Van Dusen Botanical Garden

My friend and I came here on the last weekend they still had the Christmas lights up, and it was super fun!
What a great way to use the garden during the winter. It’s dark so you can’t really tell that all the plants are dead, and the lights are so bright and shiny and fun that you really don’t care! We came on a damp evening, which also deterred some folks (double bonus!) We arrived around 5.15 and it was suuuper quiet — perfect for us!
There was lots to see and lots of wandering to be done, and we had fun trying to work out what different light sets were supposed to be. The barriers to direct people were a bit loose by this point, so there were a few times we weren’t really sure if we were supposed to be going down a path or not.
Because we were post-​Christmas there wasn’t a light show, but it was also approximately half price, so I was fine with that! By the time we left it had filled up quite a bit, but it was a great way to spend an hour and a half on a damp evening in January!

Van Dusen is a real treasure, one of the best botanical gardens I’ve ever been too. It’s quite an oasis in a busting city, and a great way to get away from all of the noise.
Van Dusen is quite large, so there lots of tucked-​away places that most people never walk to, not to mention the great restaurant, cheeky maze, and various ponds with turtles and fish.
During the winter, the Christmas lights are top notch.

Van Dusen is a place that’s perfect at any season. During winter there are lights, spring there are cherry blossoms and during summer there are flowers blossoming. Inside there’s a maze and individual art pieces. Parking is free which is great but it can get crowded during peak times.

One of my all time favourite places in Vancouver! Me and my girlfriend came here on our first date and this place broke the ice! Strolling around here makes a great romantic atmosphere, so I recommend anyone who doesn’t know where to take their date here!

I haven’t been to Van Dusen for ages but this year for my Christmas gift I asked to go to see the Festival of Lights. It was amazing and didn’t disappoint! I loved all of the light displays! Everything so beautiful. It was just unfortunate that it was so busy the day we went! I think it was that there weren’t that many dry evenings the week before so everyone chose to go during the last few days. Also, dress warmly! It was unbelievably cold when we went! Make sure you give yourself a few hours to visit the displays. There’s also food there if you want to snack. Another tip is to purchase your tickets online to avoid the lines. We had no idea that it was going to be that busy so ended up buying tickets on our phones at the gates to avoid the lines. I’d like to go during the summer to see everything when it’s blooming!

Le festival des lumières est un peu cher mais je dirais que ça vaut son prix! Il y avait un monde de fou, c’est très adapté pour les familles, joli, parfois un peu kitch mais c’est quand même l’émerveillement permanent!
Un bon conseil, prenez vos billets à l’avance pour cet événement!
Évidemment, le jardin était plongé dans le noir, ce qui fait qu’on l’apprécie différemment, mais justement avec une envie de savoir à quoi ça ressemble le jour. Ce lieu est bien adapté pour flâner le long des sentiers… Sentiment de paix malgré tout ce monde!
À refaire, au fil des saisons!

Beautiful light festival!!! Buy your tickets online if you can or be prepared to stay in line for about 15 minutes.

awesome night at the festival of lights, we came in a lil’ bit late, but wandering around the lake with xmas songs around, we had a great great night

Probably my favorite place in Vancouver. Their floral displays are stunning in the March through June period, and something is always growing and blooming year-​round, given how temperate Vancouver is. May is the very peak: the scented azalea path and blooming laburnums are just stunning, for both the nose and the eyes!
One of the realities of living in Vancouver is that if you’re not rich, you don’t have a big backyard garden. I like my apartment, but miss that sometimes, so Van Dusen is kind of the answer to my missing back yard, as it were. I have an annual pass and spend many a sunny weekend ambling about and watching the seasons change.
A familiar favorite.

Whether in the autumn or in the spring, it’s always a great time to go for a stroll through here! If you follow all of the trails, it can take you a good couple of hours to see it all and take it in! Personal favourites would have to be the Northern Hemisphere section’s bright orange trees in the fall and the assorted cherry trees in the spring! Christmas, although more expensive, is a completely different best altogether! Everything’s lit up and you can just smell that spirit in the air…
Watch out for the fire ant infestation near the Maze though…

Beautiful botanical gardens– lots to see! I love trees and there were some amazing varieties here. Tons of annuals, perennials and walking paths; you could easily spend a few hours at this place. I’d say it’s a great place for kids and groups too. So many nooks & crannies to take photos or if you prefer to take it all in, you’ll find benches scattered throughout.
Hungry? They have a lovely café (great coffee/​snacks there) and more formal restaurant on site.
Also loved the fact that they had plenty of free parking in attached lot. Admission for adults is $ 11 each which I thought was reasonable.

What a beautiful place to visit on a sunny day! I went when they had 20 different wood sculptures throughout the park. Another time, there was a «fashion» exhibition — a woman created dresses out of various leaves, sticks, etc. It was amazing! I took my boyfriend when the wood sculptures were displayed and he was a bit hesitant as he didn’t know what to expect but he ended up really enjoying it.
There are so many plants and flowers that you will need at least a couple hours here to walk through and soak it in. What I like is that it’s something that all ages can do. As a kid, I went here around Christmastime to see the lights. I don’t have much memory of it as it’s been at least 14 years. I saw photos from my friend’s visit this past Christmas and have decided that I must go this year!
There is also a little restaurant and café nearby to have lunch at afterwards. This is the perfect place to immerse yourself in nature and spend the day outdoors, regardless of the time of year.

One of my favorite attraction in Vancouver during my first visit. It was $ 11CAD admission and free parking. I would recommend at less 2 hours here. It’s beautiful! My favorite part was the maze. What’s not fun about getting lost and seeing if you’ll bump into your significant others. The maze is not difficult. My bf walked right through it twice without hitting too many dead end twice, but on the other hand, our friends took forever to find the way out so I guess it depends on your luck sometimes.
I really wanted to check out their waterfall; however, I think the drought dried it out so that was a pity. There were a lot to see, but due to time constraint we didn’t get to see everything and had to speed through it.
If I ever visit Vancity, I have to come back to see the whole place again.

Truly beautiful and wonderful to behold. There is a small fee to get in but it’s definitely worth every penny. For reference, this place totally obliterates the LA Arboretum for those from SoCal.
There is nearby Elizabeth Park and Stanley Park but if only have time to go to one I would definitely recommend going to Van Dusen.
There isn’t much more to say and a picture is worth a thousand words so just click through the photos!

This was my second time going to the Van Dusen gardens and botanical gardens like this never cease to amaze me.
First off, the place is huge. The size kind of reminds me of the botanical gardens in St. Louis, MO, USA. It’s really amazing. I didn’t get to spend as much time walking the gardens this last time I went as we were a little pressed for time but we did get to see and smell the fragrance garden with the scents of Calla lilies and roses and herbs. Nearby we walked through the rose garden which everything was in bloom and again the variety of smells that emanate from the different species of roses was amazing.
We passed some large sculptures in the grassy area near the roses which would actually be the perfect place to just relax on a blanket and read a book. Then we passed what looked like some sort of Asian pagoda type structure which seemed randomly placed but still just seemed to fit.
We made it back to the hedge maze which is awesome. It’s not super tall or very lengthy where you get scared that you’re lost in the depths but it’s still somewhat of a small challenge. I like that there is a monkey puzzle tree in the middle so that you know you’re almost to the end. I’d advise not to grab ahold of the tree too hard as it’s very sharp and can slice open your hand if you’re not too careful.
I don’t want to give too much away as you just have to go and see for yourself. There are several waterfalls and ponds and lily pads and such a variety of flora and fauna to see around the gardens. So, take your time as it’s well worth the price of admission.

This garden is HUGE! There are so many types of flowers and trees here that it’s pretty impossible to see all of the in one trip. I walked around here for about 2 hours, and I barely walked around the entire place. There’s a great combination of water, pieces of grass, flowers, and trees. I ran into a tourguide who just randomly started talking to me about the plant he was looking at, and that made the rest of my stay much more interesting! There’s this type of tree in the park that has both yellow and pink flowers, because someone crossed a tree with yellow flowers and a tree with pink flowers. Very cool! There’s also a piece of artwork done using oak tree branches and the Fibonacci sequence. Anyway, if you come here, I’d highly recommend going with a tourguide. It makes the visit much more interesting!

I have been here a couple of times. Once during the Christmas light thing, and another time during their «kids are free» promotion
During the off season there isn’t much to see here, so I’m glad I didn’t have to pay full price.
The kids really enjoyed the maze.
I really wish they had more tours, but they are very limited.
I’m totally spoiled by Butchard Gardens in my home town, but we’ve still had a few decent afternoons here.

This place is extremely romantic and fun during Christmas. Millions of lights surround you as you walk through the gorgeous garden listening to music along the way. It’s probably one of my favorite events to do in Vancouver during the holiday season and it just keeps getting busier and busier every year.
I haven’t been during their normal season but I’m sure I’ll check it out sooner than later, there’s a lot of parking attached to the gardens along with street parking around the area and a bus stop just steps from the entrance. There’s also a little café inside the building for coffee and sandwiches.

Went the festival of lights this last December and it was fantastical!
Got to catch the dancing light show around the little pond — I was amazed. Music & Lights! what is there not to love.
I got to try the hot chocolate from the café, although a little pricey for a small it was really good. Made with real chocolate I think! well at least that’s what it tasted like.
Washrooms are clean — the ones by the entrance building, but I didn’t like the fact of the porter potties around the garden near the food trucks area.
It was definitely neat to see the make a wish foundation candles stand /​station.

Attended the 30^th annual Festival of Lights and it was really great! The line appeared extremely long to purchase tickets however it went by quickly. The light displays varied and were really nice. They had shows, pictures with Santa and other events for families as well as a mulled wine station for adults and a light show for everyone.
The downside is that the capacity of the show rooms and adult lounge are very limited and did not meet the demands of the number of people visiting. Also it would have been nice if they had special areas marked off for photos in each display as it really held up the flow when people randomly stopped to take selfies or family pictures.
Overall, good value for the price. Free parking, lots of displays and other events if you get there early!

Just went to the Christmas lights here. So very pretty, it was a very romantic setting — great for a date.
The lights and the paths were stunning, the light show enjoyable, the shadow puppet show was great.
The small hot chocolate was an expensive $ 4.50 eek but it did include marshmallows and whipped cream.
The make a wish candle lighting was sweet.
All in all a seasonal delight!