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Soak up nature at its most stunning at Hunter Valley Gardens, built by Bill and Imelda Roche over four years with a dedicated team of over 40 landscape gardeners, architects and engineers.

There are eight kilometres of walking paths winding through 14 hectares of gardens consisting of over 6000 trees, 600,000 shrubs and over 1 million ground cover plants, plus waterfalls, statues, murals and much more. The ten individually themed gardens showcase the artistry of gardens around the world and use both native and exotic varieties of plants.

Hunter Valley Gardens is a beautiful, nature based, experience for local, national and international visitors.

The Gardens

Explore 10 individual feature gardens with a range of statuary and superb feature gardens, all of a standard you won't see elsewhere in Australia

• Rose Garden
  Enclosed by four pergolas, the Rose Garden is a highlight for many visitors to the Gardens. Featuring over 8000 roses full of fragrance and beauty, the Rose Garden is corkscrew shaped to honour the location and association with the surrounding Hunter Valley vineyards. The shape also ensures the best views of the stunning flowers. The showcased rose varieties within the garden include: Double Delight, Charles De-Gaulle, Freesia, Fragrance, Marlena, Bonica and Blue Moon. In total, there are 35,000 rose bushes of over 150 different varieties of roses across the Gardens. At the heart of the Rose Garden are thirteen beautiful bronze statues of Imelda Roche and her twelve grandchildren. This garden is also known as "Grandmothers Garden" and pays respect to beautiful bond between grandmothers and their grandchildren.
• Italian Grotto
  Featuring a statue of Saint Francis of Assisi (patron saint of animals and the environment) the Italian Grotto is lined with red Bougainvillea, pink Wisterias and cascading Geraniums and Pelargoniums. Lemon, orange and olive trees, plus lavender and herbs, ensure that the Italian Grotto not only evokes an Italian garden but has the fragrances of one too.
• Chinese Garden
  Crossing green Chinese slate, visitors enter the Chinese Garden through a traditional Moon Gate flanked by two bronze Temple Guardians. Incorporating traditional elements of rugged rocks, raked decorative gravels and slow growing grass, this garden features Conifers, Camellia Sasanqua, Azaleas, Bamboo and many edible fruits including Cumquats, Mulberries and Persimmons.
• Sunken Garden
  One of the more diverse of the feature gardens, the Sunken Garden has an array of evergreen and deciduous trees as well as smaller shrubs and flowers that offer beautiful vistas all year round. The Sunken Garden features a majestic 10 metre high waterfall and garden beds ablaze with the colours of magnificent annual displays. Enjoy the pathways framed by hundreds of roses and take in the spectacular views from the pergola at the top of the waterfall.
• Boder Garden
  As you enter this garden you are surrounded by intricate floral patterns contained within manicured box hedging. Designed to reflect the classic French Parterre style of garden, the Border Garden is surrounded by intertwined hedges of Hill's Weeping figs, an Australian native, with European boxwood used to create interesting hedges and shapes. This garden incorporates several hand-carved Indian marble water features and statues representing the Four Seasons - a signature garden and a place of romance and elegance. Stroll along the pathways within the garden or take in the sights from above on the viewing platform.
• Storybook Garden
  Featuring timeless nursery rhyme characters, the Storybook Garden is a delight for all ages, taking visitors on a journey through childhood dreams, memories, and fantasies. Larger-than-life nursery rhyme characters and spectacular murals greet you at every corner, offering excellent photo opportunities! Join Humpty Dumpty, Jack and Jill as they tumble down the hill, Alice in Wonderland at the Mad Hatter's Tea Party, Little Bo Peep and many more!
• Formal Garden
  One of the largest of its type in Australia, the Formal Garden is influenced by the garden designs of France and England. This garden is bordered by Manchurian Pear Trees with their beautiful white flowers and dramatic bronze foliage in autumn. Features include a variety of topiary and finely manicured lawns, specimen trees of evergreen Magnolia Grandiflora Little Gem and 3000 bushes of Chameleon roses. The Formal Gardens Wishing Fountain is the perfect spot to make a wish, with all proceeds donated to charity.
• Oriental Garden
  The Oriental Garden is heavily influenced by Japanese and Korean gardens, and is a place of harmony, balance, and serenity. This garden is precisely trimmed and manicured with natural curves to make it flow amidst its surroundings. One of its main features is a two-story traditional Japanese pagoda surrounded by a Koi pond. Korean velvet grass or Zoysia Tenuifolia is also a highlight of the oriental garden, the planting is considered to be the largest planting in Australia. This unique no mow grass is slow growing and mounds itself around rocks and pavers to create a fine texture soft lawn. A great site to view the Oriental Garden is from the top of the Italian Grotto, offering one of the most stunning vantage points in the entire Gardens.
• Lakes Walk
  This is one of the more secluded areas of the Gardens, its waterways are lined by perennial borders that are full of colour throughout the year with plantings of seasonal annuals and spring flowering trees and shrubs. Surrounded by approximately one and a half kilometres of pathways, the Lakes Walk is the backdrop for the stunning Hunter Valley Gardens Chapel and home to the Lakes Rotunda, both very popular for wedding ceremonies. This garden is truly seasonal garden, with each season bringing something new to the Lakes Walk.
• Indian Garden
  Entering through 160-year-old antique Indian Gates guarded by bronze elephants, to wind your way through a Lilly Pilly hedge discovering a superb mosaic of ground covering plants and pebbles and a contemporary garden design featureing Purple Ajuga and Variegated Dwarf Agapanthus. This garden has the aromas of India, with Curry plants filling the air with their spicy scent. Relax in the Indian Tea House finely crafted with traditional Indian embellishments - the perfect shady spot to enjoy views of this garden and its topiary elephants.