Guided Tours
Taranaki Garden Festival 2024
5-8 November 2024
Taranaki boasts some of the best gardens in the country and we have worked with the Taranaki Garden Festival Organisers to put together a collection of fabulous and diverse gardens for your visit.
Day 1
Tuesday 05 November - South Taranaki Gardens
We will pick you up from home this morning before departing on our Taranaki adventure, meeting in Palmerston North for a welcome morning tea at a local café (inclusive). Our first garden is Glascroft, a coastal Patea property bounded by stately Pohutukawas and featuring 12 individual garden rooms. Rhododendrons and roses are in abundance. A perfect place for picnickers and where we will enjoy our lunch today (picnic lunch provided). Our next stop is Hawera, where we find Christensen Garden, a semi-formal garden using many different hedging varieties, espaliered fruit trees and manicured lawns. The garden is dotted with rustic garden art, including birdhouses created by the owner, and there is garden art for sale.
Our final garden today is Beechwoods at Tariki. Named after two ancient New Zealand beech trees which are uncommon in Taranaki, this enchanting garden embraces the past and present. Several other large specimen trees remain from the original landscape plan for the garden, which form a backbone for the rejuvenated woodland and ornamental plantings.
We then make our way to our New Plymouth hotel, where we have time to settle in before dining in the hotel restaurant this evening.
Our final garden today is Beechwoods at Tariki. Named after two ancient New Zealand beech trees which are uncommon in Taranaki, this enchanting garden embraces the past and present. Several other large specimen trees remain from the original landscape plan for the garden, which form a backbone for the rejuvenated woodland and ornamental plantings.
We then make our way to our New Plymouth hotel, where we have time to settle in before dining in the hotel restaurant this evening.
Day 2
Wednesday 06 November - Northern Gardens
Today we are off to discover the spectacular gardens of Bell Block, Waitara and Lepperton. Our first visit this morning is Riverlea, a large garden flowing around a restored 120 year old villa. You’ll find a perennial border, woodland garden and a maple walk leading to a secluded riverside spot surrounded by natives.
Moving on, we visit the Galleys, where the owners have transformed a mature garden by planting ferns, bromeliads and natives to give it a modern twist. Follow the meandering paths through the woodland, and don’t miss the potager patch with espaliered fruit trees and an antique water feature. Next up is Waiongana Gardens. You’ll be wowed by this 4ha garden bounded by the Waiongana River - it has many varied spaces, including a sunken garden, rose garden, redwoods, native river walk, log walls and herbaceous peonies that usually flower during the festival. Find the perfect spot to enjoy your lunch, supplied by onsite caterers today (included).
After lunch we visit Tropics on Mangati. Packed with palms and brimming with bromeliads, this leafy paradise also adds perennials, rhododendrons, water features and garden art to the mix, and don’t forget to look for the food forest. Finally today we visit Frog Lodge, the garden of former nursery owners. These plantspeople have transformed 7ha of rural farmland into a “tree garden”. Conifers are a passion, along with natives, and a large lake offers a scenic backdrop. We return to our hotel for some well-earned relaxation before heading out to dinner tonight at Marbles Buffet – a New Plymouth dining institution!
Moving on, we visit the Galleys, where the owners have transformed a mature garden by planting ferns, bromeliads and natives to give it a modern twist. Follow the meandering paths through the woodland, and don’t miss the potager patch with espaliered fruit trees and an antique water feature. Next up is Waiongana Gardens. You’ll be wowed by this 4ha garden bounded by the Waiongana River - it has many varied spaces, including a sunken garden, rose garden, redwoods, native river walk, log walls and herbaceous peonies that usually flower during the festival. Find the perfect spot to enjoy your lunch, supplied by onsite caterers today (included).
After lunch we visit Tropics on Mangati. Packed with palms and brimming with bromeliads, this leafy paradise also adds perennials, rhododendrons, water features and garden art to the mix, and don’t forget to look for the food forest. Finally today we visit Frog Lodge, the garden of former nursery owners. These plantspeople have transformed 7ha of rural farmland into a “tree garden”. Conifers are a passion, along with natives, and a large lake offers a scenic backdrop. We return to our hotel for some well-earned relaxation before heading out to dinner tonight at Marbles Buffet – a New Plymouth dining institution!
Day 3
Thursday 07 November - New Plymouth Gardens
Today we focus on gardens predominantly within the city. Our first up this morning is a little gem known as the Vicarage. As the name suggests, the garden surrounds the historic Te Henui Vicarage building built in 1845, and notable for its direct connection with the establishment of the Church of England in this country. The garden features a wide variety of colourful annuals and perennials that create a restful experience.
We then move on to Hurworth Country Garden, a graceful garden where expansive lawns, established trees, formal and woodland plantings surround a turn of the century villa. Saxton Sanctuary is next on our list. This is a woodland garden, created by a renowned Taranaki plantsman, whose current owners have embraced the legacy. Colour is provided by rhododendrons, azaleas, and irises, along with the intense foliage of burgundy and red maples. Today we enjoy a picnic lunch (provided) at Kahikatea Garden, an urban garden located in a secluded valley, that provides a peaceful sanctuary for native birdlife. Maples and specimen trees are interspersed with annuals, perennials and sub-tropicals, along with organic fruit and vegetables.
This afternoon we visit Pukemara, whose owner has created a garden of two halves – a flat courtyard and a hillside garden. In the courtyard, colourful annuals and perennials combine with vireyas, roses and maples, while the woodland hillside garden is a wonder of colourful rhododendrons, azaleas and hydrangeas under a canopy of mature trees. Our last visit today is Oak Valley, where massed plantings give immediate impact to this garden on the outskirts of the city. Features to note include various garden rooms, including a wedding garden and chapel, a lake and a classic car display. Returning to our hotel, there’s time to relax before enjoying dinner in house again this evening.
We then move on to Hurworth Country Garden, a graceful garden where expansive lawns, established trees, formal and woodland plantings surround a turn of the century villa. Saxton Sanctuary is next on our list. This is a woodland garden, created by a renowned Taranaki plantsman, whose current owners have embraced the legacy. Colour is provided by rhododendrons, azaleas, and irises, along with the intense foliage of burgundy and red maples. Today we enjoy a picnic lunch (provided) at Kahikatea Garden, an urban garden located in a secluded valley, that provides a peaceful sanctuary for native birdlife. Maples and specimen trees are interspersed with annuals, perennials and sub-tropicals, along with organic fruit and vegetables.
This afternoon we visit Pukemara, whose owner has created a garden of two halves – a flat courtyard and a hillside garden. In the courtyard, colourful annuals and perennials combine with vireyas, roses and maples, while the woodland hillside garden is a wonder of colourful rhododendrons, azaleas and hydrangeas under a canopy of mature trees. Our last visit today is Oak Valley, where massed plantings give immediate impact to this garden on the outskirts of the city. Features to note include various garden rooms, including a wedding garden and chapel, a lake and a classic car display. Returning to our hotel, there’s time to relax before enjoying dinner in house again this evening.
Day 4
Friday 08 November - Surf Coast Gardens
Packing our bags, today we are homeward bound, but with a couple more gardens to visit en route. We’ll travel the scenic coastal highway, our first visit to Goodin Country Garden at Warea. This delightful rural garden is set amidst natural volcanic formations used as landscape elements, and features spacious lawns, abundant trees and flowering plants, roses and rhododendrons. Next up is Gravetye in Hawera, a stunning formal garden featuring a perennial border, pleached limes, roses and lavender, all accentuated by sculptures placed for dramatic effect. At King Edward Park in Hawera, we stop to enjoy our picnic lunch (provided). There is also time for a wander of this nationally significant garden, its ancestry seen in its charmingly formal design. The clipped hedges give shelter to abundant azalea, rhododendron and rose collections. Adding to the history are mature trees, a model boating pond and a 150 year old cannon. Finally we depart for Sanson where we meet connecting transfers for those travellers continuing to Wellington and Wairarapa.
The cost of the tour includes
- Accommodation
- All dinners, 2 course or buffet
- All breakfasts
- All coach travel
- All lunches
- Entry to the following gardens:
- Hurworth Country Garden, New Plymouth, Saxton Sanctuary, New Plymouth, Kahikatea, New Plymouth
- Glascroft Garden, Patea, Christensen Garden, Hawera, Beechwood Garden, Tariki, Riverlea Garden
- Pukemara, New Plymouth, Oak Valley, New Plymouth, Goodin Country Garden, Warea , Gravetye Garden
- Bell Block, The Galleys Garden, Lepperton, Waiongana Gardens, Waitara – with lunch supplied
- King Edward Park, Hawera
- Tropics on Mangati, Bell Block, Frog Lodge, Bell Block The Vicarage Garden, New Plymouth
Departure Detail
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