Brooklyn Botanic Garden: Cherry Blossoms and Quiet Corners

The Brooklyn Botanic Garden is one of the most beautiful green spaces in New York. In spring, it becomes the best place outside Japan to see cherry blossoms.

Every year, thousands of people come to watch more than 200 cherry trees of 26 different varieties bloom, including the Kanzan, whose double flowers can have up to 28 petals.

It sits in Park Slope, a historic and charming corner of Brooklyn, and it's part of Prospect Park.

It's open year-round, but if there's one season when this garden shines brighter than ever, it's spring in New York. Below you'll find everything you need to know before visiting.

What to See at the Botanic Garden

If you're in New York in late April or the first days of May, right in the heart of spring, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden is a must. It's one of the best places outside Japan to see cherry blossoms.

More than 200 cherry trees bloom across different sections of the park, with varieties like the Kanzan, which can have up to 28 petals per flower.

The bloom lasts a very short time, sometimes just a week, and things like rain or sudden temperature swings can cut it even shorter.

That's why I recommend checking the Cherry Tracker on the Garden's official site. It's a tool that lets you follow the day-to-day status of each tree and figure out when it's worth going.

The cherry trees steal the show in spring, but the Garden has plenty more to offer all year long.

There are different ecosystems that shift with each season. Here are the most important ones:

1. Japanese Garden

The Brooklyn Botanic Garden has a Japanese Garden (the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden), with lovely fountains and waterfalls.

The ponds are full of fish and the hillsides are packed with cloud-pruned trees and shrubs, maintained with expert pruning techniques.

This Japanese-style garden was the first of its kind built in the United States (when you travel to Chile, I recommend visiting the Japanese Garden in Santiago, another beautiful park for cherry blossoms).

2. Shakespeare Garden

There are other collections curated with a literary bent, like the English country garden known as the Shakespeare Garden.

It's a sort of «plot» with more than 80 poisonous species pulled straight from the palace intrigues of the playwright's work, the shrubs behind the potions and tragic poisonings in his plays.

Better not to touch anything, and definitely don't put it in your mouth 😉

3. Conservatories

Inside the Botanic Garden's conservatories you'll find the permanent exhibits, which you can enjoy in any season:

Bonsai Museum

This is the oldest and most renowned dwarf tree collection in the United States. Mister Miyagi would be impressed.

Tropical Pavilion

In the Tropical Pavilion you'll get the rainforest experience, walking among lush tropical species in a beautifully kept ecosystem.

Desert Pavilion

In the Desert Pavilion you'll see plants from arid regions around the world, including the Atacama Desert, the desert valleys of the western United States, and also Madagascar, the Canary Islands, and Australia.

4. Flowers at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden

So far I've mentioned only a sample of the many specialized gardens inside the enormous Brooklyn Botanic Garden.

There are plenty more standout collections, like the rose garden, lilacs, water lilies, orchids, peonies, native flora, and perennials.

If you love gardening, there's a shop with tools and hundreds of seeds you can take home and watch grow, a living souvenir of New York.

5. Celebrity Path

You can walk the Celebrity Path, which, Hollywood style, honors famous figures born in Brooklyn.

As you follow this trail of engraved stones, you'll be surprised by names like Barbra Streisand, Walt Whitman, Isaac Asimov, Mel Brooks, Philip Glass, Rita Hayworth, and Woody Allen.

Spring at the Botanic Garden

As I mentioned, if you're in New York between late April and early May, the Cherry Esplanade (Cherry Esplanade) is a must.

During these months there's an explosion of color. This is when more than 40 varieties of Japanese cherry trees bloom (Kwanzan cherries).

Botany experts say this walk is one of the best places outside Japan to see cherry blossoms.

You can follow the bloom on the «Cherry Tracker,» a display on the Garden's website updated daily with the flowering status of every single tree, each with its own personality 🙂 Seriously, every tree reacts to the weather differently.

Among the cherries, you'll also find the Liberty Oaks, planted in memory of the victims of 9/11. As the garden's president in 2025, Adrian Benepe, put it: «Gardens are our secular churches, spaces where you can breathe in beauty and also grief.»

Cherry Blossom Festival

In honor of these gorgeous cherry blossoms, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden hosts its Cherry Blossom Festival: Sakura Matsuri.

The whole festival revolves around Japanese culture, with more than 60 performances staged among these magnificent pink trees.

The event follows the Japanese tradition of Hanami, the time of year when people in Japan flock to gardens and parks to honor the blooming cherry trees.

You can check the dates for the Cherry Blossom Festival on the Garden's website.

Admission is more expensive during the Cherry Blossom Festival, but it's worth every penny!

Summer at the Botanic Garden

In summer, don't miss the Lily Pool Terrace. There you can take in more than 100 varieties of hardy lotuses and water lilies.

See what else you can do in summer in New York.

Fall at the Botanic Garden

During fall in New York, the stars of the garden are the hundreds of trees changing color.

Winter at the Botanic Garden

The color palette narrows to grays and whites.

It's a beautiful sight you can enjoy for free on weekdays, since admission is free in winter.

You can also visit the permanent exhibits inside the conservatories.

Check out other things to do during a New York winter.

New York Botanical Garden

If you love nature, you'll really enjoy the huge New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx, the most important one in the city.

It's also a good excuse to check out the most important spots in the Bronx.

And if you still have time after touring the garden, know that it's just steps from the Brooklyn Museum. How about combining nature and culture in a single day?

-o-

Practical information

Address: 990 Washington Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11225

Getting there:

• Subway B, Q – Prospect Park station
• Subway 2, 3 – Eastern Parkway station

Prices:

• Adults: US$22
• Students and seniors 65+: US$12
• Under 12: free
• Free admission Monday through Friday from December to February

Hours:

• March to October:
  • Tuesday to Friday: 8 am – 6 pm
  • Saturday and Sunday: 10 am – 6 pm
• November to February:
  • Tuesday to Friday: 8 am – 4:30 pm
  • Saturday and Sunday: 10 am – 4:30 pm
• Closed Mondays

Admission included with the New York Pass.