic Garden | Bristol | Paid entry | Weekends £9 per adult (£9.90 with Gift Aid); weekdays and bank holidays pay what you can in 2026 (from £0); under 18s and students free | University of Bristol |
| Westonbirt, The National Arboretum | Gloucestershire | Paid entry | Peak autumn (25 September to 15 November 2026): adults £19 weekdays, £22 weekends; children (5 to 18) £5; under 5s free. From 16 November: adults £14 weekdays, £19 weekends | Forestry England |