The 5 Best Botanical Gardens in Barbados

There are some beautiful botanical gardens in Barbados that I'd like to introduce to you in this post. Whether you're staying here for a few weeks or months, or just a day as a cruise ship tourist, a trip to one of the wonderful gardens is always worthwhile.

In all gardens you'll find both native flower, plant, and tree species, as well as invasive, meaning non-native plants, that have found their way to Barbados intentionally or unintentionally.

Most travel guides list in their tips the Hunte's Gardens as the main attraction of Barbados. For me, this is in third place, and second place is usually not even mentioned. You can look forward to this insider tip.

Flower Forest

This botanical garden opened in 1983 on a former sugar cane plantation. It is located at an altitude of 270 meters (886 feet) above sea level and offers excellent opportunities for taking beautiful photos. The views and vistas in some areas are breathtaking. This is also true of the path, which initially winds gently downhill through a beautiful world of flowers and plants.

So-called drives connect individual lookouts, and there's even a Dennis Drive, which I naturally feel very honored by. ?There are countless shortcuts and dead ends between the individual paths, but you should still walk them. There's also a lot to discover off the beaten path. But please respect the beautifully laid out sections and don't trample any plants.

Definitely pack a picnic, because there are great spots here to relax. For example, the Mary's Meadows Pavilion (A11 on the map below). There's also a nice restaurant right at the entrance, which you can find on the map at H9. Thus, Flower Forest is the only botanical garden on Barbados that currently operates a restaurant.

The jungle loop takes about 1 hour, not including photos and breaks. We've been here before and always spent about 2.5 hours at this beautiful place. There's also a shop with pottery from the region. You have to like that kind of thing; I didn't care for it. Nevertheless, it can be a nice souvenir.

Admission is $15 USD, and the annual pass is $25 USD. Check my conclusion below for general information about all the gardens and what you should consider before your trip.

Directions / Address

Flower Forest Botanical Gardens, Richmond, St Joseph, Barbados

Welchman Hall Gully

Besides the Flower Forest, which is my personal highlight, the Welchman Hall Gully Forest offers the most fun for families. In my opinion, there are three reasons for this.

1. Right at the entrance there is a large Adventure playground. Besides picnic areas, you'll find a large climbing tower and a treehouse there, and various swings in the form of car tires or simple planks hang from the large trees. There's also a zip line and a slackline. Our kids have a ton of fun there. A little tip on the side: We walk through the jungle first and only go to the playground at the end, otherwise the kids are already tired when it starts.
2. Feeding the Green Monkeys. The monkeys come between 11 AM and 12 PM for feeding by a park employee. We were lucky and had the place all to ourselves, which allowed us to go directly to the monkeys with the owner, Debbie. Green monkeys are harmless by nature, but you should never feed them from your hand and must respect their natural habitat. Otherwise, they will bite and scratch.
3. There is a super beautifully landscaped path, which leads through the rainforest for about 1.5 km. It is easy for kids to walk and the many different palm trees, trees, and plants ensure that the kids don't get bored.

Founded in 1650, this garden is one of the oldest botanical gardens Barbados. Incidentally, the grapefruit was discovered here, and Barbados is therefore considered the origin of this tropical fruit. You should also plan a picnic here, as there are beautiful spots along the way.

Insider tip: This lush tropical forest is located on a collapsed cave. If you are short on time, you can see a small part of Harrison Cave here, saving you the tour of the large cave. Since Harrison Cave is currently closed, this is our only opportunity to visit a stalactite cave. Nevertheless, we hope that a visit to Harrison Cave will be possible soon.

In 2021, the entrance fee for adults is $14 USD, and there is also a small restaurant, although it has always been closed when we were there.

Directions / Address

Welchman Hall Gully, Welchman Hall, St. Thomas, Barbados

Hunte's Gardens

This botanical garden is uniquely beautiful. It's not without reason that it's called a top Barbados attraction. The garden describes itself as „the most enchanting place on Earth.“.

Indeed, Hunte's Gardens is reminiscent of paradise on Earth. A picturesque and easily navigable path initially winds down into a kind of valley. Every 1-2 meters, there are beautiful plants and flowers to discover. You will also find many rare exotic plants here that are not native to Barbados.

Amidst all the colorful and enchanting flower species, there are always opportunities for retreat and relaxation. Hunte's Garden is unsurpassed in its diversity. Furthermore, the garden has been designed with great attention to detail. This is not least because the founder and owner, Anthony Hunte, is usually on site, and you may be able to sample a glass of rum with him. You can surely hear one or two good stories from him during this time.

The path here is also well-developed, but your kids really need to be interested in flowers. Our kids are, so we had a wonderful stay here. However, there aren't many opportunities for playing here.

The entrance fee in 2021 is $20 USD, with children under 12 paying $10 USD. This makes Hunte's Gardens the most expensive botanical garden in Barbados.

Directions / Address

Hunte's Gardens, Castle Grant, St. Joseph, Barbados

Coco Hill Forest

The 53-hectare Coco Hill Forest is more of a huge cultivation area for a wide variety of tropical fruits and vegetables than a typical rainforest. In addition to coconuts and bananas, coffee, cocoa, pineapples, as well as numerous other fruit varieties, herbs, and spices are grown here.

We learned a lot about plants here, how they are grown, and what permaculture and vertical farming mean. The owner personally walked the first few meters with us and showed us many herbs as well as plants like ginger, turmeric, and pineapple.

Two unpaved hiking trails wind through the tropical forest. We chose the shorter one because we weren't wearing sturdy shoes. So, make sure you swap your flip-flops for sturdy shoes. We still spent a good 2 hours discovering the fruits and vegetables marked on the map, which the kids really enjoyed.

As you exit the forest, you'll also have fantastic panoramic views of the east coast of Barbados again and again. Pretty cool! Don't forget your camera.

Admission is $10, and only $5 for children under 12.

Directions / Address

The Coco Hill Forest is located about 200 m in front of the Flower Forest.

Coco Hill Forest, Richmond, St Joseph, Barbados

Andromeda Gardens

The Andromeda Gardens botanical garden, located on the east coast, is one of the smallest gardens. Nevertheless, it offers a great variety of plants. It was founded in 1954 and now belongs to the Barbados National Trust.

Originally, this botanical garden in Barbados was created as a private space. Scientist Iris Bannochie established this garden on her private property. Therefore, it is different from other gardens, having been created privately and not initially accessible to the public.

This didn't change until 1988, when the lady passed away and it passed to the Barbados National Trust as an inheritance. She wanted to make her collected plants and flowers accessible to the general public.

We've been here before and always combine a visit to the garden with a day on the east coast and the charming village of Bathsheba.

If you visit this garden, you should really be interested in plants. There's a partially paved path that winds through the woods, and there are great spots for a picnic here too. There also seems to be a restaurant, but it was always closed when we were there. The garden isn't ideal for children. Besides a small fish pond, there's nothing specifically for kids.

Admission is $15 for adults in 2021, children are free. For locals, this garden is completely free.

Conclusion

When you're in Barbados, visit at least one of the botanical gardens in Barbados featured here. I already mentioned above that I'll give you another tip here. Before you plan your trip, make sure beforehand that the garden is open. The gardens are usually open seven days a week, but especially in today's times there are restrictions. It's best to find the Instagram account of the respective garden beforehand and send them a quick message. This is more reliable than Google. We've already stood in front of locked doors a few times. If no one answers you on IG, the garden is closed. ? This is a general rule in Barbados, by the way, also regarding restaurants.

Now I wish you lots of fun with my numerous impressions of the botanical gardens in Barbados. Write to me in the comments if you have already visited one of the gardens.

Impressions