National Botanic Gardens
National Botanic Gardens features on the Gingerguide audio walk through Dublin. Give it roughly ~90 min: enough to look, hear a two to three minute story on the spot, and ask the AI guide whatever the story leaves open.
- Type garden
- Suggested visit ~90 min
- Dublin Dublin guide
About National Botanic Gardens
Founded in 1795, these beautiful free gardens near Glasnevin feature spectacular Victorian curvilinear glasshouses and over 20,000 plant species.
The National Botanic Gardens of Ireland were established by the Royal Dublin Society in 1795 on a 48-acre site along the River Tolka in Glasnevin, north Dublin. With over 20,000 plant species and cultivars, the gardens are one of the most important botanic collections in Europe, and admission is entirely free.
The crowning glory of the Gardens is the Great Palm House, a magnificent Victorian curvilinear glasshouse designed by Richard Turner, who also built the Palm House at Kew Gardens in London. Constructed in the 1840s and 1850s, the glasshouses were restored between 1992 and 2004 and are among the finest examples of Victorian iron and glass architecture in Ireland. They house tropical, subtropical, and temperate plant collections including banana plants, orchids, and an extraordinary collection of economic plants.
The Gardens also contain the National Herbarium, Ireland's largest collection of pressed plant specimens, and maintain living plant collections under the Botanic Gardens Conservation International programme.
Did you know? The curvilinear glasshouses at the National Botanic Gardens were designed by Richard Turner, the same Victorian architect who built the Palm House at Kew Gardens in London.
How long is a visit to National Botanic Gardens?
Set aside roughly ~90 min for National Botanic Gardens. That covers a good look and the narrated story, and because you set the pace you can always stay on.
Is National Botanic Gardens worth your time?
National Botanic Gardens is among the 42 narrated highlights the Gingerguide team chose for Dublin, so it is worth a look. Hear the story for the context, then ask the AI guide for anything more.
Nearby stops in Dublin
Hear the story of National Botanic Gardens
Preview the Dublin tour free in the Gingerguide app.