What if your next great road trip had a little more colour, a little more inspiration – and plenty of reasons to take the scenic route?
Planning ahead for 2027 adventures, we’re looking to New Zealand’s gardens for road-trip inspiration, with this two-part series dedicated to beautiful and unexpected gardens that deserve a place on your travel list. First stop: the North Island, with 10 gardens selected from the New Zealand Gardens Trust’s outstanding collection.
These destinations are just a few of the many astonishing properties available to visit, offering the perfect excuse to explore a little further. From grand country estates and beautifully designed landscapes to hidden gems bursting with character, each garden brings its own story – and there’s usually plenty to discover along the way.
Think of this as a starting point rather than a set itinerary. Pick a garden or two, plot a route, add a few detours, linger over lunch, discover a new town or stay somewhere you’ve never been. Whether you’re travelling north or south, gardens can be the thread that ties together a memorable RV adventure.
Part 1: 10 Great North Island gardens for 2027
From a whaling captain’s homestead garden in the Far North to a hillside of aloes and agaves near Whanganui, the North Island’s private gardens are among the best in the country. These 10, all assessed and star-rated by the New Zealand Gardens Trust, are worth building a summer route around.
Every garden in the New Zealand Gardens Trust has been visited by independent assessors and given a star rating, so you can plan with some confidence about what you will find at the gate.
The 10 gardens below are all rated five or six stars, which places them among the country’s Gardens of National or International Significance. They run north to south, from the Far North to the Hutt Valley, and all but one are private gardens opened by their owners. Most open by appointment, so phone ahead, and ask about parking if you are travelling with a larger vehicle. Several offer teas, lunches or accommodation if booked in advance.
1. Butler Point (Hihi, Mangōnui)
Butler Point is a five-star garden on a quiet stretch of Far North waterfront, and the northernmost rated garden in the country. At its centre is an 1840s homestead, built for the retired whaler Captain William Butler and open to visitors, wrapped in a traditional cottage garden. The house sits between the harbour and a rise of native bush, which gives a sheltered microclimate for largely subtropical planting: dombeya, tibouchina, Hibiscus mutabilis, azaleas, hydrangeas, bamboos and bold agaves. Beyond the cottage borders is an old orchard of persimmon, kumquat, quince, grapefruit, tangelo, cherimoya and lychee. The trees are the great feature. A stand of ancient pōhutukawa includes one with a 12-metre girth, among the largest in the country, and there is a fine Magnolia grandiflora, an old fig at the water’s edge and an olive planted by Butler himself in the 1840s. A short walk leads to a well-interpreted early pā site, and the property also has a whaling museum. Pōhutukawa flower around Christmas, so a summer visit is well timed.
Open all year by appointment. Charges apply; children under five free. Parking area at the end of Marchant Road.
2. The Urban Jungle (Freemans Bay, Auckland)
The Urban Jungle is a five-star Garden of National Significance on a 427 square metre section in Freemans Bay, 10 minutes’ walk from the city centre. The garden began in 1995 with traditional temperate planting, which gave way over time to subtropical and tropical species better suited to the site’s microclimate. Palms of many kinds now form an overhead canopy, with air plants growing on their trunks and dense, colourful layers of shrubs and groundcovers beneath. House and garden run into one another, and skinks, small green frogs and returning city birds are part of the experience. Soil is built up with organic matter, chemical use is kept to a minimum, and the planting extends onto the public berms as part of Auckland’s Greenways programme. The garden holds the Trust’s Earth Star endorsement for sustainable practice.
Open by appointment year round. $10. Groups up to 25. No dogs or children. Teas and lunch can be booked in advance. This is a narrow inner-city street, so larger vehicles are best parked elsewhere. 027 906 8281
3. Ayrlies (Whitford, Auckland)
Ayrlies is a six-star Garden of International Significance and one of the best-known gardens in the country. It covers six hectares of rolling country in south-east Auckland, laid out as sweeping lawns with informal but closely worked planting along ponds and waterways. Colour is handled with great skill, most obviously in the hot border, and elsewhere old roses, clematis and perennials are grown together in generous drifts. Large trees, including liquidambar, swamp cypress, pin oak and redwood, have grown quickly in the warm, wet climate, and careful arboriculture keeps the views open to the Hauraki Gulf. Four wooded valleys lead down to 14 hectares of wetland, created in 2001 on former salt marsh and planted only with natives. More than 82 species of native and visiting birds have been recorded there, among them the New Zealand dotterel, dabchick and the elusive spotless crake. The garden has been managed organically and without pesticides since 2008. Roses are at their peak in November, so an early summer visit is ideal.
Open Monday to Friday, 9am to 4pm. Saturday visits by arrangement (email by 3pm on the Friday). Closed Sundays and public holidays. $20. No dogs or children under 12. Some steep slopes. Plant nursery on site. ayrlies.co.nz
4. Rapaura Watergardens (Tapu, Coromandel)
Rapaura is a five-star Garden of National Significance on a 64-acre private estate within the Coromandel Forest Park, inland from Tapu on the Thames Coast. Developed over more than 30 years, it is a water garden set in native bush, with paths that wander across lawns, over bridges and streams, and up through the bush to a cascading waterfall. Planting follows the seasons: irises and bog plants in spring, then azaleas and rhododendrons, followed from November to April by orchids, begonias, hydrangeas and water lilies. Swan plants are grown for monarch butterflies, and a mandala vegetable garden is planted against a backdrop of orange cannas. Ponga sculptures and a flow form water sculpture by Ian Trousdell are placed through the garden. Tūī, fantails, silvereyes and kererū are regular visitors.
Open daily 9am to 5pm, weather permitting. Adults from $15, children $5. Large car park with room for coaches and campervans. Lodge and cottage accommodation. 586 Tapu-Coroglen Road. rapaura.com
5. Woodlands (Gordonton, Waikato)
Woodlands is a five-star Garden of National Significance, 15 minutes from central Hamilton. From 1870 it was the centre of a 98,000-acre farming enterprise, from which New Zealand’s first butter was exported under the Anchor brand. The neo-Gothic kauri homestead dates from 1875 and sits within 15 acres of Victorian gardens. The formal Long Lawn, framed by copper beech hedges, gives way to extensive woodland garden and a lake crossed by a wisteria-draped bridge in the manner of Monet’s Giverny. Some of the trees, including tulip trees, London planes and eucalypts, date from the early 1870s and are among the largest of their kind in the country, and there is a fine collection of old camellias. The cricket oval and croquet lawn complete the picture of a Victorian country estate. The garden is owned by the Waikato District Council and supported by the Gordonton Woodlands Trust.
Gardens open daily, 9am to 4pm, by donation. Homestead open weekdays, 10am to 3pm ($3). Café on site. 42 Whitikahu Road, Gordonton. woodlands.co.nz
6. The Omaka Gardens (Taumarunui)
The Omaka Gardens is a five-star country garden of three acres, seven kilometres from Taumarunui along the Forgotten World Highway. The short drive out follows the Whanganui River, and the garden sits on the crest of a hill at the end of a tree-lined drive, with views to Herlihy’s Bluff and Mount Hikurangi. It is laid out as several distinct areas: the Champagne Lawn, the Water Garden, the Wedding Garden, the Dell, the Woodland and the Secret Garden, with a 33-metre rill looking out to the mountain. Large mature trees give structure, and rhododendrons, camellias, azaleas and maples are widely planted. Among the less usual trees are a rare fern-leaved beech and a yellow gleditsia beside a 75-year-old kalmia. Deutzia, nandina, star jasmine and red berberis are clipped into spirals, pillars, balls and clouds. In summer the jasmine and lilies are in flower.
Open daily by appointment, September to May. Self-guided 9am to 5pm, guided tours 10am to 3pm. $10, under 15 free, guided tour $5 extra. Teas and lunch by arrangement. Accommodation on site. Dogs welcome. theomakagardens.nz
7. Te Kainga Marire (New Plymouth)
Te Kainga Marire is a six-star Garden of International Significance and a town garden devoted to New Zealand’s native plants. They are arranged in natural associations that recall the New Zealand bush, with a naturalistic pool and rock garden for species that need particular conditions. The roof of a sunken fern house is used to display the textured foliage of parataniwha (Elatostema rugosum). There are a few deliberate exotics: an old Rosa ‘Souvenir de Madame Léonie Viennot’ trained against the house and rhododendrons to the rear. A productive organic vegetable garden sits alongside. The garden is backed by a bush reserve on one side and a fast-running stream on another.
Open daily 9am to 5pm, September to April. $10. Billy tea, scones, lunches and afternoon teas can be booked for small groups. tekaingamarire.co.nz
8. Paloma Gardens (Fordell, Whanganui)
Paloma is a five-star garden in the hills east of Whanganui, begun in 1990 and maturing quickly in a mild, almost frost-free climate. It specialises in exotic flora and is unlike any other garden in New Zealand. The first view is of an amphitheatre whose banks hold a huge range of plants, from the familiar to the curious, with palms, cycads, bamboos and trees from the Pacific, Asia and Africa each given their own space. An entire hillside is planted with aloes, agaves, yuccas, cacti and succulents. Around the house are maturing palms, cycads and tree ferns, with large specimens of Aloidendron barberae (formerly Aloe bainesii) and the spiral Aloe polyphylla. The Cycad House shelters dry-climate plants such as Dioon, Pachypodium and climbing Dioscorea, and there is an extensive collection of bamboos in containers near the car park. A large pond, crossed by an arched bridge, doubles as the family swimming pool, and an arboretum has been planted on the surrounding farmland. Moto 71, a collection of 45 classic motorbikes, is also open to visit.
Open daily. $10. Guided tours for an extra fee. Pohutukawa Lane, Fordell. paloma.co.nz
9. Hlomo Hlomo (Palmerston North)
Hlomo Hlomo is a five-star country garden on the hills south of Palmerston North. Its name is a Zulu phrase meaning “I have stuck my spear in the ground and claim it as mine”. Native bush, planted about 20 years ago, forms the backdrop, with exotics used as accents. Most visits begin at the Reflecting Pools, surrounded by foliage and flowers in shades of red, before shady paths lead past hostas, giant lobelias, ferns and hydrangeas and over timber boardwalks into the bush. The Terraces, a formal area of layered hedging, surround the house. Beyond, a potager mixes vegetables and flowers, and a labyrinth is set into the large lawn. The garden opens only in summer, which makes it a natural fit for a January trip.
Open by appointment, 1 November to 28 February, 9am to 5pm. Adults $10, under 16 free. Steep terrain with steps. 85 Ngahere Park Road. 021 107 465
10. Gillies Garden (Silverstream, Upper Hutt)
Gillies Garden is a five-star garden of three quarters of an acre, set in native bush around a heritage Arts and Crafts cottage designed by James Chapman-Taylor. The garden is laid out as a series of rooms, each with its own character: a bush garden, water garden, topiary garden, courtyard, herb garden, parterre vegetable garden and a small rose garden. Clipped hedging links them and gives the whole a clear structure despite its modest size. Visitors can add a viewing of the owners’ collection of contemporary New Zealand art, built up over 50 years.
Open by appointment. Garden $25, or $30 including the art collection (minimum of five for the art visit). Parking on the road by the garden entry. 027 871 3400.
The New Zealand Gardens Trust
The New Zealand Gardens Trust is the national body that identifies, assesses and promotes outstanding gardens across New Zealand through its independent star-rating system, recognising gardens of regional, national and international significance. Its website is the place to find visitor details, garden histories and regional itineraries for planning a trip: gardens.org.nz
