Chicago Botanic Garden - Phone Number, Reservations, Reviews

World-glass extra-large gardens of all varieties. Can easily spend an entire day here and leave wanting to come back to spend more time. The tram ride around the estate is unique. Entry price for out-of-towners was less than other gardens of comparatively smaller size.

It is a wonderful place with magnificent vegetation. I really liked the part where the butterflies of many colors are. Walking along its paths is wonderful, also the transportation that exists within the park. It is a beautiful experience to see God's magnificent creation

The most beautiful botanical garden I’ve ever been to. It even goes past the Bronx botanical garden and Longwood. It’s serene, extremely well kept and diverse. My favorite was spider island. There’s so much nature, a ton of unique insects and birds. Really enjoyed that! Friendly stuff and ample parking. You still need to pay 10 for parking but what’s decent considering everywhere else parking is ultra pricy.

It was incredible. I could stay all day and still want to return the next day.

Enjoying outdoors those beautiful waterfalls, landscapes, flowers, lake is another level thank you, thank you, thank you all super nice parking and cafeteria on site

Absolutely love this place. Great informational exhibits and amazing variety of plants!!

Great place for a 2-3 or even half a day visit if you like flowers and a great environment. Only take is how well-preserved some areas are, as even though I understand that there are flowers, fruits, and trees not in season, some areas are not really taken care of. But what it is taken care of it is beautiful!!

This place is magical. My boyfriend's sister has a pass and was nice enough to bring us for the first time. Def can't see everything in one day and if you live in the area I would definitely recommend getting a year pass to enjoy everything. We saw alot in the time we were there and each area ,garden,and green house was just as neat as the next. Definitely would recommend for a family day .

Great place to spend time, especially weekdays not as crowded, always beautiful & deferent every time.

It’s a great place to visit in Chicago🤭 They always change their plants, it’s always different. Sometimes you can be lucky to get a festival with plants, where you also can buy some. It also great to go any season of a year. It would be better to grab tickets forehead. Enjoy photos and video

We went to the Botanic Garden on a nice weekday with great weather. I’ve went to many botanic gardens in Europe before and this was definitly a different experience, but equally positive. The garden itself is massive and displays a very large array of plants and flowers. Due to its size, the experience is more like taking a hike on a very organized and steady path (so no need to worry about going off-road), and so it’s less focused on the plants itself and moreso on the walking and nature experience. I recommend taking one of the maps at the entrance so you don’t end up getting lost. The place itself is extremely well kept and beautiful, there’s lots of little places you can stop to sit down, and even places with tables where we got to eat the lunch we packed ahead (there is no active cafe in the actual garden area on weekdays, so make sure to bring your own food). The garden has a lot of little sectioned off portions with speciality categories, I particularly enjoyed the vegetable garden. The garden itself is easy to get to with public transportation though you need to time it right because it is a bit further away from the city. I definitly recommend the experience if you’re a nature lover, it was a wonderful break from the downtown area.

Really beautiful area and well worth the ticket price. Note that it is a large outdoor experience, so bring appropriate clothing and good shoes. My partner and I went on a day with good weather. I am touch-sensitive and one of my "bad textures" is foliage brushing against my legs or body. So one thing I appreciated a lot was that the entire place was composed of very comfortable, established trails where you could walk without needing to push through the plants - but you could touch them if you wanted to. I loved Spider Island. There's a very cozy tucked-away spot in the center of the spiral where I had lunch and watched birds in the underbrush. So much of the gardens looked impossibly beautiful. They're clearly well-kept with love and patience. This place is pretty far from the usual center of Chicago, but it was well worth the travel.

Fabulous botanical gardens. Must see of you enjoy gardens. So many photo ops. Over 25 gardens to see. Including a tram ever 20 minutes that gives you an overview of the Chicago Botanical gardens grounds as well as the driver gives the history of the gardens. Opened in 1972 with one garden. I was there around 1986 and 1998. Amazing how the place has grown. Definitely a must see for couples, families and even teenagers. Relaxing. Peaceful. Areas to have a light picnic. Cafe and gift shop too to visit before they close at 5 pm. Watch your timing. Even a short visit is worth it for a few hours or an all day visit. There is a lovely picnic area with picnic tables near the parking area. Several parking lots marked P1, P2, P3 so watch where you park. There are spaces marked handicapped. It was a little cumbersome to know how to exit. They could use more arrows to direct Exit out. You'll figure it out. Support this amazing botanical gardens. They are always working on different plants, trees, shrubs and the like to see how they'll grow in this area. They have an incredible collection of seeds on their premises, I believe numbering in the 6 figures. Astonishing number. Already working on the orchid collection for the 2025 late winter/ spring. Easy to find. Close to I94 or 294. Go visit CBG. So when are you planning your next visit? Trader Joe's nearby. 😊

Visited in the morning on a weekday. Several different types of gardens to stroll through. Great place to relax your mind and forget about your world! Loved it.

Amazing place to spend a whole day, just paradise on the earth.

Absolutely one of the most beautiful places in Chicagoland! If you haven’t been, you should go. The landscapers there do an amazing job. I really can’t say enough about how awesome this place is.❤️👊🏼 Pro tip: there are less people there if you go on a weekday afternoon.

we had a wonderful time in this beautiful Botanical garden with our family & grandchildren. It is one of the top attractions in Chicago land area. Must visit place

A spectacular place and a treasure... year round! Beautiful plants, wildlife is visible, and the care and attention to detail is palpable from the staff and volunteers. A ideal place for relaxation, inspiration, fun, there is something to enjoy!

Amazing grounds that are well kept. It is larger than I expected. Great variety of plants to see.

The experience for my mom was really nice glad to have shared it with her!🦋

I loved. I went with my mom and brother! Really nice place for family 💜

We only got to spend a couple hours here, but I could spend a couple days wandering and just taking it all in. Staff was friendly and knowledgeable.

Awesome gardens! Especially loved the bonsai trees

A world-class garden that's large and detail dense to amaze. The model rail is a favorite.

This is the best botanical garden I’ve ever visited, good for both adults and children.

Just a lovely place to walk around, explore, see what's in season, check out art installations, grab a coffee, check out the cute shop, imagine, etc....

Beautiful place, just be ready to walk. The gardens are laid out over many acres. The tram ride is great and very informative; but to have the best experience, you need to be able to walk long distances.

Lovely garden. We really appreciated all of the markers on the plants . The tram ride was very informative.

Must see but plan to spend 4 to 5 hrs. It is really big and beautiful too.

The prairie gardens were a revelation.

Awesome place went with my family and it went super well perfect place for people who love to walk and admire nature also to take bunch of pictures

Great place to walk around for all ages. The trains are beautiful and made from all natural materials like sticks and leaves. The butterfly exhibit is always busy but it’s a must! I love coming here to walk around during the summer. The light show is also great.

It is a beautiful and expansive garden that had so much to look at! We have been to a few botanical gardens before, so we were excited to see what a different state had to offer. My hubby and I are partial to the Japanese stroll gardens. This garden had a nice one. The rose garden was gorgeous, as were the bells that chime on the hour. Can definitely spend a good 4-6 hours looking at everything for sure!

Had a lovely time last weekend at the botanic garden. Everyone was friendly and the views were gorgeous! Only thing worth noting is that the food is pretty pricey to eat there. I didn’t realize that you could’ve brought picnic so I would totally recommend that to those on a budget!

Will definitely revisit if I visit Chicago again, place is great and beautiful, tour guide do their best to explain everything, could be there all day and still won’t be able to see everything, it’s big

Beautiful ❤️ place to visit with kids. My 9 and 12 year olds had an amazing time clicking pictures, learning about trees, plants, flowers, insects, mushrooms and endless things about our surroundings. Walking on Greene Bridge & Bonsai trees 🌴 display were treats to every eyes 👀. Went walking for 10 mins to see the sensory garden to found it was all a hype 😆🤣. The rose garden 🌹 👌🏼👌🏼. Mini Railroads & Miniature of Wrigley Field stadium and mini ice cream 🍨 🍦 train 🚂 5 stars 🤩. The staff was happy & helpful too. Waiting for sunset 🌇 right above the gardens were worth every second spent. Must visit 👍🏼👍🏼

First time here. Love the beautiful grounds and the gorgeous gardens. Was lucky enough to get to see the butterflies and blooms, which were very nice and beautiful butterflies. Nice place for nature walks, observing wildlife, and taking pictures. Even got a chance to see a rainbow 🌈 from in the water spurt over the main pond/lake area. The tram tour was fun and informative. Would highly recommend this place. 👌🏽🌳💚👍🏽

What a beautiful place that could take over a whole day to visit, member get in at 8am and the public can come at 10am

Over crowded and unpleasant. Deeply regret getting membership because even during member hours it’s like walking through the Mall of America. Just anparade of miseable sweaty sun burnt families with screaming child.

A little slice of paradise, right in our backyard!! We are so fortunate to have this beautiful natural preserve so close to the big city. Wide array of diverse flora and beautiful landscaping/architecture throughout. Also a great place to learn about local plant life native to our area as well as gardening/planting at home. Go out and support the Botanical Garden so it can be a place for people to cherish for years to come!

A spectacular place to visit, very well maintained. Recommended for the family.

We visited in July, which turned out to be an ideal time to visit the place. The flowers around the city were starting to bloom. We spent more than five hours there. The parking was easy and the tickets and entry were easy. They have guided tours as well as train rides. We chose to see it at our pace. The flowers are bright and beautiful. The garden was nicely planned and executed. They had a Japanese garden, a vegetable and fruit garden, rose garden, bonsai collection, fountains and a lot of water. They had volunteers tending to the plants. Labelling of the plants was elaborate. The visitor facilities are good. They had enough restrooms, a cafeteria and a gift shop. A day well spent.

First time going. It was a gorgeous day. The staff are incredibly helpful in making recommendations of what to check out and where. Absolutely gorgeous landscape. Japanese gardens were by far my favorite area.

Decided to take a spontaneous trip to the gardens today, as we used to do often, and found out they now have a nearly $26 entry fee (per person!) This is disappointing and greedy. I used to love this place, but it's not worth $26 a pop to go walk around. People used to be able to go here for a fun educational day at a reasonable cost, it was affordable for families. There's something particularly vile about gentrification of the gardens, something we all used to be able to enjoy, now it costs an arm and a leg just to walk through the gate. We will not be returning until they figure out a practical entry fee, until then the woods are still free to walk through.

This is an absolutely fabulous and wonderful place.... That I will probably never be able to afford to go to again due to the admission fees now. As a kid, the blanket $20 parking fee was great for working families like mine who could load everybody up in a van and just pay $20 to get in. As an adult who has been constantly riding the poverty line it was great to be able to take the train, walk up the nice trail on the way to the Gardens and go spend a beautiful day seeing some many fine examples of what nature has to offer. It was always one of the nicer ways to spend a day for a date or a get together with friends that didn't cost anything. I could understand restricting park access to only through the lot, ensuring that everyone has to pay the parking fee (despite how that would go against all their climate change initiatives) but implementing a entry fee that can get as high as $26 per person?! My god. It's been a couple years since I was able to go due to work schedule and transportation. I got excited about going to the IMA show today with my husband but we simply can't afford to pay nearly $50 to do something we used to do multiple times a summer for free. Just another place to add to the long list of things outside our reach.

Beautiful and peaceful place to spend an evening.

Visited for the Midwest Bonsai Show. Garden is large with lots to see and very well kept. Tickets can get expensive so definitely plan to spend a day there to make it worth it. I believe you can also get tickets through some libraries. Staff are very kind. Can get crowded in certain areas, but since it’s so large, it never feels too congested overall. My favorite part is the fish in the lake. Please respect and preserve the wildlife.

One of the most beautiful botanical gardens anywhere. We went on a sunny July day when the roses were in full bloom, and enjoyed strolling down the paths and soaking in the sights and fragrances. We loved observing the butterflies up close, and also really liked the bonsai trees and the English walled garden. I’m sure there was a lot that we missed, we’ll need to come again to continue exploring.

Always beautiful at the gardens. We saw two weddings being photographed. We have season passes, which I recommend getting.

Today was my first visit to the beautiful and vast botanical garden, accompanied by an annual pass holder. The grounds are vast, so buy a ticket and try riding the tram. There are several convenient places to get off along the way. Trams leave every 30 minutes. Since it was early in the morning, I was able to ride without too many lines, but in the afternoon there were long lines.

It's a very beautiful park. Chicago is also one of the places to visit.

Nice way to spend the day. Loved the bonsai garden!

Great place to take the family and kids! Beautiful and handicap accessible. Trams are available during the summer season. The butterflies in bloom and the garden chef series are so fun!

Great place to take your Navy recruit after graduation. We had lunch and stroller thru the gardens while he told us about boot camp. The gardens provided beautiful back drop for pictures in Navy whites. He got in free as active duty military.

Fabulous gardens, go any time of the year!

This is such a beautiful place! Enormous, serene garden that you definitely need a lot of time to explore. Can bring your own food and drinks so enjoy a cute picnic here. I need to return to fully enjoy what this all has to offer.

Awesome walking area and a great tram to take you through the area. Lots of wonderful trees, flowers, water fowl, and butterfly garden

Absolutely beautiful garden. The English walled garden was my favorite but each exhibit was well maintained and special.

What can you say that hasn't already been said here! I went for the train display, thinking I would see that and move on... 3 HOURS LATER, I'm still walking - taking in the incredibly beautiful grounds! The place is simply spectacular! Mostly handicap accessible, and you need to plan on spending at least half a day there. I would suggest going early in the morning or later in the evening when it's not so busy. Go have fun!

Gorgeous peaceful and educational. Highly recommend!

Garden had it's Annual Bonzai show. Many vendors were there selling Bonzais and accessories also. Keep in mind fees for entry per person and parking now. Restaurant is not cheap.

We try to come once a year and you could easily spend all day here. We like to walk around and take pictures of all the natural beauty around us. They have indoor greenhouses you can explore, art exhibits, indoors and outdoors, you can visit the butterflies and take a tram ride around the place. We ate lunch here this year and had the ribs and pizza which were both very good. We love coming when it's not super hot out, there is a lot of shade in parts and this year we were able to see the miniature railroad exhibit which was pretty cool for the kids. My favorites have always been the Rose Garden and the Japanese Garden.

This is a great place to go if you have extra time, there are beautiful trees and plants everywhere to enjoy.

Very large, though not as nice or well kempt as some other botanical gardens.

Stop and smell the roses! Great place to take a long walk surrounded by beauty.

This place is GORGEOUS! Well worth every penny!

Place use to be free now charges $25 per person but still worthwhile. Highly recommended.

It so beautiful to see all they offer you really need to spend the day to soak it all in

Clean and very detailed plants. Recommended if you like nature or just in general hanging out/ A lot of trails.

Best botanical garden I've ever been too. The Japanese Garden was Amazing! Best Train garden I've seen.

Top notch place to see absolutely gorgeous gardens, flowers, trees, and plants! There is also a permanent bonsai collection, as well as a bonsai show every August (definitely worth seeing). It's great for the whole family! Note: at entry, they no longer take cash.

Good place for enjoying time with families.

Extraordinary. Incredibly beautiful and meticulously maintained.

We were here for a Bonsai event. Gardens were perfect! We were here twenty years ago, and the gardens were so much better now. Don't miss this gem!

The beauty of gardens and the creation of Jehova

A good date/family spot. Highly recommended.

Will go back to see what we missed.

Loves this experience. If was free, all the staff members are helpful and informative.

So beautiful and peaceful place. I 100 recommend it

Biking, art, plants, food, beer. Great place to be.

I have a Garfield membership. $10 parking free admission with you and a guest. The tram isn’t worth it unless you can’t walk very well.

The Butterfly exhibit was fantastic ! A Must See! Loved the train exhibit! Flowers galore! Beautiful sight!!

Beautiful gardens. But the $25 pp entry + parking fee has ruined it. We live an hour away and used to come a few times a year to stroll around for a few hours. It now would cost 4 of us $110 dollars. To walk around a garden. Beautiful as it may be, that is unacceptable. We have chosen not to return since the price change.

Fantastic garden always something new to see and learn

Very beautiful and fun for family

Whether you're looking for inspiration, relaxation, or a bit of both, the Chicago Botanic Garden is a must-visit destination!! It is a great place where both adults and children can learn and appreciate the beauty and importance of the natural world. Beautifully curated gardens, ranging from colorful flower beds to tranquil Japanese gardens, there's something to captivate every visitor. Must see Model railroad garden. Grand Tram Tour is very informative and lasts about 35 minutes.

Super relaxing and fun to look around

Attended an outdoor concert. It was great!

Beautiful natural garden. Worth a visit. The Chicago Botanical Garden established in 1972 has over thousands of plants, flowers and trees for your viewing and enjoyment. It has dozens of trails, exhibition centers and a full service restaurant that can take of your needs. The only thing is you should make reservation to your visit in advance and you should purchase a membership if you wish to visit the garden often. There are different events and shows that happen throughout the year. There is also a grand tram tour that can be purchased or is included by the purchase of a membership. We also discovered there is a butterfly garden as a result of a grand tram tour. We visited the garden for years and didn’t know such a butterfly garden existed! This is definitely worth a visit!

Big and Bautiful place to take pictures. It is a bit expensive, but it is worth it if you stay the entire day. Cost: $10 parking, $70 for 2 adult & 1 Child(under 12)

All lovers of nature and quality music will definitely enjoy the evenings in Chicago Botanic Garden !

Wonderful place to walk all year round tho spring and fall are our favorites . Prices have gone up and now you have to pay to park and admission. We do a household membership so we can go early before the crowds. Butterflies and tram are now included

Beautiful Expirience to walk around. Very family oriented place! Lovely views 👌

Thursday 8th was a free day at Botanical Garden, $10 for car (btwThere are two 2free days in Sep ,too).Nice place to visit.captured and shared almost all butterflies seen there.I I'd suggest waiting for the tram when you park your car ,in the que ,before going into the main building. Right opposite to the parking and next to the butterfly area,there is natural hill park.its the main attraction for little kids.not much flower because of the season, but it is an overall nice place to visit.

Great space to observe fruit trees and all types, it has an area to eat delicious food, and ample parking

A very nice place to spend the evening.

Beautiful place. It was $10/vehicle and $25/person for admission.

Beautiful place to just stroll around on an empty day :)

A beautiful garden with many scenic delights. The outdoor model railroad is incredible. A wonderful variety of plants and trees.

A magical slice of heaven in the north burbs. It is beautiful every day of the year!