Olbrich Botanical Gardens Review

Nice gardens. Nice location. Friendly for loafers and if you just want a quiet place to sit and take in the gardens.Wish they had more plant labels though.

Always a pretty place to visit with the family. Always something to see. And in the winter it is nice to go get a break from the cold weather and see what is blooming or just soak up the humidity in the conservatory.

Only toured the outside and it was beautiful! And FREE!! The history of the pavilion was pretty awesome too.

When we entered this place, my husband reported our service dog as well as his camera, that wasn t for commercial purpose because the lady at the entrance asked. While my husband was taking pictures of my daughter, Patti comes up to my husband, asking for a photography license, which, of course, we didn t have one as it was for personal use only. Then she approached me and questioned my daughter s service dog, I presented her the ID and the card where it states that the service dog cannot be denied entrance, to which she responded that she didn t need to see the ID, as she will not obey the ADA rules. She was really rude, unpleasant, and was determined to have us leave the premises. Patti is a bitter person and if she s not able to do her job obeying laws in a nicely manner, she should look for another place. The garden is a public place where everyone should enjoy visiting. Looking at the reviews of the garden, I noticed that the common denominator of many of the complaints is Patti not respecting the permits for service dogs and people taking pictures of the place. Her job evaluation should be revised and noted as us tax payers pay for her salary.

Free to walk through the beautiful gardens. The Pavilion is amazing

The garden is beautiful, family-friendly, free, and full of Pokestops!

Beautiful gardens inside and out, stroller friendly, great way to spend an afternoon.

The gardens were beautiful with an incredible variety of flowers, decorative plants, pools and ponds. So many trails to walk each with a different theme.

Beautiful foliage and wonderful scenery with the ONLY Thai style povilian in all of the US

Perfect place to walk around in the Spring, Summer, Fall, and even in the winter where you can visit their greenhouse. There is a variety of flowers and greens, but also scattered among the grounds is various artwork and a temple from Thailand.

Wonderful place. Great place to go and just walk through the gardens, beautiful place fora wedding, excellent service.

Great place to visit. Both indoor and outdoor areas offer a large variety of flowers and foliage.

Beautiful gardens, lovely conservatory, plenty to see and do. Gift shop has afforadable, interesting items. Little ones welcome.

Crackle, gleam and fire event was spectacular. Great night and lovely weather.

A little piece of paradise. Beautifully presented at every turn something wonderful to see. Presently everything is blooming and bursting with greenness. Hundreds of shades of green with hundreds of colorful flowers. Great places to sit in solitude. Bring a camera or your phone - you will take a picture you would like on your wall.

This is our second time here I've always recommended it to anybody and always will it has a wonderful Temple Oriental temple in it I will recommend it to anybody if you're in the area make sure you stop

LITERALLY the most gorgeous place in Madison. Lovely volunteers that are kind, educational, helpful, friendly, and all around fabulous. The outdoor gardens are unmatched by anything I've ever seen. They are natural artwork--just masterpieces. And the greenhouse is unbelievably lush and diversely vibrant (and a great place to visit in the winter if you're missing tropical warmth). All the adorable little birds are a treat. Easily one of my favourite places in all of Madison.

Went here for the orchid show in Jan or Feb of 2020. Glad to see flowers in Winter. The building was stuffed full and packed with people. Lighting in the lecture-room with the sloped glass roof needs to be updated from old big fixtures. First time they're looking forward to going back in better weather.

These well-kept grounds are the perfect place for a spring or summer stroll, or to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. There are a few different areas to explore outdoors as well as an indoor tropical garden. Restrooms onsite are clean and there is also a small gift shop. The best part is that it is free to park on-site and free to enjoy the outdoor gardens. The indoor conservatory can be viewed for free on most Wednesdays and Saturdays between 10 am & 12 pm, but it is worth the $2 per person (or $5 if there is an exhibit) to enter at other times. The views are amazing and you can even see Lake Monona from some areas. (Another neat location to check out is The Biergarten at Olbrich Park which is just down the road and on the lake.)

Wish their were some maps throughout the garden... they have signs that point you in the direction of certain parts, but my husband and I found we often didn't know which parts we hadn't yet seen. Got a little turned around... but the garden is gorgeous nonetheless. We didn't like the art installation that was "cling film" wrapped between tree trunks... I'm an art major and I still don't like it...

Let's start off with some transparency, I'm a paid member of Olbrich Botanical Gardens - I like it that much. But even if you're passing through town or live in Madison and just want to check out a jungle in USDA Zone 5, the glassed in conservatory is a great getaway. ESPECIALLY IN THE WINTER.

Even if you're a winter snow sport fan, what are the worst parts of winter? Ice to slip on, snow to dig, and air that makes your face hurt. For the $3 admission, get away from it all and wander through a warm, humid, lush, tropical rain forest. The paths are well designed and give the feeling of it being much larger than the actual footprint. Benches allow for lingering, and signs tell the story of many of the plants.

I often go there to read - there is no rush. I highly recommend stopping once or, especially in the winter, making it a regular part of your (local) snowbird getaway.

This is a wonderful place to see beautiful plants and seasonal exhibits.

I have visited many botanical gardens both nationally and internationally, and Olbrich still remains my favorite. It is beautifully landscaped and atmospheric and easily one of the top sights in the state. We also had our wedding ceremony and reception here, and Patti was wonderful to work with.

One of my favorite places to visit in madison. I don't know how they pack so much beauty into one area in the middle of madison.

Great place to spend with your thoughts and nature. Lots of interesting water features and a great conservatory.

Very nice . Lots of varieties of flowers & herbs and a very fun family outing!

Oh my, came for butterflies. Beautiful. Glorious. Wonderful. We all loved this experience. Try to incorporate more items in gift shop along butterfly line. Kids love to take home something with them. The display of butterflies is phenomenal. The live butterflies and foliage is incredible.

A friend and I decided to rent the BCycle e-bikes today in the Olbrich Gardens parking lot area. After a nearly hour-long ride, we dropped by the beer stand at Olbrich Park and ordered their "warp speed" draft beer. Quite enjoyed it and I'm not even a big beer drinker! Sat at a table overlooking Lake Monona and chatted while watching the boating activity on the water. Perfect fall weather with the sun still shining and crispness in the air. Doesn't get much better than biking, beer, boat watching and a bestie!

Always fantastic! The indoor atrium is always beautiful and bustling. Even in the winter it's great to walk the outdoor gardens because it's so peaceful.

Love stopping here when we're in the area. Absolutely stunning gardens for next to nothing or free, depending on the time of day/year. Thank you for sharing this with the community!

So peaceful and beautiful. A perfect place to get rid of some calories AND relax your mind while you do it!

Olbrich Garden is a great place to be! They have an exotic collection of plants in a controlled temperature environment and you get to see many different kinds of plants and birds. The rose garden and Thai garden is pretty good too. Nature-lovers will love this place! Great place to spend your time at. Go during fall to see amazing cherry blossoms and tulips in full bloom.

Open right now, beautiful scenery, perfect excuse to get ouy of the house and just walk.

Grew up in the neighborhood and have loved watching the gardens change and expand. Stopped by their plant sale this spring, lots of helpful staff ready to answer questions. Cant wait for GLEAM this summer and the butterfly exhibit!

Gardens are very nice and expansive. They currently have some construction going on which disrupts the scenery, but still a great venue. Conservatory is also very nice.

Flowers in bloom, quiet nooks to stop and continplate. Several paths closed for unknown reasons, so lost a star.