Japanese Tea Garden
The oldest public Japanese garden in the United States, built for the 1894 World’s Fair and tended by the Hagiwara family for nearly 50 years.
Activity Type: Garden
San Francisco Botanical Garden
Fifty-five acres of plants from climates similar to San Francisco’s, inside Golden Gate Park. Free for SF residents with ID; free for everyone before 9am and on the second Tuesday of each month.
Conservatory of Flowers
Victorian wood-and-glass conservatory at 100 JFK Drive in Golden Gate Park, opened in 1879. Five galleries of tropical and aquatic plants. $12 adults, free first Tuesdays.
Garden of Fragrance
A walled garden inside the SF Botanical Garden designed for visitors with visual impairments. Every plant chosen for scent or texture, with raised beds at arm’s height.
Shakespeare Garden
Small walled garden in Golden Gate Park planted with species mentioned in Shakespeare’s works. Each plant labeled with the relevant passage. Free, dawn to dusk.
Tree Fern Dell (Mescaline Grove)
A sunken hollow of towering tree ferns in Golden Gate Park, nicknamed Mescaline Grove since the 1960s. Dense canopy, prehistoric plants, and a two-minute walk that drops you into a rainforest.
