Hortus Botanicus

Remarkably dense and interesting botanical garden right by the Maritime museum. We didn't know what to expect and were blown away with the depth and size of the collection in this pocket sized garden. Native, herbs, butterfly, South Africa, forest understory... so many little areas all well labeled and stuffed with great plants. If you like gardens, are a serious botanical fan, or just need a break from the crasser sections of Amsterdam this is the place. We had a great time with kids and wished we lived here and could ship the little garden store plants. There's also a nice cafe. Good bathrooms.

Absolutely adored our visit. Smaller garden than many big cities but gorgeous with so much packed in. You disappear and have no idea you’re in the city when in the center. Gorgeous structure to gardens with spectacular houses and education. Cafe is delicious as well. Get the apple pie.

As a plant enthusiast, I very much enjoyed my time strolling around Hortus Botanicus. There were some musicians performing when we entered and it was lovely to have live music floating through the garden. They have so many interesting specimens here and the layout is really well thought out. Whether going because of the historical significance of it being a plague garden or because you enjoy plants, it's a great place to spend a few hours. We were fortunate enough to be there in springtime so there were lots of beautiful flowers in bloom. Also - the butterfly house is surreal. With a quick glance you wouldn't see them, but there were dozens hanging upside down from so many leaves! Highly recommend a visit - they also have a kid friendly classroom that's pretty neat.

A green paradise inside the busy city. Spent a few hours wandering around, loved the interactive greenhouses, the butterfly garden and the cafe too. Recommend to visit the shop on the way out, a good variety of books and house plants.

Such an awesome place to visit, the grounds were pretty well maintained. The greenhouse had just reopened so it was still growing which was cool to see the beginning of the process. The butterfly inclosure was such a fun addition I was not expecting. Really gorgeous plants and some really big trees in the older greenhouse! So much fun and a lushes green place

Gorgeous gardens, there's quite a few plants I've never seen before, some of the trees are massive, really reminds you how small we are. There's also a butterfly room where a butterfly might land on your finder if you're calm and careful enough. An absolute must visit if you go to Amsterdam for the butterflies alone!

Friendly staff throughout the garden. We arrived and stayed for about an hour which we were told was ample time to.see the entire facility. We really enjoyed our visit. We were especially fond of the butterfly garden! Overall, a very enjoyable experience. The garden was still in a dormancy stage when we arrived but there is still plenty to see! Take a minute to visit the gift shop as well. Lots of fun treasures.

(2025 Renovation Update): Currently, 40% of the gardens and key attractions** (including the Palm House, and parts of the Historical Garden) are closed for renovations. Entry remains €13.50, which feels steep given limited access, but discounts may apply. Highlights still open include the Three-Climate Greenhouse, butterfly house, Rock Garden, and medicinal herb beds, offering pockets of serenity. Crowds are lighter, but some paths are rerouted, signage is lacking, and accessibility is uneven. The café operates with a reduced menu. While the closure of iconic spots disappoints, the gardens retain charm for quiet reflection or first-time visits.

On our last day in Amsterdam, we decided to come check out their botanical garden, and we are very happy that we did! This is a nature lover's paradise right here. They have endless plants, flowers, a butterfly sanctuary, and an on-site cafe and store. One part of the botanical garden right next to the cafe is under construction, but I don't remember what they are going to put there. I was able to block out the construction noise in my mind and enjoy the amazing nature the botanical garden had to offer. This was also the place where I learned that Amsterdam runs their monthly emergency tests at noon on the first Monday of each month. Hearing all the air raid sirens in a peaceful setting was really strange. We come from Las Vegas, a hot and dry climate where most flowers and plants nestled here won't be able to survive in. Seeing all these flowers alive and well in a climate where it doesn't get too hot was a great opportunity to admire. Also included was the biggest palm tree I've ever seen in my life, which is enclosed in a different sanctuary tucked away in the back of the garden. Also located behind the garden is a canal, where we saw a few ducks hanging around. Numerous birds, such as parrots, can also be found. After walking around the garden and admiring the plants and flowers, we stopped by their on site cafe for a quick lunch. My mom and I had their soup of the day, which was a tomato soup served with bread on the side, and my dad had their espresso and some sort of egg salad meal, I don't remember the exact name. The soup, though it was a light meal, was excellent and it paired well with the bread. Before we left, we checked out their store, where I picked up a shampoo bar, a conditioner bar, and a face bar. My parents also picked up some plantable pencils to plant back at home, though these may not survive for long after they're planted. Visiting the botanical gardens was a great way to wrap up our trip to Amsterdam and it was worth spending an hour or two here.

Beautiful place but it does have a pricey entrance fee. All in all worth it. I recommend taking a few bites of food and really just enjoying the outdoors. In the greenhouse it does get hotter naturally, but is well ventilated and isn't ever unbearable. Amazing plants, but only the most important ones had signs in English. A treat nonetheless. Saw the largest potted fern of my life, really amazing. 2 story greenhouse gives great views!

Amazing garden to walk! They have plants from all over with many paths to walk! I reserved a ticket online. There is a restroom inside the garden as well as a gift shop you exit through. The garden is within walking distance from the city center. There is a butterfly house, a green house, and another house they're working on building! I was in awe of the amazing tulips in bloom!

Can you imagine walking around one of the oldest botanical gardens? It's pure utter beauty, worth visiting. Not very expensive to enter, around 13 Euros. They offer two different areas for toilets. There is a cafe inside the gardens, you can make this a day of just walking around and eating. Our trip was in the middle of winter, so not much blooming. However that didn't disrupt our enjoyment of how magical this place is. The indoor buildings are what had us captivated. You can walk up steps to a walkway above the plants. Explore different climates only certain plants thrive in. Or you can walk into a room filled with butterflies. We had a very nice time. I'm sure that in the summer it's 3x more pretty, so those of you travelling then, check it out.

Amsterdam's Botanical Gardens is a great place to spend an afternoon. The greenhouse is a main attraction but can get super warm. The Butterfly exhibit is awesome too. Its not a fast walk through so prepared to be patient.

We loved the Hortus last time we went. This time it seemed a lot smaller. I checked my pictures- the lilypad pond was kind of sad this time around. It was covered last time- and with much bigger pads. Maybe it's the time of year? I don't know. At any rate, there wasn't that much to see although we dutifully wandered everywhere. There was a cat in one of the greenhouses, that was nice. It was packed with people since the Hermitage was closed and the cafe was totally full and understaffed (the inside was not open). So that was sad since we wanted to eat at the cafe as we had lovely memories of eating there. Maybe if we hadn't been here before? I don't know. It's not like it was expensive- 24 euros for two adults. But it was a bit boring this time around. Oh well.

Great botanical garden. It was really pretty to go through. It's like a little oasis in the city. If you have time or are looking for something different to do, try the botanical gardens!

This is a lovely local botanical garden just east of central Amsterdam. It costs €12 to enter, which is a bit steep. But you'll enjoy charming strolls through multiple gardens, as well as some gorgeous greenhouses featuring three biomes: South Africa; rainforest; and desert (including a comparison between American desert flora versus African desert flora). I only spent about 45 minutes here, but you could relax longer on a chill day. Enjoy the plants!

An unexpected gem and escape from the most touristic parts of Amsterdam! The Hortus Botanicus (as a Classicist, I love that they use the Latin name) is situated just outside of the main touristic center of Amsterdam, so it is a bit of a walk. But we were happy we did! This is one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world and houses over 4,000 plants on its grounds. From the outside, it appears rather small, but the winding paths can take you a couple hours to traverse. Not only is the garden a feast for the eyes, but the mind as well! Sign and information panels throughout each of the 3 main greenhouses fill you in on the history of each plant, how they arrived in Amsterdam, and their importance to the study of botany. Once you've made it through the greenhouses, definitely take the time to wander around the rest of the grounds which are quite charming. Sadly, as it was winter, very few plants/trees were still in bloom, but it was a beautiful stroll nonetheless. My favorite surprise was the butterfly greenhouse, in which you may end up as a perch for a bright colored butterfly! Overall, go off the beaten path and check out this wonderful gem in Amsterdam!

An unexpected gem! I wasn't sure what to expect going into this but I had a really great time. Unfortunately we came a week or two before full bloom of a lot of the plants but there was still plenty there to enjoy. I loved the 4 different climate areas, it was really unique. I was also pleasantly surprised by the butterfly enclosure. I didn't know there was one and although it was humid as hell I enjoyed walking through. Didn't have a chance to try out the cafe so I can't comment much on it. I did walk through though and everything I saw looked good. This place is definitely a great place to see if you are traveling in Amsterdam and have ample time. If you are only going to be in town for a couple days there are some more enriching things to explore.

This was a very small botanical garden for the price. There aren't very many greenhouses to visit but the grounds are calming to stroll through. My favorite was the butterfly house. It was packed full of beautiful butterflies that were very active and interactive. I loved spending time inside this butterfly house just letting the butterflies land and flutter by.

Beautiful and unexpected find in the quieter end of town. Lovely to walk through and be in awe of nature for an hour or two. Not crowded, and didn't seem to be a place for kids running around which we were surprised at since it seems like the kind of place that would be run amok with kids back in the states.

This is a great botanical garden so to speak, but why the three stars? Because it's small and has entrance fee. Sorry to say, but it's nothing compared to our own botanical garden in Copenhagen I know that it's probably not subsidised like in Copenhagen, but it's quite disappointing size-wise. They do have glass houses with different plants with different climates though, my favourite is the desert one with lots of different cacti from South America and Africa. All in all, it's a nice place to admire the nature, especially in the autumn.

If you where going to tell me that I would spend my morning, in Amsterdam, while hungover, looking at plants? I would have laughed at you. If you told me I would have liked it? I would have laughed harder. However, I would not have been getting the last laugh, as I would be wrong. My morning here was a great morning. We where lucky that it was a really nice morning when we went to have a look around here and it was a nice chilled out one - being amazed at the size of some off the plants!! After this we also went to the onsite cafe, which was a nice place with really cool felt walls - go just to hug the wall! It be great fun!

By definition nature should get 5 stars, just because we can not add anything to creation. The Hortus Botanicus is a small part of -although by men initiated- piece of nature in the middle of a busy and congested city. It is beautiful. Different parts and climates of the world are represented. Besides this there is the beautiful big class house with palm trees, a few smaller glasshouses with a special plants, butterflies and a beautiful garden with a labyrinth. There are special programs depending on the time and season. I once went for a Chinese tea tarting ceremony, very special. There a a bunch of things to do for kids. And for a nice lunch and a tea/coffee the Orangerie offers a very nice spot. Overlooking the garden and inside beautifully decorated. You should seriously consider spending an afternoon with a book on a bench in one of the glasshouses, just pretending you are in a completely different country. Out of your coat, breath in the fresh air and enjoy. You will feel completely refreshed.

What an amazing place with a great cafe! Enjoyed the butterfly exhibit tremendously They have bee hives on site keep nd of cool to see there kitchen garden and Food as Medicine exhibit

I'm into plants, and this is a well done botanical garden. You need to enjoy the little rare things, although the giant cycad palms do cast an impressive shadow. The butterfly house, beehives, carnivorous plants, three climate house, palm house, various ponds, et al should provide something for anyone. The café is tasty too. What I particularly enjoyed was seeing so many prehistoric and endangered plants that are displayed and marked as such. This is one of the oldest botanical gardens in Europe, 17th century, it presents an up-to-date impression. As a gardener and person interested in landscape design I found many small innovative things in these gardens. Happy I came.

This place is a little slice of heaven to get away from the larger groups of tourist and a break from dodging the cyclist.

The gardens are beautiful, not spectacular. I gave 1 star only due to the fact that in 2017, in one of the most touristic cities in western EU, 70% of the signs explaining about the vegetation are in Dutch only (!?!?).

The butterfly house wasn't as amazing as we expected from online reviews, but the tropical house was interesting. There's plenty to do indoors, in case of rain. Most of the info is in Dutch, so bring your Dutch dictionary! There is free wi-fi, but it only seemed to work in the gift shop area. They accept foreign debit cards, and also foreign student IDs for the discount on entry.

OK, it looked a little more impressive on the website, but it probably didn't help that I came during a snowy day. The main greenhouse was pretty decent, with a couple of zones - one for the desert and one for the rain forest. But it was a bit small, and explanations were lacking. The butterfly garden was lame, and I saw just a few smaller butterflies, and the collection of cacti was not very displayed very attractively. The outdoor areas looked like it could be better, but will have to come back later to see. It's close to Hermitage so it could be a stop on the way there, and admissions is only 8 euros. But there really wasn't too much to see here, at least in the winter.

Lovely little gem of a garden space; the cafe is said to be excellent (we had tea only) and you can explore it in 1-2 hours easily; pay special attention to the medicinal botany garden from ~ 1650 established for supporting the medical school and training doctors on use of more than 600 plants.

Quite tiny botanical garden is lovely in the spring to visit and has a small butterfly house. If coming anytime other than May, it may not be worth it because it is very small. Plus, it's €8,50 to get in and I didn't think it was worth it. Supposedly, it's one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world. Certainly one of the smallest. On a positive note, this was one place in the city where I felt I actually got away from the tourist crowds.

Its quite small compared to horti other famous. But so near the town center and near the zoo, an attraction.

It is really a nice place to have a walk in. Only it's quite pricey. Still it's great place to forget the busy city.

The sum of all its parts is greater than each of its individual pieces. Yes it's small and it may not have big a huge signature greenhouse or acres and acres of flowers but they have many different things on offer and what they have is very unique. And don't forget it was built in 1638 and has continued ever since. Let's start outside with a collection of tall trees; a half circle garden with dahlias and roses; a medicinal/herb garden; the Victorian Lily pond;; and a bigger pond with dragonflies and small frogs. All are connected with dirt paths, running along streams or over bridges. All of this is against the backdrop of the beautiful 16th century buildings. Indoors there is the palm greenhouse. The brick and glass building is more impressive than the plants inside. When we were there it was a bit sparse. But you cannot miss the climates pavilion where 3 separate climate areas (tropical, sub-tropical, desert) are connected with winding pathways and canopy thru-ways where you can view the upper parts of the trees or look down all around you. The small butterfly pavilion is fun and their indoor/outdoor cafe is a nice place for lunch. Surprising fact: Hortus keeps bees to produce their own honey. They sell the honey in their gift shop and because of the limited supply, it's a bit pricey at 25 Euros a jar. During the summer there are concerts on Sunday evening and during Christmas and during the Amsterdam Light Festival there are special concerts as well. Check out the video of our visit here: https://youtu.be/KoydNW5J9WU

Pretty cool place to spend a couple of hours relaxing if you are a traveler. I visited in the fall so I am not sure if their spring exhibit may be better. There is a cafe and a nice place to sit and watch the water of the canals if you would like to rest. Don't miss out on the greenhouse structure - you can climb to the top of the stairs and see everything from high up.

This is the worst botanical garden I've been to by far. We went in late May, and everything was brown, wilting, and desiccated. There was one fish in a pond. . . it was not moving. Perhaps everything picks up in June, or maybe the garden was suffering some kind of blight, but it did not look well-tended, and the butterfly garden was not as big or varied as the ones in DC. If you have free entry it couldn't hurt to check it out, but if you pay a la carte like we did, you may regret it.

Excellent place. It is worth of visiting in wintertime too, outside garden is quite empty though. Cafe serves delicious snack, I can recommend the roll with cheese.

A really nice break from the business of the city. We visited over the summer so it was really pleasant. Plus, it's one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world! They have a decent range of plants. I loved visiting the butterflies though, so beautiful! We were able to save 20% with a voucher off of Smartsave.com, I recommend looking into that!