Cape Fear Botanical Garden

What lovely, charming place in Fayetteville, NC…Cape Fear Botanical Gardens is a must see for everyone…residents & visitors. It’s 77 acres of gorgeous plants and specimens, but it is especially gorgeous during the Christmas holidays when it is decorated like a magical Christmas garden with something that will appeal to everyone. The Garden is extra special during the holidays especially during the evenings when it appears as a magical fantasy come to life. Believe me, you will not regret time spent walking the many pathways thru trees, butterflies, reindeer, and twinkle lights galore. Please just be very careful of the many roots & stumps that occur naturally on the pathways & are extremely difficult to see with only Christmas lighting & stars in the sky. Photos with Santa are available. Be sure to stop and have a hot chocolate by the fire and maybe a few S’mores.

We went for the Halloween event and it was beautiful. We got lucky and the weather was absolutely perfect for walking around at night. They had thousands of lights and some really impressive decorations, especially the themed skeletons. Even though it was a little busy there was plenty of room to move through the gardens and enjoy all the extra activities they offered for kids to have a great time. I definitely will go back if they have a Christmas event and next Spring/summer to see the flowers and trees. My daughter thoroughly enjoyed the Halloween event.

Very lovely botanical garden! Love that it is all outside and that you can take your time, at your own pace. Loved that they had trails that took you all over the grounds and down near the river. If you love being outside and being one with nature, then I would HIGHLY recommend coming here!! Would definitely be coming back next time I am in the area.

Great place. Ther is a lot of land to cover here. Different little sections. We found ourselves on the river trail and I thought it was endless. Worried we would need to turnaround but then it circled back. Great place to stretch your legs for some steps. Plenty of kids stuff.

It was beautiful there! I got married at the gazebo. The receipt said it will be on a "Lawn" but there was NO grass and it was muddy on the trails. Definitely won't go unless its spring or summer if I ever go back. And I don't think its dog friendly either. Its a 3 star because of the mud and misconception of the contract. It even said on a section on the contract where we were being charged for tables and chairs but there were no chairs or tables available. They told me that they do not personalize every contract. So misinterpreted.

I had the opportunity to plan an event at CFBG. My clients and I worked with Brian Tyler. He was responsive to every need we had throughout the 14 month planning process for our mutual client. I would recommend this location to clients for future events and would be glad to work with Brian as well!

Nice place to go with kids. Easy trail, not too long, a lot of trees, beautiful landscapes. The kids loved!

Cape Fear Botanical Garden was the unexpected enchanted forest detour we didn’t know we needed after a long highway haul. Just minutes off the road and suddenly—you’re strolling through winding paths, towering trees, and fields that seem sprinkled with fairy dust (or maybe it was just all the butterflies fluttering around like tiny tour guides). If you’re looking to stretch your legs without the crowds and chaos, this place is pure magic. It’s quiet, calming, and full of surprises around every leafy corner. Bridges! Blooms! A gazebo that looks like it came from a storybook! Even the bathrooms were pristine—which, let’s be honest, is a rare and glorious find during a road trip with a toddler. So grateful we stopped. If we lived closer, we’d be back every weekend with walking shoes, snacks, and butterfly nets (for admiration only, of course). 🌿🦋

This was a cute botanical garden. They decorated nicely for the holidays. Would have been nice to see the lights at night but regardless, nice grounds to walk around.

I have been several times now and never just to look at the garden itself! There are many great events held here all year round. I have been to a concert in the garden, the Christmas lights display, and most recently a candlelight orchestra experience! Every visit, I am in awe of the beautiful location and the friendly staff. The area is really large and well kept...just a wonderful place in Fayetteville.

I has my wedding here and it was absolutely amazing. The staff are very helpful and make sure you're taken care of throughout the whole planning process. I definitely recommend this venue for your events

If I could give it a zero star I would. Back in late May I had a friend visit so since I had never visited CFBG I thought it might be a nice experience. My husband has very little gardening experience, but our yard was almost in full bloom at the time, so we just knew things would be even more beautiful there. Well we were so wrong. We could not have been more disappointed!!!! When arriving the entrance was very inviting quite a few beautiful plants and flowers blooming. There was a memorial service going on in the building next to it, and there was no clear marking for the entrance of the actual botanical garden. After asking we did find entrance. We entered purchase our expensive tickets was not greeted, had to ask which way we needed to start. Made our way out to the "garden" my friend is like where are the flowers, plants garden statues etc. we continue to walk and walk. The trees and bushes were green we saw a few what looked like hosta's still no flowers. They had a few benches a swing along the trails, but they were unkept. The wood was splintered and needed to be repaired and repainted. When finished trying to find a place to snap at least a couple pictures we gave up and left very disappointed. While walk ran into two other couples one from out of town, the other from GA. They were very disappointed as well. We exchanged information. I shared a place in Durham with both of them. One later messaged me to thank me and let me know how much nicer it was there than Cape Fear Botanical Gardens of Fayetteville . I totally agree. I decided to let the lady at the front know how disappointing our experience was. Her response was well it's early in the season a lot of stuff hasn't bloomed yet. My friend commented how beautiful my yard was already. The lady just said well I'm sorry. I decided to send a written concern thinking they would care, they did not. Please do not give this unkept place your hard earned $$$ it is not worth it. Raleigh and Durham have so beautiful areas and even though this is my hometown and I'd rather spend my dollars here I refuse to support businesses that do not care about their customers.

If you have young children this place is amazing. We are traveling down the east coast to Florida and needed somewhere to stretch our legs. This place far exceeded our expectations. We have only been to about 20% of the gardens and we visited for 2 hours. My toddler absolutely loved the children's area and it was extremely impressive. Will be stopping there again on our next trip.

Have you ever driven past someplace for years with a set expectation? Well that is how I was about this place. Y'all, I was so wrong. This place was amazing. We had such a good time. Just beautiful and so much larger than I expected.

Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children (free under 5). The winter hours are 10 am to 4 pm Monday to Saturday (and 12 pm to 4 pm on Sundays). For summer, it's 9 am to 5 pm. They have group rates (more than 25 people) for $8 for adults and $4 for children. Overall, it's a pretty large garden that has multiple trails for a nice walk. The longest loop is over a mile. This place makes a great place to host a reception or other event. I came here in the fall so the garden wasn't as booming, but I was still able to capture some beautiful greenery and flora! There is a pond that has some koi fish that you can feed. A bag of fish treats are only $1 at the gift shop so pick some up before heading out to explore the garden!

Options are limited for parks around Fayetteville. The botanical garden offers a secluded space, partly with built up infrastructure, and partly with rougher trails (often closed due to flooding) which overlook the river. It's not especially scenic, but it is nature. The grounds are good for an hour or two walk, and there are a variety of cultivated displays. There's also plenty of construction going on as of this writing. The price-especially if you're a one-time visitor driving by-is pretty high for the scope of what's there. I have a membership and I think I'll use it marginally enough to be worthwhile. The garden also is a bit cut off from everything; the Cape Fear River Trail doesn't link up to this site (though I'm under the impression that construction is headed this way), and the cross creek trail from Fayetteville's downtown is incomplete and frankly unsafe. I could imagine future development making the botanical gardens into a much livelier place, for for now, this is what we have.

Awesome garden twice I have been here the fall Halloween theme is awssome. Visited the General store, tobacco building, and mich more

Cape Fear Botanical Garden was a disappointing venue. They were hosting a wedding near the water while I was there so this seems what the main function of the facility is used for rather than horticulture. Admission is $10 so that was pretty steep. The building you pay admission is nice as is the area right outside the main building with flowers near the water as you can see in the photos. But the rest is a walk through the woods on unlevel ground so remember to bring your bug spray as we got so many mosquito bites. We kept hoping to see something but when we realized there was nothing to see there was not a way to turn back. The fawn running across the path was the highlight. North Carolina has so many beautiful gardens but Cape Fear Botanical Garden is not one of them.

Visiting this botannical garden during the off-season wasn't the result of bad planning, it was the result of necessity. So the pictures don't show a lot of color, or much growing at all in late February. That said, there is no discount on the entry fee, $10 for adults. I managed to find a few camellias, which are winter bloomers. The grounds consist of 80 acres located between the Cape Fear River and Cross Creek only a couple miles from downtown Fayetteville, itself a tourist-worthy destination. Probably best to visit in late Spring, Summer or Autumn.

Visiting Cape Fear Botanical Garden was a delight. You start off at the pong where you can feed the fish for one dollar which you buy in the gift shop before hand. The koi fish are very large and there are many of them and makes for an entertaining time. The Children's garden had a "tree house" which consists of a wooden trail, cool for the kiddos and leads into the Camilla garden. Unfortunately they had mostly bloomed during our visit (April 29). The roses were in bloom and smelled delightful. The garden has several paths some of which are undeveloped following the creek/ river near by. It was a beautiful day and had many sights. The river trail was closed due to wind damage, but I am sure is a nice walk. Cute gift shop with fun chachkies.

I attended a wedding reception here last June and this was the perfect spot for it. We had a chance to enjoy some drinks outside. Some people took advantage to wander the grounds; I opted to sip on some drinks in the meanwhile. The ballroom (if that's the right terminology for it) was wonderful - the dance floor was strategically placed in the center, and the tables around it, so everyone could get a view of everything. If you are considering this venue for your upcoming wedding, definitely take a peek!

I've been to a number of events at the Cape Fear Botanical Garden. It's a first rate venue in Fayetteville. It has some beautiful space. I'm almost ashamed to say I haven't seen the gardens or seen it at Christmas. I plan to tour the actual gardens and see it at Christmas this year.

As far as botanical gardens go this one is very good for its location. You immediately feel a sense of peace and tranquility when you walk in, and there is a range of fauna to see. I particularly enjoyed the woodlands walk by the river, and also the herb and vegetable garden by historic barns and an old home, preserved. The heat was absolutely sweltering and was pretty much beat after an hour of walking around. Would love to go back when it's cooler out. The price was $10 to enter (plus tax) was high I thought was rather reasonable.

Today was a great day to have a family day trip. It has been a long time since we visited , that is why we enjoyed the fresh air and scenery with the grand kids and family. If in Fayetteville this is a must visit location. We even saw a family having a birthday party.

It was beautiful all the flowers had bloomed they had a big lake but it was polluted I saw one butterfly and lots of bees this botanical garden is taken care of very nicely it had only cost us $24 for the whole day basically

Beautiful. Loved wandering though the garden. So many avenues of plants. Never ending adventures.

Great place to go to with kids as well as for adults alone. The garden is very well kept and cared for.

At first, I didn't think there wasn't anything to do in the Fayetteville area until I discovered the Cape Fear Botanical Garden. While most of my pics probably say it all, I will point out that the staff is friendly and knowledgable and the grounds are well maintained. Part of the park was closed due to some past flooding damage but this place is still worth visiting...even in the winter. If note, this place is popular for wedding and other events with it's modern hall facility located in the main building. I will visit this place again during my next trip out here. While you are at it, you may want to add the Museum at Cape Fear to your day trip. It is only 15 minutes away, will take you less than 90 minutes to complete and will help you round out the day.

I think if you visit Fayetteville this is probably the best place to visit. It's a lot bigger than you think (hence the entrance fee) but once inside This place is definitely worth it. It feels like an entire little Forest with many different things to explore. From watching the turtles swim in the pond to butterflies fluttering through, the garden is more than you think. There is also a farm with vegetables to check out as well. It's great for kids and I would come back if I'm ever in town. Definitely a gem in Fayetteville.

This is a poor excuse for a "botanical garden". It looks like they went through with a chain saw and cut out a trail through the Woods and that's about it. This is not a botanical garden, it's an event space at the front and that's about it. Don't waste your money.

I was here in July, and the garden did leave a little to be desired. maybe 2.5 stars? Prob depends on what time of year you go, they did give a military discount, and it was less expensive price for kids. Tho compared to the surrounding area, it was nice to be able to go to the gardens and see a little green. It made for a nice walk through the woods, tho there was no real river view... prob too low due to season... and there was also a heritage area to see old buildings and tractors... the day lillies were also blooming and I could see other pluses to this place like a nice picnic area and gazebo wedding part... the butterfly garden which was small and had no real butterflies, and a kids area, but they were all kind of small. I could see them developing this into a really nice space, the woman who check us in assured us they were in the process of planting more things.

I'm not sure where to begin. Let's start with DO NOT waste your money! I literally paid $19.23 to walk through the woods with my husband! There was no tour guide or any instruction, the lady at the desk said here's a map. The map is in black and white and just a bunch of dots that I assume are trees on it. The bait you with the nice exterior and when you pay and walk outside it looks beautiful but right after that it's literally woods and trees and bulky rocks. I wanted to get married here, but I feel like I was deceived.

Meh. Not all that much to see. Seems like the majority of the "botanical garden" is just walking through woods. We did enjoy the Camelia section. And some of the azaleas have bloomed already, which was very lovely. $10 admission is pretty steep. $5 would have been more appropriate. We drove and hour and 15 minutes to get there. Glad we didn't go much further. It was disappointing but we did enjoy being able to be out in nature on a lovely spring day.

one would think a botanical garden in late spring would be full of color with various plants blooming. we were so disappointed today when we went there and hardly saw any plants blooming except a few roses and irises. The plant and shrub areas looked dry and unkempt. we always check reviews prior to going to a location and apparently things have gone downhill. Was not even worth the price of admission. To put it in perspective we have more flowers and shrubs blooming with different colors at our residence than this place. Hopefully they will start to take care of the place. Was truly sad. For the time being, I'd save your money

Well, for the area, this was a pretty blah Garden. I lived in a bigger city prior and this was more like my mother's garden in the backyard, just with a better view. I took my mom here during her first visit to Fayetteville, and there was no real river view and maybe, just maybe it's more beautiful during another time of the year, but in March...eh. They need a bit more going on, definitely not worth the 8$ admission fee they charge.

As the Horticulture Director of another Carolina botanical garden, I can say "ignore the negative reviews". This garden is a great asset for tourists as well as locals. Plant specimens are well identified yet without too many distracting signs. Botanists should visit the gardens to see the rare Florida Torreya (in the conifer collection). The small staff of gardeners and volunteers do an excellent job of maintaining the gardens in spite of their challenges (public gardens can't survive on fees, they depend on large donations from major benefactors). Like all other public botanical gardens, visitors must call or look online for pet, food and photography rules. Visitors who write negative reviews because they don't make an effort to research garden rules before visiting should be given a bad-reviewer score.

My daughter and I visited the Botanical Gardens this past weekend. It being November there weren't many things in bloom but still a beautiful area. I was there to do some photography for a field trip for my beginning photography class. Let me tell you, instead of being welcoming and informative, the lady at the admissions desk made sure to let you know that pictures normally would cost $250.00 for the year and your not allowed to use any pictures for this, and this and this. I was almost to scared to walk in the place. I wasn't sure she was even going to let me in until my instructor came up to let her know I was part of the class. I only gave three stars because I can see there is a lot of care and work done to get the area in shape and can imagine how much more beautiful it is when everything is in bloom. The trail walks are beautiful and there are some wonderful river walk areas. I've been told that they do have a lot of different functions that are fun and interesting to attend, but have not experienced them myself first hand. Very beautiful, very large, gardens, but for $10.00 per person for admission, I'll put it in my gas tank and drive around North Carolina and find just as beautiful scenery for free that I can photograph without fear of what my image rights are for the pictures I take.

We went here around the last week of August. There didn't seem to be a lot in bloom but it was still pretty. I think we will probably want to go back in the spring to see more flowers. CHILDREN FRIENDLY: We had my recently new to walking nephew with us and he enjoyed running around. The children's section was pretty small with a sand box and a few big sculptures. He played in the sandbox but enjoyed running back and forth over the bridges the best. We did have a stroller and I was hard to navigate on the rocky parts of the trails. ATTRACTIONS: None of the working farm buildings were open and they looked really cool. As I said above, I think we were there in an offseason and would probably enjoy it more if it were spring. The water features and gazebo were perfect places to stop and sit for a minute. CAFE/GIFT STORE: Such a pretty building. We ordered wraps from the cafe - we were a little disappointed they were pre-made and mine was definitely soggy and not very good. However we sat in the beautiful lobby area and enjoyed the air conditioning. The Gift Store was cute too, had lots of pretty garden knick-knacks. The staff was really friendly.

It was ok. FYI go there comfortable and with bug spray. My friend and I went there trying to be cute and it was not a good idea the flowers were pretty though.

Whew. Where to start. I've come here two years in a row for the Christmas lights. Last year was underwhelming to say the least. You pay a pretty hefty price to see lights that you can see in peoples yard for free. They just throw random lights in random spots with no rhyme or reason. None of it looks thought out. This year, I thought they would get their crap together and try a bit harder...but no. Instead, they brought in over priced food carts (3$ for Swiss miss hot chocolate?!) same crappy lights strung randomly. There was SO MANY PEOPLE IN LINE...they had to have made a killing this holiday season..but I feel like they are getting greedy, because I know they know Fayetteville families don't have much to entertain themselves in this town...so this is really the only Christmas light place to go, they really take advantage of that by doing half-ass cheap decorations and charge outrageous prices. I will NOT be coming back next year , I'll just drive around my hood for free (okay, maybe 3.50$ in gas)

Probably the prettiest piece of "nature" you're gonna find in the Fayetteville area. 10 dollars for adult, 9 dollars for military, and kids under 5 years of age were free. Got to see a lot of different types of plants as well as several different insects and even a snake. The area is roughly 80 acres and the trails are very well defined and maintained. They also display the names of most of the plants along the trails with small placards. There was a small children's area, but it wasn't anything too exciting. Nice place to go check out, but probably wouldn't go back all the time based on what seemed to be a rather high cost, especially if you're bringing the whole family. If you've never been though and want to get out to "nature" without driving to far, I would definitely recommend this place.

It's super pretty here but they don't allow bikes or pets which is unfortunate. The staff seemed kind of snooty and I'm not a fan of dealing with folks like that. I love the gardens but wish the employees were somewhat friendly.

I recently stoped at the Cape Fear Botanical Gardens on a long I-95 trip. We needed a place to let the kids run from being in the car. This was a gorgeous facility. We actually got sandwiches and had a picnic in the picnic shelter. The kids ran on all the paths, played in a sand area, and explored all the unique gardens. Everything was extremely well kept. The inside facilities were also very clean. I would highly recommend this to anyone traveling through.

They have really done some major improvements to this place! The new trails and plant and flower displays are great. Bring some food and this is a great picnic spot. The new building is super nice and a great place to host large get togethers or weddings.

I love this place. Great for walking and photography. Obviously it's better when things are growing and in bloom. I've been here in the Winter also and love it.

What can you say about a botanical garden? It cost $8 to get in and let me tell you, it was not worth it. The map that was provided was not as accurate as it should have been. For instance it tells you that one trail has a vista overlook of the Cape Fear river when in fact it goes no where near the river. The trails should be color coded and then marked as such. There is a run down stage in a large open field that may hold events but none were listed anywhere. The gift shop was wildly over priced. Post cards were $2.50. Shirts were $25ish. They have a beautiful building that looks recently completed, so they're probably trying to pay it off. There were a couple of areas where they took pains to bring in interesting looking plants and create aesthetically pleasing gardens but most of the park was just open wilderness with a trail. The one positive thing I can say is that they had at least five projects that were done for Eagle Scout service projects and they were marked with plaques.

To take pictures of kids for their prom with a CELL PHONE, they said it's a "photo shoot" and will be $150.00. How about putting that on your website??

Very cool place for a couple hour walk. Seems like a lot of thought (and money) has gone into the planning/layout of the garden. Very well maintained!

This location used to be amazing, friendly, and all around a great place to go. After the renovations, the charges went up and it seemed that the owners catered to functions more so than everyone else. Photography is prohibited unless you pay $250 for a yearly pass, even for those simply sightseeing.

This place is really great, there is something for everyone, including kids. It is about $10 on average per person, but children are lower rates. There is a military discount of 10%. We are locals, and we got to this venue for special events about once a year. This year we went to Art & Flowers, and really liked it. We went here while we were house shopping in 2012 to see what local landscaping looks like. We took notes and photos of many of the plants and shrubs, which are most if not all native plants. Once we bought a house, we planted many of the things that we saw in the gardens here at Cape Fear Botanical.

We have been to many botanical gardens and this is the worst one ever. Poison Ivey grew all over the the whole area and on one of the bridges. When I told one of the workers in the gift shop she said it was probably Virginia creeper. I know the difference and it is poison Ivey. This whole "garden" is like walking in the woods on a trail. There were even sighs identifying plants that weren't there. The round area that you see as you come up from the parking lot is mostly dirt with no flowers. There were a few areas that looked nice....like where they hold the weddings...but paying almost twenty dollars for two was a great disappointment.

The place is over priced and they charge ridicules money for photography. I was there with my daughter and they didn't let us use our camera unless we pay $150 per hour. They places looked like my back yard at that time and they want $150 per hour for that. The staff is very rude. It used to be a nice place but after renovation of the building, it's somewhere where I would not recommend and I won't go there anymore.

I went here with my husband and baby shortly after moving to the area. I personally love plants and gardening so I really enjoyed the garden. It's nice to be able to just walk around and read about all the plants. They have a lot of really interesting sections. The staff is super friendly and helpful as well. It ended up pouring rain while we were there and they gave us two free passes into the garden to come back on a day with better weather. I plan on going back after my daughter learns to walk and let her run around in the children's garden

I would have never expected to find a place like this in Fayetteville. I have walked around a couple of times here and I went to a concert event on a Thursday. This place is a great way to relax and unwind. If you have kids I think they have activities for them also.

Nice place to walk shady so not to hot even on a hot day. There are plenty of places to sit along the trail. Plenty of different activities during the year. No trash cans for some reason.

Merry Christmas! If you are looking for an inexpensive family evening for the holidays, look no more! Look no more! With each year that passes, the Christmas Light Event becomes larger and more festive! This year, every part of the garden was decked out! As we strolled from the entrance through the gardens, holiday photo ops were everywhere. The quaint gazebo featured a short video of a classic Santa wishing everyone a Merry Christmas. Open fires were available for making s'mores. The General Store was headquarters for photos with a charming Santa. A variety of background Christmas music could be heard including the musical Christmas Tree to a variety of Choirs . We saw tractor hayrides with riders singing..... our stroll ended in the gift shop, of course...there was a gift for everyone on ones list! There were unique Christmas tree ornaments to stocking stuffers and gifts for the gardener! A MUST SEE for the Holidays!