Royal Botanic Garden Sydney
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Why go
- See a Wollemi pine; fewer than 100 grow wild in the Blue Mountains.
- Walk through the rainforest garden near the Pyramid glasshouse.
- Discover the palm collection across three separate groves.
- Discover Australian native plants in the rock garden.
Entrances
- Macquarie Street entranceLeads to the Palace Gardens.Macquarie Street
Don't miss
- Cadi Jam Ora – First EncountersThis garden presents First Fleet encounters and features plants that originally grew here. Aboriginal community members helped shape it.Middle Garden, north of the Palm House
- Palm HouseBuilt in 1876, it was restored to its 1912 form and adapted as an exhibition space.Middle Garden
- Women’s memorial gardenA sunken circular garden occupies the site beneath the former Garden Palace dome.Former Garden Palace site
- Rare and Endangered GardenIt displays plants threatened in the wild and plants that have fallen out of fashion in cultivation.North of the Herbarium
What you see
- Sydney Opera House
- The Domain parklands
Shorts
History
Charles Moore and Joseph Maiden designed the garden’s overall structure and key elements. Moore trained at the Botanic Gardens of Trinity College Dublin before directing the Sydney garden for 48 years. The Cahill Expressway cut through the garden, destroyed part of Fig Tree Avenue and separated the garden from the Domain. An eastern succulent and cacti garden was built near Mrs Macquarie’s Road. The former herbarium was adapted into a visitor centre, shop and exhibition space.
- 1788Australia’s first farm was established at Farm Cove, beginning cultivation on the site.
- 1816Governor Macquarie founded the garden as part of the Governor’s Domain.
- 1817Charles Fraser became the first Colonial Botanist, expanding plant study and collection.
- 1825Governor Brisbane ordered an experimental garden west of Farm Cove Creek to prepare plants for export and acclimatise imports.
- 1833Four sections were recognised: botanic, fruit, experimental and kitchen gardens.
Show all
- 1847Moreton Bay figs were planted along the main public entrance from Macquarie Street.
- 1848–1879Charles Moore organised a seawall and land reclamation at Farm Cove, expanding the Lower Garden.
- 1848–1896Charles Moore directed the garden, shaping its modern form and addressing soil, water and funding problems.
- 1852The first Sydney-based herbarium collection began.
- 1862The Palm Grove was established near the Middle Garden.
- 1862–1883Sydney’s first zoo operated in the garden; most of it moved to Moore Park in 1883.
- 1879The Garden Palace hosted an international exhibition attended by more than a million people.
- 1880A 53-step stone stairway was cut into the escarpment north of Bennelong Point as a garden boundary.
- 1882The Garden Palace burned down; eight hectares of garden were added in the Palace Garden area after the fire.
- 1901An obelisk was placed in a central pond over Allan Cunningham’s relocated remains.
- 1936The former aviary and zoo site became a succulent garden.
- 1959The garden gained the title “Royal” after Queen Elizabeth II landed at Farm Cove.
- From 1965Redesigns and expansions included the tropical greenhouse, rose garden, Oriental Garden and fern garden.
- 1970–1971A glasshouse with a spiral staircase opened for viewing tropical plants at different growth levels.
- 1982A new herbarium named for Robert Brown opened, with collections housed in 55,000 specially designed red plastic boxes.
- 1988–1997The rose garden opened in 1988, the fern garden in 1993, the herb garden in 1994 and the Oriental Garden in 1997. The latter lies west of the lotus pond, on a site with Asian associations dating to 1917.
- 2012The gardens served as the finish setting for the eighth-season finale of Pékin Express.
Sources: Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney - Wikipedia · Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney - Wikipedia (part … · Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney - Wikipedia (part … · Royal Botanic Gardens (Sydney) - Wikipedia · Jardins botaniques royaux de Sydney - Wikipedia · checked 24 Sep 2026
- Phone
- +61292318111
Plan from here: Evening walk →
Questions and answers
Which streets border the garden?
Macquarie Street borders the northwest and Art Gallery Road the east; Sydney Harbour lies to the north.
Where did the East India Company windmill stand?
In the Domain near Government House stables, close to a huntsman statue that remains in the garden.
Was a scene from The Matrix Revolutions filmed here?
Yes. The film’s closing scene was filmed in the garden.
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