Explore 64 hectares of beautiful gardens at Auckland Botanic Gardens with a huge variety of trees, plants & flowers and is only 20 minutes from the city or Airport. Auckland Botanic. Take a tour of Auckland Botanic Gardens and explore the spectacular green space in Auckland. Gardens are open every day of the year and entry is free.
Visitor Information:
📍 102 Hill Road, The Gardens, Auckland 2105, New Zealand
🌐 https://www.aucklandbotanicgardens.co.nz/
☎ (09) 267 1457
📧 botanic.gardens@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz
Opening hours:
The Visitor Centre and Cafe Miko are both closed on Christmas Day the gardens remain open to visitors.
Auckland Botanic Gardens – Winter Opening Hours
| Winter Hours (April to September) | The Gardens are open daily from 8:00am – 6:00pm |
| Visitor Centre Huakaiwaka | Open from8:00am – 4:30pm |
| Cafe Miko | Cafe Miko is open weekdays from 8:00am – 3:30pm weekends from 8:00am- 4:00pm |
Auckland Botanic Gardens – Summer Opening Hours
| Summer hours (October to March) | The Gardens are open daily from 8:00am – 8:00pm |
| Visitor Centre Huakaiwaka | Open weekdays from 8:00am – 4:30pm |
| Cafe Miko | Open daily from 8:00am – 4:00pm |
Accessibility
Parking
Auckland Botanic Gardens has eight designated car parks located within the main car park. There are accessible car parks closest to Huakiawaka visitor centre. There is also a drop-off area outside Huakaiwaka.
Wheelchairs & Mobility Scooters
Auckland Botanic Gardens welcome to use your personal wheelchair or mobility scooter within the Gardens.
Huakaiwaka has two manual wheelchairs and three mobility scooters available during centre opening hours. There is no charge to borrow a wheelchair or scooter. Bookings are recommended for weekends or during summer.
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Travel:
- 15 – 20 minutes to Auckland International Airport
- 20 -25 minutes to Auckland CBD
About Auckland Botanic Gardens:
The Auckland Botanic Gardens is located on Hill Road, Manurewa, covering 64 hectares of land, including 10 hectares of native forest. Auckland Botanic Gardens first opened to the public in 1982. The Gardens attracts over 950,000 visitors each year and is a member of the New Zealand Gardens Trust.
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Plenty to do and see…
There are a variety of great displays at Auckland Botanic Gardens, from the Potter’s children’s garden to the African Plants garden, Gondwana Arboretum, Edible garden, Podocarp Valley, Native Forest to name a few. The gardens are very well laid out and maintained. You will also discover interesting sculptures dotted around. The cafe is open daily from 8:00amm until 4:00pm.
The team at Auckland Botanic Gardens are very knowledgeable about plants and are passionate about connecting visitors to plants and gardens. As horticultural experts, their role is to help people engage with plants and gardens and to highlight their importance in everyday life.
Huakaiwaka Visitor Centre
Opened in April 2005, the name Huakaiwaka was bestowed on the visitor centre by local Tangata Whenua – named for the ancestor of the Te Waiohua people.
Huakaiwaka features the integration of artworks and landscaping in its overall design. The entrance, with its vast wall of stone on one side and concrete on the other, is over a wide bridge spanning a water feature. It’s here that visitors are welcomed by Manu Torino, a sculpture by artist Fred Graham and engineer Rex Erikson depicting a flock of terns taking flight. Manu (bird) resonates in the local names of Manurewa and Manukau, and are welcome creatures in a garden. Inspired by nature, architects designed tree-like columns to support the ‘butterfly’ roof floating above the spacious atrium.
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The gardens surrounding Huakaiwaka have a South Pacific theme. Lush native and tropical plants give the feeling of a tropical climate. When visitors arrive they will recognise the importance of the native Nikau Palm and its influence on the design of the building.
An avenue of Metrosideros ‘Vibrance’ (pohutukawa) flank the path leading from Huakaiwaka to the plant collections. This particular pohutakawa has been chosen for its upright narrow form and an amazingly heavy flower-set each December.
In 2005, Huakaiwaka was awarded a Creative Places Award for Best Built Environment and won the Commercial and Industrial Building category award at the NZ Institute of Architects Resene Local Awards for Architecture.
The Friends Library
The library opened in 1992, funded by the Friends of the Auckland Botanic Gardens. The library’s information and resources assist Garden’s staff in the development of the plant collections. The 2013 foyer renovation was funded by the Friends of the Auckland Botanic Gardens. The library is run by a group of passionate volunteers and has 4500 books on our shelves, the library has one of the largest selections of horticultural books in the country.
They are open to the public 11:00am-3:00pm and usually on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday – or by appointment, phone. The Friends Library at Auckland Botanic Gardens has a reading room full of the latest home and gardening magazines for your reading pleasure. The reading room is open daily.
