Bendigo Botanic Gardens — Attraction in White Hills

Bendigo Botanic Gardens offers a graceful mix of heritage beauty and forward-thinking landscape design. The original section, laid out in the 1850s, greets you with sweeping lawns, towering elms, and a tranquil billabong where ducks glide in lazy circles. Stone paths loop beneath deep shade, and discreet plaques add just enough historical context to make the trees feel like old friends rather than museum exhibits.

Venture beyond the grand old specimens and you reach the Garden for the Future, a striking contrast full of textures and colour. Here drought-tolerant beds bristle with succulents and silver foliage, while steel pavilions cast patterned shadows across gravel paths. Even in peak summer the breeze funnels through, and the plant palette proves water-wise gardens can be vibrant rather than sparse.

Families find their happy place at the Alice in Wonderland playground. Giant red-speckled mushrooms double as climbable sculptures, mirrors distort reflections for giggles, and a wide croquet lawn invites cartwheels as often as mock matches. Clean toilets, free electric barbecues, and plenty of benches mean you can easily turn a quick stroll into an unhurried afternoon. Level pathways keep the whole site welcoming for wheelchairs and prams, and clear signage points to drinking fountains and quiet picnic nooks.

What lifts the gardens above the ordinary is how smoothly the old and new sit side by side. It feels as natural to rest under a century-old oak as it does to wander through cutting-edge planting schemes. Whether you want to sketch heritage trees, collect design ideas for a dry backyard, or simply let children run until they are pink-cheeked and happy, Bendigo Botanic...

A public garden with beautiful flowers and a nice big playground for the kids. It's got a lake/watering hole for the animals that live there.

The extension gives us a cafe and an ampitheatre.

Lots of lovely green grass and trees to give shade. Bbq amenities and tables and chairs.

Entry to white hills swimming pool is just inside one of the multiple gates you can use to enter.

We've attended a wedding here, picnics, birthdays and it's also a good place to play Pokemon go.

Dogs are welcome while on leads as long as you pick up after them.

Lots of concrete and gravel stone like paths so wheelchair and pram access is not a problem at all. Plenty of car parking around the gardens, not too many parking spaces inside the gate, but it's not really needed with how close the other...

We enjoyed our visit to the Bendigo Botanic Gardens. It was a nice quiet and stress free day out, with plenty of parking.

The gardens has a nice variety of vegetation. All plants, trees and flowers featured there names and descriptions.

There is a lake that runs through the gardens which provides lots of shade with the over hanging trees, and is very nice.

The gardens are well looked after and immaculate which makes the experience more enjoyable.

Also features a bird aviary, which was unfortunately closed at the time we visited.

It was great to see that there was plenty of people, including two kids parties being held at the gardens.

Includes free public BBQ and covered outdoor seating space.

The Botanic Gardens is located not far from the Bendigo...