San Diego Botanic Garden

Breathe in the fresh air at this plant-lovers’ paradise, a lush urban oasis spanning 37 acres in Encinitas, and home to the West Coast’s largest children’s garden and North America’s biggest public bamboo collection. The venue offers four miles of trails with peaceful ocean vistas, flowering trees, California native plants, majestic palms, a subtropical fruit garden, and an amazing multi-level treehouse.

Plants from around the world thrive at this retreat, thanks to the area’s mild climate and diverse topography. No less than 5,300 plant species and varieties, and 29 uniquely themed gardens representing 15 different regions and habitats grace the property. Guests can experience the sensation of going from a desert environment to a tropical rainforest with a waterfall in one visit. Guided tours of the Garden are offered year-round.

With miles of scenery, three children’s gardens, and amazing blooms, the venue is family-friendly as well as a great place to explore the outdoors. Both kids and adults can climb Toni’s Tree House in a jungle canopy, play in a mountain stream, and have fun trying to balance on logs.

Children will further love the Garden‘s SAPLinGS (Science, Art and Play in Garden Spaces) program from 10 a.m.-noon Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. On Wednesdays, children can water the Incredible Edibles Garden and have a taste of the different fruits and vegetables growing there. On Thursdays, Conductor James shows off model trains in the Seeds of Wonder Garden. On Fridays, kids can sing along with Grandma Kathy during Toddler Tales & Tunes in Hamilton Children’s Garden, where she teaches and entertains families with puppets, bells and pompoms to connect children to plants.

Enjoy all sorts of classes and workshops, including open-air yoga, pressed flower art, succulent arranging and monthly bird walks. In spring, the Garden hosts the World of Orchids showcase, followed in late summer by Savage Gardens, a carnivorous plant display filled with rare and unique plants, and larger-than-life sculptures.

Take advantage of warm weather and long days during the Garden‘s Summer Nights Concert Series. Open on select Thursdays until 8 p.m., the venue invites visitors to stroll through the Garden and savor a sunset and concert paired with food and drink. Over the winter holidays, guests may enjoy a truly magical after-dark experience, Lightscape, featuring awe-inspiring artistic, illuminated installations.

Tying the knot or hosting a private or corporate event? The Garden is an idyllic location for weddings and other special occasions. Gorgeous backdrops include The Victorian Gazebo Lawn; the intimate Walled Garden, the multi-level Lawn House Garden; The Waterfall View Deck; and The Dickinson Family Education Conservatory, an 8,000-square-foot glass building that houses rare and unusual tropical plants. Learn more about booking an event here.

Let nature fill you with a little wonder at the San Diego Botanic Garden, located at 300 Quail Gardens Drive in Encinitas, and just a mile from the Pacific Ocean. The Garden is open from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Wed.-Mon. Winter Garden hours are 9 a.m.-4 p.m. and go into effect Nov. 14-Jan. 1 Reservations are recommended. Call (760) 436-3036 or visit sdbg.org