Conservatory of Flowers

What you need to know

A Victorian Greenhouse in Golden Gate Park

The Conservatory of Flowers opened in 1879 and is one of the oldest public wood-and-glass conservatories in the United States. The white Victorian greenhouse sits at the eastern end of Golden Gate Park on John F. Kennedy Drive. Inside, five galleries house tropical plants from lowland rainforests, highland cloud forests, aquatic environments, and more. The building survived the 1906 earthquake and a 1995 storm that closed it for eight years.

What’s There

The Lowland Tropics gallery is the largest, with palms, orchids, and a small waterfall. The temperature jumps roughly 15 degrees on entry. The Aquatic Plants gallery has lily pads large enough to support a child’s weight plus carnivorous pitcher plants. The Potted Plants gallery rotates special exhibitions through the year.

The building itself is a photographic subject from every angle, especially on foggy mornings when the warm interior contrasts with the gray outside.

Plan for about 45 minutes inside. Five galleries plus a central dome. The surrounding gardens and lawn are a picnic spot.

Visiting

Hours: Thursday-Tuesday, 10:00 AM-4:30 PM, last entry 4:00 PM. Closed Wednesdays.

Cost: $17-21 non-resident adults depending on day, $9 seniors/students, $3 kids 5-11, free under 5. Free for San Francisco residents with ID. Free for everyone on the first Tuesday of the month.

What to know: No food or drink inside. Photography is allowed. The gift shop has a plant selection.

Getting There

Transit: Muni 5-Fulton or 21-Hayes to the park entrance at Fell and Stanyan, then a short walk. The 33-Ashbury/18th stops nearby.

Parking: The nearest parking is the Music Concourse garage (underground, paid). JFK Drive itself has been the car-free JFK Promenade since 2022.

Walking: Near the eastern end of Golden Gate Park. Steps from the Dahlia Garden and a short walk to the de Young Museum and California Academy of Sciences.