9 botanical gardens in Poland: Kraków, Wrocław, Poznań, Gdańsk, Warsaw, Katowice, Łódź
Where to see nature’s blooming beauty in Poland? Where to immerse yourself in nature – admiring the intense colors and smells of plants? There are many wonderful parks in Poland, and botanical gardens are the largest and most diverse oases of nature.
The botanical gardens in Poland are run by universities and scientific research institutes and include a wide range of collections of plants – both Polish ones as well as plants from other countries, including exotic ones. Below you will find selected botanical gardens in Poland – all worth visiting and perfect for a weekend walk!
The Botanical Garden in KRAKÓW
The oldest (opened in 1783) botanical garden in Poland – 10 ha of greenery in the heart of Kraków (peace and relaxation in the center of a usually crowded city!). The garden was entered into the register of monuments in Poland as a valuable natural object, a monument of the history of science, gardening art, and culture.
The Garden is now open all year round (information about opening hours and tickets).
Photo source: Ogród Botaniczny Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego
The Botanical Garden in WROCŁAW
If you need a break from the typical tourist attractions of Wrocław, the Botanical Garden is a green oasis of calm in the center of the city (the garden is located about 2 km from the Market Square, in the Ostrów Tumski district – the oldest part of Wrocław that used to be an island). Established in 1811, the park includes ponds with wooden bridges, a greenhouse, and thousands of plants.
The garden is open daily from April 1 to October 31.
Photo source: Ogród Botaniczny Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego
The Botanical Garden in POZNAŃ
One of the most beautiful places in Poznań and a favorite destination of Poznanians for weekend family walks. It’s a nice place for rest and education – you will see here many species of plants from various parts of the world, both popular and rare, and even threatened with extinction.
The Botanical Garden is open every day, admission is free.
Photo source: Ogród Botaniczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza
The Botanical Garden in GDAŃSK
The botanical garden is located within a large historic park – Park Oliwski, in the Oliwa district of Gdańsk. In addition to the Botanical Garden, in Oliwa Park, there is a gallery of contemporary sculpture, a Japanese-style garden, a popular ‘linden alley’ formed into a green tunnel, park ponds with ducks, gulls, and swans.
Opening hours of Park Oliwski May – September: 5 am – 11 pm, October – April: 5 am – 8 pm, free entrance.
Photo source: Park Oliwski w Gdańsku
The Botanical Garden in Gołubie, 50 km from GDAŃSK
The Botanical Garden in Gołubie (Pomeranian Voivodeship, 50 km west of Gdańsk) has over 6,000 species and varieties of plants from various climatic zones of the world, including over 200 protected and endangered species. The garden is located in the area of the Kashubian Landscape Park (Kaszubski Park Krajobrazowy).
The garden is open to visitors from April 1 to October 31, daily from 10 am to 6 pm. Admission is paid.
Photo source: Gołubieński Ogród Botaniczny
The Botanical Garden in Mikołów – the KATOWICE area
The Silesian Botanical Garden (Śląski Ogród Botaniczny w Mikołowie) is located 20 km from Katowice, on the hills and glacial moraines of a huge area of 100 ha! It has become a green showcase of the industrialized Silesia region.
The Garden has two parts/entrances: Ogród Żólty/Yellow Garden (Sosnowa Street), Ogród Czerwony/Red Garden (Grudniowa Street). These two parts of the garden are connected by a forest path leading through Fiołkowa Góra (the Garden’s map).
The Garden is open all year round. The current opening hours can be found on the Garden’s home page.
Photo source: Śląski Ogród Botaniczny w Mikołowie
The Arboretum Forest Educational Center in Rogów, near ŁÓDŹ
The Arboretum Forest Educational Center in Rogów – established in 1923 – is one of the biggest (over 50 hectares) botanical gardens in Poland, run by the Warsaw University of Life Sciences. It is located in Łódź voivodship, 40 km from Łódź and 100 km from Warsaw.
The Arboretum in Rogów has also one of the most valuable plant collections in Europe. It’s “a forest park”, located in the thinned-out area of the forest. You can admire there the collections of trees and shrubs of Central and Eastern Europe, protected, endangered, and rare plants, as well as “experimental” parts of the forest with foreign species and the Alpine Garden – the alpinarium.
Opening hours change every month. The current opening hours can be found on the Garden’s website, “Godziny otwarcia”.
Photo source: Arboretum SGGW w Rogowie
The Botanical Garden of the Warsaw University in WARSAW
Warsaw is lucky to have 2 botanical gardens. One is located in the city center (the Botanical Garden of the Warsaw University), and the other is in the suburbs of Warsaw in Powsin.
The Botanical Garden of the Warsaw University – beautiful nature at your fingertips in the heart of Warsaw – it sounds like a cheap advertising slogan, but the Garden is wonderful. It is full of winding alleys, hills, paths among flower beds and hedges, pergolas, corners with fountains, and a pond. Secret garden like in a fairy tale.
In 1818, the Garden was separated from the Łazienki Royal Park. It is not large and during sunny weekends there are not as many visitors compared to the neighboring Łazienki Park.
After the winter break, the Garden is open from March 19, 2023.
Photo source: Ogród Botaniczny Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego
The Botanical Garden in Powsin near WARSAW
The Botanical Garden in Powsin (south of Warsaw, between Wilanów and Konstancin) is a huge park with nice walking paths: roughly half of it is taken, according to the map, by “useful and ornamental plants”, the second part (arboretum) is “a collection of woody plants”, where the azaleas are the most popular among visitors (they bloom in the spring). There are many opportunities to have amazing photo sessions, eg. cherry blossom, including Japanese sakura, the national collection of varieties of roses, and many others.
There is a vegetable garden and orchard – lots of fun for city people to see “live” pumpkin, beetroot, dill, or an apple on a tree. Kids will enjoy the “Collection of Polish Flora” which includes mountain plants and mini-mountains / hills. There are short trails (marked as in the real Polish mountains) and peaks with an interesting view for children. Climbing is not difficult, and the little hikers have great satisfaction.
The Garden is open all year round. The current opening hours can be found on the Garden’s website.
Photo source: Ogród Botaniczny w Powsinie
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