Butchart Gardens

Culture in Brentwood Bay, British Columbia, Canada

• Best months: January–December
• Typical duration: 5h
• Elevation gain: 0 m
• Hours: Jan 07-Jan 31 09:00-15:30; Feb,Nov: Su-Sa 09:00-15:30; Mar,Oct: Su-Sa 09:00-16:00; Apr 01-May 31,Sep 16-Sep 30 09:00-17:00; Jun 01-Jun 14 09:00-18:00; Jun 15-Sep 03 09:00-22:00; Sep 04-Sep 15 09:00-21:00; Dec 01-Jan 06 09:00-21:00; Dec 25 13:00-21:00 (as recorded 2026-07-15)

Access & fees

• admission required (purchase: available online)
• ticketed admission (purchase: online available)

Things to do

• afternoon tea
• birdwatching
• carousel rides (seasonal)
• christmas lights and holiday displays (winter)
• dining on-site (venues: Dining Room, Blue Poppy Restaurant, Coffee Shop)
• fine dining and cafés
• photography
• seasonal fireworks shows (summer)
• shopping at the garden gift shop
• walk garden sections (areas: five distinct themed gardens)
• walking garden grounds (tool: interactive map available)

Amenities

• multiple dining venues (venues: Dining Room, Blue Poppy Restaurant, Coffee Shop)
• three dining venues (options: Dining Room, Blue Poppy, Coffee Shop)

Best time to visit

• open across all seasons (window: spring, summer, autumn, winter, Christmas)

Events & seasons

• seasonal garden displays (window: summer, autumn, Christmas, winter, spring)
• seasonal programming (window: summer, autumn, Christmas, winter, spring)

Features

• 26 greenhouses
• 26 greenhouses on-site (count: 26 greenhouses)
• 55 acres of gardens (hectares: 22)
• 55 acres total (size: 55 acres)
• 55-acre garden complex (size: 55 acres)
• 900 plant varieties (varieties: 900 bedding plant types)
• family-managed estate (ownership: Butchart family, 100+ years)
• family-managed, 100+ years (operator: Butchart family)
• five themed gardens (gardens: Sunken, Rose, Japanese, Italian, Mediterranean)
• former limestone quarry (origin: Sunken Garden in old quarry)
• italian garden (established: 1926)
• japanese garden (designer: Isaburo Kishida, Yokohama)
• mediterranean garden
• night illumination (installed: 1953 · infrastructure: underground wiring)
• rose garden (designed by: Butler Sturtevant, Seattle · established: 1929)
• ross fountain (location: lower reservoir · installed: 1964)
• sunken garden (origin: exhausted limestone quarry · completed: 1921)

Nearby

• near victoria, bc (island: Vancouver Island)

Good to know

• 1m+ annual visitors (visitors: over one million per year)
• 50 full-time gardeners (staff: 50 permanent gardeners)
• family-owned since founding (current director: Robin-Lee Clarke)
• national historic site (designated: 2004)
• only trained service animals are permitted.
• over 1m visitors/year