Sydney is full of beautiful surprises, and Auburn Botanic Gardens is one of those. It has one of the most beautiful Japanese gardens in Sydney, a fauna reserve, a playground, maze, picnic areas and more.
The Sydney Cherry Blossom Festival at Auburn Botanic Gardens
The Auburn Botanical Gardens hosts the Sydney Cherry Blossom Festival each August.
In Japanese culture, the cherry blossom symbolises the fragility of life and its beauty. The festival focuses on Japanese Culture and old and modern traditions.
During the Cherry Blossom Festival, you can taste different foods from Japan, learn about flora with the workshops of bonsai and ikebana, watch movies, see some performances and listen to music.
You do need to buy a ticket to enter the Cherry Blossom Festival. The ticket allows you in to a 45-minute timeslot exploring the Cherry Trail Gardens and all day admission into the rest of the Botanic Gardens. Entry is free for all children under 16 and for all Cumberland Council area residents. Adult tickets cost $11.75.
In 2022 you will find a Japanese Food Village, a Putt Putt Course, a Sakura Mocktail Bar and a hello Kitty Garden Party at weekends. There’s also daily dancing, taiko drumming, stories and the art of ikebana, Japanese flower arranging.
Check out more information and book tickets at the Sydney Cherry Blossom website here.
Find out all the other interesting places to visit at Auburn Botanic Gardens here.
Auburn Botanic Gardens Overview
Auburn Botanical Gardens (as the kids call it) is an oasis of serenity in the middle of the vast area of West Sydney.
Located 20 km west of Sydney CBD, the Auburn Botanic Gardens cover a surface of 9.2 hectares of land.
The Auburn Botanic Gardens are composed of several themed gardens and areas:
- The Japanese garden
- the scented garden
- the sunken rose garden
- the Australian native and rainforest garden
- the amphitheatre/open air theatre
- the reflection pool
- the maze
- the fauna reserve
- an equal access playground
- and several picnic areas with barbecues
Our favourite part was the Japanese Garden without a doubt, besides the playground and the fauna reserve.
The only part that was disappointing for us was the maze. But this is because we visited the “a-maze-ing” ‘Parc del Laberint’ in Barcelona not long ago, where we couldn’t find our way out!
Japanese Garden Auburn
The Auburn Japanese Garden is lovely; even in winter, it was still beautiful. My daughters loved exploring these gardens.
These gardens are at their most stunning during the cherry blossom season!
Sydney Cherry Blossom Festival at Auburn Botanic Gardens
The Auburn Botanical Gardens hosts the Sydney Cherry Blossom Festival each August.
In Japanese culture, the cherry blossom symbolises the fragility of life and its beauty. The festival focuses on Japanese Culture and old and modern traditions.
During the Cherry Blossom Festival, you can taste different foods from Japan, learn about flora with the workshops of bonsai and ikebana, watch movies, see some performances and listen to music.
You do need to buy a ticket to enter the Cherry Blossom Festival. The ticket allows you in to a 45-minute timeslot exploring the Cherry Trail Gardens and all day admission into the rest of the Botanic Gardens. Entry is free for all children under 16 and for all Cumberland Council area residents. Adult tickets cost $11.75.
In 2022 you will find a Japanese Food Village, a Putt Putt Course, a Sakura Mocktail Bar and a hello Kitty Garden Party at weekends. There’s also daily dancing, taiko drumming, stories and the art of ikebana, Japanese flower arranging.
Check out more information and book tickets at the Sydney Cherry Blossom website here.
My eldest finding her way on the water path
There is a lake with ducks, geese and koi fish. My eldest –in particular- enjoyed walking over the water paths.
My little one –of course- loved the ducks and the fish, and my middle one had fun hiding in the teahouse.
Also, my daughters, who are quite active, had a blast running downhill the symbolic mountains resembling the green hills of Japan.
The Playground at Auburn Botanic Gardens
The playground, which is wheelchair accessible, is not massive and it is easy to watch the kids. It is designed for mainly early primary school kids.
The playground has several footbridges, some swings, a liberty swing, a “maze-like” area (which is not the maze of the Botanical Gardens that is next to the sunken rose garden), a couple of slippery dips and tunnels.
But the element that my daughters loved most was the animal sounds that you can hear when you press a button.
Auburn Fauna Reserve
The Auburn Fauna Reserve is well designed and kept. Here you can find native animals such as Eastern Grey Kangaroos, Red-necked Wallabies, Emus, Peacocks or even a wombat (who did not show up when we were in there).
The reserve is accessible for prams and wheel chairs and the design of the enclosures allow children to see the animals well.
After such a great morning strolling through the gardens, the fauna reserve was definitively the icing of the cake for my daughters.
They didn’t expect to find kangaroos in the botanical gardens!
We also walked through the scented gardens, the rose garden that didn’t have many roses as it was winter, and the Australian native and rainforest area where we spotted a couple of peacocks.
Visiting Botanical Gardens is quite therapeutic, and educational, too. Children can walk and run freely, but without hazards. Children can discover new and fascinating plants. The gardens stimulate the senses with colours, the smell of flowers and even, textures.
Also, a visit is a good way to teach children how to respect nature in a safe and pleasant environment.
You can extend the visit’s pleasures at home by asking your children to draw a picture or making a collage, or a painting if you are ready for a messy afternoon.
You will be surprised how much they can enjoy relating the experience of the gardens in their creations!
Auburn Botanic Gardens Details
Address: Chisholm Rd & Chiswick Rd, Auburn NSW 2144
Phone number: 02 8757 9000 or 02 9735 1222
Auburn Botanic Gardens Facebook page here
Auburn Botanic Gardens Entry Fee: Free during weekdays. Adults pay $4 at the weekend, except Auburn residents who don’t pay. Kids are always free.
Opening hours: 9am to 5pm every day. During day light saving are open until 6pm at the weekend. But always double check on the Facebook page!
Toilets: Yes, including disabled toilets.
Nearest takeaway coffee: No. This is really a pity! A little kiosk would make Auburn Botanical Gardens the perfect place to chill out and enjoy a beautiful morning.
Enclosed: Yes
Shade: Plenty. But my advice is to avoid going to Auburn Botanic Gardens in a hot summer day.
Western suburbs tend to have higher temperatures than the rest of Sydney as you know and it can be boiling hot without sea breeze.
Spring and autumn are the best season to go. Temperature is mild, and the gardens are like an explosion of bright colours.
Playground: Yes, there are two playgrounds. One is inside the gardens and the other one is outside, next to the car park and barbecue facilities. This last one is not fenced.
The playground inside of the garden has wheelchair accessible equipment, including a liberty swing.
Mum’s report: The botanical gardens Auburn is a great place to explore, especially if you have young children. You can easily spend a couple of hours here.
Go first for a walk and discover the beautiful well maintained Japanese Gardens, ask your children if they can smell the different flowers of the Scented Garden such as frangipani and lavender.
Then allow them to burn some energy in the playground, and reward them visiting the animal enclosures, which is always a bonus.
Extra: Outside the precinct, there is an aviary and an Arts Centre that displays works of local artists.
Nearest station: Auburn Train Station, but, it is probably a too long walk to do with little children. From the station, you can take one of the two free shuttle bus services run by Cumberland Council.
There is a weekday “Access Loop” service on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. At weekends, there is a service called the “Rivers and Gardens Loop”.
Please, note that the bus doesn’t operate on Monday. For more information, check the bus timetable online or call the Cumberland City Council.
Bus stop nearby: Yes, several buses: 909 and S3. Note: always check if there have been changes, before planning your trip.
Auburn Botanic Gardens Parking: Free on-site car park
The Auburn Botanical Gardens was a great discovery. They are beautiful and they are low cost. Yeah!
Sometimes, you don’t need a lot for a happy-exploring morning.
My little daughters had definitively a great time.
Do you know any other places in Sydney that tick all these boxes?
We would love to hear about them.
They also have Miss Kitty for the cherry blossom festival. Walking around great for the kids.
Thank you!
This looks really nice, might try it out this weekend, thanks for the blog update 🙂
Thanks for sharing , we are planning to visit.