The Alnwick Garden - Alnwick

Taylor L.

This is easily one of the coolest places I’ve visited in the UK. We started off by wandering around the Lilidorei play area, and the main area has this structure which is this incredible, colourful castle-inspired frame. We visited in October, so there were Halloween themed attractions dotted around, which were pretty fun. Bonus points for the play area being adult inclusive! 🙂

The gardens are spectacular. You enter to a view of a giant fountain, which is no exaggeration. It spans multiple storeys, and requires walking a lengthy staircase to reach the top, where you are greeted with a view of the main building below. There are alternate routes on either side of the fountain, where you travel the same way but through a gorgeous tunnel composed of tunnel of foliage.

Despite being brief, the poison garden tour was very informative and interesting. The tour guide was clearly impassioned by the topic which made it very easy to engage with it.

One thing I would note is the pricing. It is £18.50 per adult, with an extra £3.50 for parking. Food and drink is by no means cheap either.

ann W.

A good place but disappointing early season ( I went in first week of March) there is very little winter interest planting - many bare tree and bare ground- no winter shrubs.
Even the poison garden was farcical as the guide pointed to bare ground and talked of nettles not yet visible, and to empty cages showing us pictures of what could be there. Some evergreens were present but no mention even of yew or the stories of the poisoners depicted on the walls. Surely a seasonal script could be prepared to make the most of the experience before the plants emerge.
Fountains fantastic.

Simon S.

Always a great day out. The staff are excellent as always. Good food at the cafe.

The Poison Garden is well worth it. It's guided tours only, every 30 minutes. The tour lasts about 20 minutes and is great entertainment.

Pablo A.

We visited Alnwick Gardens today, being mid winter most of the plants had died back and there wasn’t a huge amount of greenery. However we still really enjoyed the visit and would highly recommend visiting.
We had the tour of the poisonous plants garden, it’s was very interesting and the guide lady was very knowledgeable about poisonous plants in general.
We’ll definitely be returning in the spring/summer with the kids, as the entry ticket included entry to Lilidorie too.

The G. F.

What a stunning stunning garden. The fountain is very impressive in the centre with different gardens going off from it. My favourite by far is the poison garden. You need to book on a tour as the plants are poisonous so you need to go in with a guide who tells you the uses of the plants & the history of them.

Theresa N.

Absolutely wonderful day out at the Alnwick Garden and specifically the poison garden. Barbara was our guide and she was phenomenal— engaging, funny, and I learned so so much. Definitely make this a stop if you can. Great cafe and food, the gift shop is nice and a huge range of stuff. Get the A-Z of poison plants book, helped written by the guides!!

Amy L.

Barbara gave us a brilliant tour of the poison garden! We went in a group with some very excited children (in the middle of winter - not all of the plants on display) but she managed to get everyone quiet and focused on the plants and their stories! Highly recommend for the poison garden alone! (Also the very tame ducks broke into the garden during our tour)

Norma F.

Amazing, took my grandsons at night and they absolutely loved it as did we. I've never seen so many Xmas trees and lights in one place, it was gorgeous. Lilidorei was a great adventure play area for the kids and some adults, there is a restaurant/cafe, where you'll find toilets downstairs but there is a lift for prams and wheelchairs, a van selling waffles and drinks and another selling hot dogs and drinks. There are also a couple of gift shops selling souvenirs. Staff are all around the light trail and Lilidorei and there are reindeer there to see. All added up to a great family fun night out