Flaner in Miami's Fairchild Tropical Botanical Gardens

Published on April 8, 2024 at 8:00 am

The Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden stands on over 30 hectares of land in Coral Gables. This relaxing green break transports you into a lush, colourful tropical world. With a mission to share the joy and beauty of tropical gardening, it was founded in 1938 by the famous explorer and botanist, Dr David Fairchild. Its record-breaking collection includes over 3,400 species. As you stroll through this botanical garden, you'll discover an immense variety of tropical and exotic plants, of all types and sizes. This natural route takes you from the tropical flower garden to the Madagascar thorn forest, from fruit trees to bamboo and palm trees. Walking through this haven of peace, you'll also come across butterflies and birds, including hummingbirds. Suffice to say that this collection of plants from all over the world, among the 200,000 that Fairchild introduced to the USA, is of immeasurable importance.

The aim of the garden is to preserve the biodiversity of tropical flora by conserving species of tropical flora.

Summary

The richness of this botanical garden
A paradise on earth
Where to sleep?
Practical info

The richness of this botanical garden

The list of things to do in the Botanic Garden is far too long to go into in detail! However, there are some impressive highlights not to be missed. Nature lovers with a penchant for the shady forests of East Asia will want to visit the bamboo exhibition. This is the largest collection of its kind in the world, with over 125 distinct species of tropical bamboo.

Dale Chihuly's exhibition at the Fairchild garden

For lovers of tropical plants, head for the Montgomery Palmetum. Once again, the garden boasts a record collection of palms from all over the world. Rare palms from Madagascar to Goa, via the desert islands of the Pacific, stand magnificently in this garden. The journey takes in superb waterfalls, winding streams and hundreds of orchids, palms and ferns.

Beautiful set of flowers of Rose de Siam, also known as Etlingera viri

A paradise on earth

The magical experience continues with its collection of flowering trees. More than 740 species from all over the world are listed. Spring is certainly the best time to visit, and you'll be amazed by the thousands of flowers that burst into bloom, releasing their fragrances.

One of the Fairchild Botanic Garden's most impressive collections is its tropical forest. The garden is captivating because of the flora imported from Amazonia, which gives the forest a unique dimension. In addition to the waterfalls, a mist-producing device has been installed to generate the humid atmosphere necessary for this biotope, which lives naturally only in the heart of the Amazon rainforest.

Fairchild is one of the largest botanical parks in the state, and one of the most beautiful in the country.

Here, thousands of species of rare butterflies float through the air. In the greenhouse, exotic species engage in a colourful and acrobatic display around you, creating a veritable living rainbow. A real fairytale! Some come from Central and South America, but also from Asia.

Strange, hairy, sweet, sour, thorny... many fruits are also part of this green trail. The more curious can even sample some.

One of the butterflies in the Fairchild garden in Coral Gables

Where to sleep?

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Practical info

📍 Location

Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden is located in Coral Gables, half an hour's drive from downtown Miami.

⏰ Opening times

It is open every day of the year, except Christmas, from 10am to 5pm.

👛 Admission

Admission is $25 for adults, $18 for seniors and $12 for children aged between 6 and 17 (children aged 5 and under can enter for free). As well as the gardens, there are several cafes and a shop on site.

Advice from the editor

Remember to take a few precautions before you come to the garden, especially for the heat and insect bites. Bring sun cream and insect repellent, as well as a bottle of water.

Children of all ages can let their imaginations run wild in the Children's Garden, a fun, playful and magical place. On the programme: interaction with nature through the perception of images, sounds and smells. Our budding explorers will take a short tour of the garden, discovering hidden corners and unusual plants from all over the world.

For a quick tour of the garden with commentary from a guide, take the "tram tour" on board the little train. The tour lasts 45 minutes.

by Val HANCOCK | Editor

Val Hancock is an editor, writer and researcher. While she is currently based in Paris, she previously lived in London and Brussels. She holds a Masters degree in International Relations from King’s College London.

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