Wow...That's my experience...I was so impressed, I purchased a membership. I will return here, one can spend days, weeks and months and not see it all. Kudos and thank you to the Meijer family for being so civic minded and philanthropic.
Beautiful! Had a great first experience after meeting Dorothy who has volunteered there for over 20 years. We laughed and learned a lot with Dorothy, thank you!
Great staff and volunteers. All super helpful and friendly! Saw the Christmas tree exhibition and it was amazing.
So much to see! And really clean for such a large and popular facility.
Truly a spectacular special place.
It is a definite must visit when in Grand Rapids.
Nothing will put you in the Christmas spirit like Meijer gardens
This place is so beautiful! The flowers and decorations change throughout the year. The butterfly exhibit is my favorite. They also have artwork, a gift shop, and a great place to eat lunch.
A Grand Rapids gem! Beautiful gardens, interesting sculptures, and kid-friendly activities. The summer concert series is excellent as well.
Beautiful place for a wedding ceremony and reception.
This place a nice, quiet and peaceful. It is a great place to take your eyes on vacation.
So many awesome things to see and do for the whole family! Butterfly garden in the spring is worth the trip. The family membership is worth it if you live within a few hours.
Best place to see a concert, and I've seen a lot of concerts!
Always an awesome experience. The Pokemon Go playing is also very good. There are over 20 spinners and 6 it more Gyms.
I LOVE Frederik Meijer Gardens! Such a cool place to come explore, they have a lot of events, they have tons of kids activities throughout the year, the gardens are meticulously maintained, staff is friendly, building is clean... Etc etc!
Absolutely beautiful. Fantastic variety of installations. Great way to spend an afternoon.
I went there on a field trip and had a great time. You should take the Tram ride. It was a very informative ride.
This is a stunning place, whether your passion is plants, art, nature, exploring, or simply spending quality time with loved ones, there are plenty of things to do here. Many exhibits are interactive, and there is even a Children's Garden that has fun activites, with special events throughout the week. If you are planning on seeing the whole thing, I suggest making a few trips over several days. My family and I have been here six or seven times since we discovered it eight months ago, and we have barely seen half of everything. I recommend buying a membership, because you will want to come back over and over again. There are also discounted prices on tickets for students, and children under 3 years old are free.
Not handicapped friendly! Disappointing concert venue. My husband and I attended the Toto concert tonight, and while the band sounded amazing, our experience was unacceptable. First, the associate checking bags, grabbed my bottle of tea from our cooler, and as she was running away with it, said I couldn't bring it in because it was open, and proceeded to dump my entire $3.00 drink in the bushes. My husband could have taken it back to the car. Every attendant we encountered harassed my husband about his chair, which turned out to be 34," two inches over their ridiculous height requirement. I understand they have their rules, but when the venue and the band encourage everyone to stand, why worry about the height of the chairs? The white plastic chairs they provided those with "illegal chairs," were taller than my husband's! Furthermore, I am disabled, and the handicapped seating is situated so that when everyone stands up in front of you, you can see nothing. I spent the whole evening staring at the backs of other concertgoers, with only a rare glimpse of the band. My husband and I attend a lot of concerts, and this one was by far our worst experience!
It is my "go-to" place on Mondays with my kids and friends! Staff is very friendly and helpful. I suggest this place to all my out-of-town friends to visit when they are looking for things to do. Oh yeah and the music, the music! A great place for the family all around.
Great place to take a family for a stroll through art and sculpture.
We have been members for two years, we love that we can take our toddler there year round. The seasonal events are awesome!
Looking at the rooms for a wedding venue, the Christmas trees were beautiful too
It's a great place to walk around and enjoy different areas of nature. They do a good job of putting plants that have different textures and colors next to each other so it's not just green. Might be harder for older people or wheel chair users to go through the Japanese garden due to uneven paths, but most areas are well paved.
Great place to take a walk and snap a few pictures if you have a camera. Great for kids too.
B-e-a-utiful! Little pricey, but after getting in I understood why. My 3 boys (ages 5, 7, and 9) loved it. They made it over 2 hours inside the butterfly exhibit and greenhoise rooms before they began showing the tell-tale signs of boredom! Then we went outside and they could have lasted another 3 hours but closing time came up and we jad to leave.
Fantastic gardens and sculpture. The new Japanese garden is a must see.
Very cool experience, I went when the butterfly room was open. Definitely recommend if you're visiting Grand Rapids
I take my daughter there every year for the butterflies exhibit. Great place!
Lovely, charming, and magical. So wonderful to explore the tropical gardens and hear canaries singing in the dead of winter. Came to see the Christmas tree display and was amazed at the intricacies of each tree, and I marveled at the work that went into them. The temporary display area of replicas of Grand Rapids and local area landmarks (Big Red Lighthouse in Holland), made of all natural materials still boggles my mind! The mini train and cars running through the area will be delightful for children. The Victorian Garden and desert gardens were also a amazing, along with the "man eating" plant garden. I live in Holland and this was my first visit to the gardens since they were open. I am mentally kicking myself two weeks later for not having gone sooner! I can't wait until spring for the butterfly hatching, and exploring the outdoor gardens and sculptures. Please dont hesitate to go. Weekdays of course are best due to a lower volume of visitors. They are under construction, adding several thousand more square feet so it will be even more amazing! Also I might add that the volunteer docents are well educated on displays, helpful, and incredibly pleasant.
Great place. Lots of new stuff. Always a pleasure to to walk through.
Love this place! Need to start getting a family membership. A bonus was the corpse flower was blooming!!!!
Lots of things for kids, and the butterflies were beautiful.
We went for the christmas trees from around the world exhibit. It was beautiful to be here at night with all the decor. As always the gardens are beautiful and the railway garden buildings were remarkable. Highly recommended, though there is much more to see when the weather is warmer.
Beautiful, Eve in children's garden spent time with us, loved the Japanese garden
A West Michigan treasure, worth the visit every time!
I had my wedding there in the Victorian and Seasonal Greenhouse. The night went perfectly and the space was so amazing. Everyone who helped out with the night was so great. The food was amazing and the staff were so helpful and accommodating to anything that popped up. I want to thank Ericka for helping me plan the whole thing and Sierra for her work with the dinner and reception. They and their staff were so great. High praise for all of them. I highly recommend holding an event or wedding here.
Always a great experiance in any season, and any weather.
Presently 145 sculptures are on display placed in the entryway, main building, and along the 5 miles of path and walkways. You are never more than 100 feet from a sculpture, except on the Frey Boardwalk. The sculptures include traditional, modern and interprative. Please do not touch the sculptures.
Please stay on paved walkways and mowed lawn areas only.
If my count is right, there are 14 waterfalls and 3 fountains in the Gardens. 2 of each are turned off for the winter.
Flowers, shrubs, trees and seasonal decor are visible everywhere. Numerous named gardens include: The New American Garden, Frog Garden, Ram's Garden, Volunteer Tribute Garden, English Bulb Garden, Shade Garden, Children's Garden, Farm Garden, and the resplendent Japanese Garden. Please do not pick or damage plants.
Starting in early spring numerous amphibians and waterfowl begin to appear and nest in the wetlands and various ponds.
Flower shows and other special events take place throughout the year.
Now for details based on Google questions:
Most restrooms are standard ladies and men's rooms. There are family restrooms in the main building and the Children's Garden. There are unisex restrooms at the Farm and Japanese Gardens.
There are 3 picnic pavilions alone the walkway from the parking areas. No cooking is alowed.
Inside the Gardens, there are 3 areas where eating is alowed: The Garden Cafe, a snack area on the lower level across from the cafe, and a patio area in the Children's Garden. Eating is also allowed in the Amphitheater on concert dates.
Handicapped parking spaces may be full at busy times. However, there is a covered area where you can drop off passengers and then park in the main lot. Free wheelchairs are also available in this area.
Top this off with a large group of helpful volunteers and staff.
Beautiful gardens. A wonderful way to spend the afternoon.
What a fun night of jewelry making. Everyone was so nice and gracious. The Christmas trees are beautiful
It's my hometown garden center in Grand Rapids Charter Township, MI.
The place has very beautiful gardens and sculptures. Plus they have a band shell with great music. You won't get bored.
Great staff and amazing sculptures; great for kids!
Went to see the Christmas trees from around the world,worthwhile experience.
We visit FMG every year during spring break. We live the butterflies as well as the outdoor areas for children to play. The staff is always so good about interacting with everyone including the kids. The facility is always extremely clean and smells great. The green screen in the children's area is a very fun addition!
Amazing place, everyone will find something to enjoy. I particularly liked the Christmas trees from around the world.
What an amazing place full of art. Lots of flower and plants.
Beautiful, sprawling gardens and sculpture park. Plan on spending a few hours here to really take everything in!
My husband and I took our kids there in April, mainly to see the Butterfly Exhibit. I hadn't been there in years. It was nice, but there weren't nearly as many butterflies as I'd seen there in the past. The staff were all extremely friendly, but over all the experience wasn't as much fun as what if expected it would be.
Amazing!!! Beautiful people and atmosphere top spot to visit while visiting!
The construction right now is a little crazy. But I would like to go back I warmer weather
My family and I loved checking out the butterflies for spring break. Lots of construction happening but it's good to see growth at the gardens. I have attended the butterfly exhibit in years past during spring break time and experienced long lines and waits, which ultimately means cranky kids. This time felt much smoother. Still waited in line to pay, but it much quicker. The botanical garden was a little crowded, but I understand it was busy. It was nice enough outside to check out the children's garden. Kids loved the tree house. Great day!
In my top 5 gardens. There is a lovely children's park. The Japanese garden is wonderful. The people in the shop were kind. They wrapped up my succulents and put them in a nice container. The sculptures are fun to see. The landscaping around the walkways and in the parking lot is beautiful. I'm really glad I got to come to this garden. My family spent longer than we expected here and it was great. My one complaint is that I was very thirsty. I just needed water. I'm not going to lie, I was tempted to drink from the fountains, but I practiced self control.
Pro tip: bring water (at least while Covid is here)
Aristocratic place . They have organized every section so beautifully . Walking through the place you can see different sculpture .Children corners is a good place for toddlers .One of the best features of the garden is Japanese garden, It almost felt like i am seeing Japan infront of my eyes.Another beautiful attraction of the garden is a fall. This place will look great during fall season ,i am looking forward to go there again.
We visited for the first time during our honeymoon. Since then, we have been back 3 times and now have a membership. Anytime we're in GR we love to swing by.
Very picturesque place in autumn time. Specially Japanese Garden.
It was an absolute pleasure to visit these gardens. Both the botanical and sculpture gardens were breathtaking. Every staff member we spoke to was very kind and very accommodating. My favorite exhibits were the Japanese garden, the farm garden, and the various smaller enclosed green houses by the entrance. A trip here is very much worth the money.
Beautiful gardens and facility. An absolute must visit if in Grand Rapids
One of the best spot to see live music in Michigan!
Beautiful place! Lots to look at and experience; you need at least 2 visits to really walk around and see everything.
It was easy to spend a few hours here exploring the vast and interesting grounds of the Gardens; unique sculptures, authentic Japanese Teahouse, waterfalls and much more. One of the highlights of my trip to Grand Rapids.
Fantastic place to visit this cold winter. Hundreds of beautiful butterflies flying around. Had a great time with the grandkids watch the colorful butterflies flit around.
Love visiting the gardens, whether for a walk or to take photos. The construction is a bit obtrusive but it is only making way for better things. Check out the new rooftop garden!
