New York Botanical Garden, Bronx

Truly one of my favorite places. I’ve gained so much inspiration for my own gardens from here. Every time I visit the garden, there’s always something new. I especially love their seasonal exhibits. Spring holds a special place in my heart, as it was the first time I visits the garden- the daffodils and cherry blossoms are stunning. If you’ve never been or if you’re visiting NYC, you have to add this to your list of things to see. Also, they have a beautiful gift shop and an absolutely amazing restaurant- the Hudson Garden Grill (previously reviewed individually).

This is a really fun indoor place to visit during the cold winter days. Several iconic buildings/stations across NYC are modeled from wooden logs and trains are running all around them. A wonderful experience to learn about the historical progression of railroad in NY. Along the trains, you also get to learn lots about trees and plants. The ticket to the comes with full access to the garden. They have a limited number of parking spots, around 40, on site. Its $20 for the day. Tickets are $32 per adult. Buy tickets online to ensure you have guaranteed entry to the show. I’d recommend getting the membership, which costs about 1.5x price of regular ticket, but you get unlimited entries for the year. Certain level of membership also comes with free parking and 10% discount in Gift shop. If you already purchased tickets, you can get upto $95 in credit, if you buy membership on the same day of your visit. This is a fun family spot, lots if things to explore with kids. They have cafe and restaurants at the site too. Easily worth visit 2-3 times a year (winter, cherry blossom and summer days).

I've been wanting to go Kusama exhibit since I first saw one online. When I saw Cosmic Nature in NYC, I knew I wanted to go. It's a bit of a trek to get here from the city. It took over an hour to get here from Grand Central. It was definitely worth the trip here. I loved the exhibit, but the garden itself was gorgeous too. We spent a couple of hours here and if I wasn't so tired from walking so much already, we could have spent longer. I'd definitely recommend this as a great way to escape the city for a while.

We went there during winter for the “GLOW” exhibition and the “train show” which we really enjoyed. It’s cool to experience a botanical garden in a different way, by watching miniature trains go through the plants and gaze at beautiful built miniatures of famous New York buildings. Although it’s a great idea and fun to see it’s not worth the around 50$ admission fee for both things. That’s too expensive. Luckily it works with the Sightseeing pass, although you are not supposed to see the “GLOW” exhibition at night because the lady in the ticket booth told us we have to be outside at 5 pm. Obviously nobody is checking when you are actually leaving :) We spent 1/2-1 hour inside watching the trains and about 30 minutes walking through the area and watching the Christmas lights. I definitely recommend doing it when it’s dark and with snow when you are really lucky. They close at 10pm (the train exhibition earlier). Cool shop at the end with quality products.

The orchid show is so beautiful. It has countless varieties of orchids. People there were excited and loved the show, as did I. In the gift shop you can purchase your own orchid or other plant. The staff is friendly and will give you pointers on how to care for your plant. There is a spot for drinks and snacks. There is also a trolly. Th rest of the grounds are not fully back for spring that I saw but they make for a nice walk. Go check it out .