Milner Gardens & Woodland - Vancouver Island University

Went for tea with a friend on a perfect late Summer day! We walked through the woods and around the gardens and stopped at the house for a lovely light lunch of soup and focccia. Followed by scones with cream and jam, washed down with a lovely pot of tea. The food was served on real china in beautiful patterns and colour's. The volunteers obviously love the gardens andceere knowledgeable and friendly. The gardens were amazing, even this late in the year. Of particular interest to me was the Pink Silk tree. It was breathtaking. The lotus blossoms on the reflecting pool were perfect. I am looking forward to my next visit, most likely for the Christmas Lights.

Visited to attend Christmas lights up of the gardens. Beautiful job done by volunteers. Golf Carts were run by volunteers to give you a ride for the elderly . We were dropped off in her shuttle golf cart by lovely Jan who was so pleasant and well informed about the place . Parking space was scarce so you must reach atleast half n hour early if you require disabled parking space or else be prepared and road parking . Food items were basic and very casual.

I don't know what I liked most about this place: 1) the TRILLION dollar long-range view of the Georgia Straight with snow-covered mountains and islands and BC mainland; or 2) the peaceful walk thru Douglas first and red cedars and ferns; or 3) the work of many volunteers who make visiting this place possible. We had tea, scones and carrot cake in the Camellia Room, which was grand. Two other groups were in the room during our visit, it was not crowded. One person said, "These are the best scones I've ever had," and I would agree. Menu is limited to scones and cakes, no sandwiches or savory fare. The story of the house is very interesting, and there were many volunteers to provide information. Highly recommended. Thank you, volunteers, we had a great time!

What a lovely way to spend an afternoon. The grounds are mature and blossoming. There is a garden center and a historical property worth visiting.

The Christmas lights are on and they are fantastic. Admission 8s by donation and there are restrooms throughout the trails. There is a gift shop on site and also hot chocolate and treats available for a reasonable price. Be sure to get the kids to see Santa on time as the gate for the line up to see Santa closes at 8pm.

Milner Gardens is a beautiful historical property on Vancouver Island minutes from Qualicum Beach. You can stroll the grounds at your leisure or take the tram if you have small children or have difficulty walking. The gardens are bountiful and diverse. The main house located steps from the beach, The Camellia Tea Room is open in the summer until fall and take out is available. Children are free, youth prices are minimal, and reasonable for adults. This is a beautiful nature walk as a couple or for the entire family. If you are a gardener this beautiful historical site is a must visit.

What a beautiful place to stop and smell the ultra fresh coastal air filtered through giant trees, mosses and ferns. The stroll along the paths were sometimes totally natural and sometimes totally manicured depending upon what area you were traveling through. There were fruit trees, flowers, towering pines and ocean vistas. There was Grandma’s Garden gift store as well as the fancy home now set up for events. Definitely recommend staying for a tour. 2 hours for a solid walk around or even linger longer and just enjoy the sights. For you birders I would add this to your trip. We saw all kinds of birds traveling up and down trees looking for a meal. Big cudos to all the volunteers we saw working in the gardens. Also we didn’t see one staff person who wasn’t accommodating and friendly.

Had the most wonderful time exploring there. Was especially impressed by the volunteers who contribute their time. Big shout out to Tina, Lynn, and Gail who are such great ladies and exceptional hosts, taking the time to explain things in great detail. They represent Milner Gardens extremely well. Will be returning again and again.

Such a beautiful place to visit. We did the tour at 1:00 through the forest and gardens. Such a relaxing pleasant place to visit. The pool was so beautiful with the Lillie pads in bloom. Walked over to the Milner House, a peaceful garden. Went to tea house for lunch afterwards. Ordered the Clam Chowder, so tasty, the bread was to die for. The chef brought out a dessert to us that was amazing...a lemon blueberry pie...so delish! Most of the staff are volunteers. It's worth a visit to the garden and to the tearoom to sample their amazing food and tea.

I had this garden on my list to see since last Christmas. I was lucky to have a few friends that traveled up to Parksville & they thought this was an excellent idea for something new to experience as well. I liked it as there's lots of variation of lights, paths well lit, lots of special feature areas (highly recommend going right up to the house windows, even if you have to wait for crowds to clear), you can see Mr & Mrs Claus from a lovely viewing area (without getting into the full kid greeting line) and the paths themselves were very safe for a first time attendee that's disabled & walking in the dark with a cane. I brought my head lamp just in case but rarely needed it. The donation entrance fee is suggested online & again at the gate. I have to say when you compare the amount of festive cheer you get at this garden, plus the level of interaction/help the volunteers provide, this is a bargain (even if you're only donating at the suggested price). This being said, this is a very festive & lovely display of local cheer but this is not the level of light display the Butchart puts on. That is perfectly fine by me but want to make sure where people have their expectations when attending. The 4 of us went fully unprepared on how popular this event would be. It took me 15 min walk along the roadside (after spending about 20 min looking for the closest spot possible in either direction) to even reach the main entrance for vehicles. The handicap pass spots must be filled up right at the start of the night as I checked back twice & there was no movement for a space. Another 10 min walk (at my pace with a cane going down a slope) until you reach the ice cream -cookie trailer (this is very close to the main gates). We were also quite shocked how many families with really little kids were still so far into the grounds after 7 pm. However, I have to say they looked like they were all having a great time finding the images within the lights from the paper 3-D glasses (you can purchase those after entering the garden but fair warning it kind of is a bottle neck spot & I greatly struggled to find the ramp down to garden level because of it). For those less mobile, there's golf carts that leave from the gate going into the gardens with 2 stops - the gift shop/bathroom area & the road entrance to the main house (bench is right beside the outhouse). They pick up in frequency (or so I was told) as the evening rolls on. knowing the walk I had still to do after exiting the garden & the slope up to the road, I opted for the carol singing golf cart to save myself from expiring before leaving the garden itself. First visit to the Milner Gardens will definitely have me returning for Christmas if I'm I'm the area &/or to see what their Halloween event is like.

Small garden area that has AHS reciprocal membership. The rhododendron were sadly not in bloom and we missed the opening of the tea house. We liked the Woodland trail with informative signs and the Milner house itself (think cottage once visited by Princess Di). Relaxing place to spend a couple hours.

One of Vancouver Island's special places. MILNER GARDENS in Qualicim Beach BC Canada. A true 5 star day. Awesome natural beauty. Weather sparklingly beautiful summer day. We strolled through the various forest settings down to the Milner house for afternoon tea. Affordable luxury. Parking free and easy. Golf cart transport back up the hill if required. Lots of lovely volunteers manning the 'positions' in the 70 acre sanctuary. Highest recommendations for nature lovers.

Second time be here for afternoon tea. Enjoy the afternoon with scones, tea and the ambience of British tea time style.

A neat little tea house that is tucked inside the Milner garden. It was nice to have a short little walk in the forest-like garden before going to the tea room, but there is an entrance fee of $12 to get to tea room to access it through ther garden. The garden wasn't that well maintained and didn't have much flowers - I didn't think the entrance fee was really worth it. The tea room is really cute inside and it was great how they give you binoculars to bird watch out the window. A few of my friend came here to try the high tea menu. There were a handful of tea to choose from, which were made from your usual tea bags. The hightea treats came with fresh baked scones, house made jam, egg sandwiches, salmon rolls, cucumber baggette, quiche, cheese and pepper jelly tart, nanaimo bar, lemon tart, and strawberry crumble. Their sandwiches and sweets were really good, but I found the quiche a little soggy/watery so would probably opt out of that next time. The hightea was very decently price at $25. A great mini getaway for a relaxing and enjoyable lunch.

Came here with a few girlfriends for their afternoon tea. Entrance fee is $12 to access the gardens and teahouse. The gardens are underwhelming and the trails to the teahouse are composed of wood chips (difficult to walk on as we had high tea attire on). The tea house is in an old mansion and the tea room is cozy and quaint. The high tea for $25 is available with 24 hours notice. Includes a limited selection of teas. We ordered the earl grey tea which came in tazo tea bags. The scones were warm, delicious and fluffy and came with a generous portion of Devonshire cream and jam. Sandwiches and savouries were tasty and had a variety of flavours. I didn't like the quiche as the texture and taste was off. A couple of the desserts were a bit too sweet. My favourite was the lemon tart. Great price for high tea with a nice view of Qualicum Beach.

Milner Gardens & Woodland is a special place to visit in Qualicum Beach. Fabulous rhododendron and trees collection from around the world. Well maintained paths through the forest. The ocean view by the main house is wonderful. Nice gift shop by the pond. Plants can be purchased. Their Christmas lights show is magical. A must see.

Beautifully maintained gardens with huge rhododendrons and an idillic oceanside setting. $12 entrance fee well with it. Stayed about 90 minutes. Very authentic English in every way.

The house was built in the 30s with additions out on in the 50s and 60s. The house was once owned by wealthy H.R Milner (lawyer & businessman) and his wife Veronica. It is a beautiful old house that is furnished with antique furniture even a chair from the 1500s. There is lots of Royal paraphernalia as Princess Diana stayed here with the rest of the a Royal family in the 80s. We enjoyed a light tea service looking out over the water that is served by volunteers . There are gardens, benches and a little souvenir store. They hold weddings and rent the house for private parties. It solely relies on volunteers, donors and VIU for funding. I believe that the gardens are decorated for Christmas but I imagine the hours change seasonally so please call for details.

This beautiful old house with ocean and garden views is a lovely setting for a tea house. We had lunch with soup, scones, coffee and tea followed by dessert. Our thanks to the volunteers served us, we had a great time. Thank you.