The Garden of Lights at the Gardens on Spring Creek is a fun visit for the holidays. Parking was pretty full, but we found a spot right away so that was a good experience overall. The walk through the gardens is about 30 minutes, but there's plenty of photo op areas so the walk through could take longer if you stop to take pictures around the gardens or visit with Santa. They also have a color-changing gumdrop garden which seemed to be really popular with all ages. The staff and volunteers are all really friendly and helpful. They have hot cocoa and other beverages available for purchase at the bar. I visited with friends and family for the first time this year and I'm sure we'll be back again to visit. read more

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This was my Mother's Day treat. I wanted to spend the morning here with the family and that is what we did. There were still some spots in the parking lot when we got there. The wait for admission was not too long. The staff was welcoming and answered all of my questions. First we opted for the Butterfly Pavilion. What a beautiful place! We walked slowly and carefully and enjoyed all the little flutters that passed by. So beautiful. Next up was the gardens themselves. We walked through each section. I think my favorite was the cactus garden. There are benches to sit on here and there. In the cactus garden there was a pergola for some shade. They have a band shell and host concerts in the summer. That would be a fun activity. We will be back, the whole family enjoyed their visit. I spent Mother's day without my phone so I could just enjoy. So, no pictures this time. read more

The farm to fork cooking classes taught in cooperation with The Cooking Studio are so much fun! Cooking outside and harvesting right from the garden make it especially enjoyable. The class "Cooking with the Three Sisters" not only taught us about the relationship between corn, beans and squash, but also about the Native American garden with the community that honors traditions of the past and present. It was a great night with new friends and delicious recipes coached by Dana and her team. read more

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This park is stunning for how small it is. It's crazy that they have a sequoia! The number of trees that they have packed into this space is really well done. The architecture even puts the rest of the thin carbon copy houses of Fort Collins to shame. The only qualm I have with the garden is that they have a space called Cafe Grove, but there is no cafe. There is nowhere to purchase coffee. I don't understand. Everything else is 10/10 though. read more

This is a lovely place to visit in fort Collins. They have added a butterfly room. You only get 15-20 minutes in the room with a guide in there with you. There were so many beautiful butterflies and flowers. They have a large property with so many flowers and trees outside. A majority of the items are labeled so you can know what they are (even if you are not a flower person). It is an easy walk around the property. They have some plants that are available for sale. The staff was all very friendly. The building was clean and bright. Was a nice place to visit with my 70 year old friend. She thoroughly enjoyed it. in the past when my kids and girl scouts were younger, we arranged both homeschool field trips/classes here and classes/badge work for girl scouts. read more

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This is a cute little botanical garden in Fort Collins. It has a lot to see, a butterfly pavilion, and in the back, a kids play area with water behind the main building. Perfect for kids that need to run around and get some energy out while admiring the nature. Highly recommend it but we went on a Tuesday and they didn't have the water features in the kids area turned on. I would like to know when exactly they're on read more

This hidden gem in Fort Collins, really takes you away from the hustle and bustle of your day to day and allows you to submerge in nature the minute you step foot. Gardens on Spring Creek is a beautiful garden that you are able to walk through year around. Looking for Christmas lights during the Holidays? They have a great walk through that's great for all ages. I come here to observe their butterfly garden from time to time. However; they also have private and public classes year round. We attended a Holiday Wreath Making class and we absolutely loved it! Our coordinator Ashley was a phenomenal teacher. The class was fun, comprehensive, affordable, and all around a good time. I love this facility and all that they offer for the community. read more

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For a little night time holiday spirit we visited the Garden of lights display with our family. We enjoyed the different lighting displays. It's not a lengthy visit so good for kids or teens without patience... we have a few. You can walk around at your pace and enjoy some holiday tunes! It was a nice display from cactus to flowers and a sea of lights and was honestly a surprise right in the heart of FoCo. Definitely worth take a moment here and there to smell the roses and detail of all the lights. The staff was super friendly and felt safe with respect to the health crisis. A nice peaceful walk and got me into the spirit of the holidays. read more

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I had a few hours in Fort Collins and I'm so glad I went to the Gardens! The gardens are well maintained with signage. Also, the gift shop has reasonably priced items with local products. read more

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Third concert I've been to. No order to people putting yard chairs up willy nilly When will staff figure out people with tall chairs need to sit behind those with low back chairs. Learn from experts at outdoor venues do everyobe may be able to see stage Bush league read more

Beautiful! Butterfly pavilion is a must-see! Gardens were in almost full bloom at the end of April. read more

Gardens on Spring Creek - Botanical Gardens Near Me - Fort Collins, Colorado

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We visited the Gardens on Spring Creek in the fall, and it is just beautiful. There is an indoor community room type of space where they do story time and crafts for kids at a very low cost. The staff that did our story time was so kind and really organized, weren't phased by the change of weather and had a plan for the kids. The gardens outdoors are just beautiful and can be visited with a suggested low-cost donation. I can't wait to go back in the summer with the kids, there are so many fun things to explore. Definitely will make a point to come back next time we are in the area. read more

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We attended the Christmas lights this evening. The staff that checked us in was not very friendly to start, it was over crowded and the "elf juggling" they advertised was 1 person that couldn't even juggle walking around. To top it off, There was a younger Santa walking around, probably in his 40s. He was making inappropriate comments to lots of kids that we overheard and we figured he was probably tipsy. As we were getting ready to leave trying to corral our toddlers , he came over and told our 3 and 5 year olds they were on the naughty list. And then laughed and walked away. Absolutely inappropriate to have staff like that working and acting like they're inebriated. Our kids are absolutely distraught thinking they aren't getting Christmas gifts. Having to explain to kids that not all the Santa's "helpers" are real at the ripe age of 3 and 5 is heart breaking. Finally have some normal things to attend after CoVid and then this crap happens.... Ridiculous. read more

The Gardens on Spring Creek I kind of just happened to stumble across while taking a very long walk while waiting for my car to get fixed one day. I heard my brother mention gardens that you could go to for free prior to my long walk but thought it was something on the CSU campus. It was a great deal of fun to take a walk through while getting sun burnt to wait for my quirky car to get fixed for the umpteenth time that summer. Since then I have visited The Gardens several times. There are lots of different plants to take in and it is most helpful with the signs explaining what they are. The Gardens on Spring Creek is kind of a mix between an urban garden that you see in the big cities where families grow fresh produce and plant flowers which otherwise they would not have the opportunity to do at home and a botanical garden. The facility is more high tech and not simple enough to call a urban garden exclusively but it does not house those really off the wall exotic plants that you see in the big city botanical gardens and the facility is too small to give it that term. Kind of in the middle really, and that is cool! The Gardens on Spring Creek is operated by the City of Fort Collins government. There is no entrance fee to walk through the gardens but there is a suggested $2.00 donation. Whoops! Sorry, I did not know that in my earlier visits there. There are various workshops that are held here as well covering landscaping and gardening and various other topics. The main building houses a gift shop and a hot house where more of the finicky plants that even reject Colorado's warm summers are housed as well as seedlings. There is a gift shop in the main building as well. The gardens themselves are fun to walk through. All those signs to take in and read as to what kinds of plants you are looking at. There is a game involving water that kids and adults can play in the summer time involving damming little trickles of water and then letting them go and other cute things. There is also a very peaceful little stream housing ever hungry Koi, begging for food and wanting to show off. Typically one does not think that botanical gardens do much in the winter time and I realize that is not the case. In December they decorate the gardens in Christmas lights and encourage people to come in and stroll through the gardens during the chilly months as well. When I mean stroll, just you and your own two feet and no dog. They discourage people to ride their bikes through the gardens and to leave them at the entrance and to not bring in your pets. The Christmas light display is held every night 5-8pm up to December 26th. I do not specifically know their summer hours but you can go to the website, http://www.fcgov.com/horticulture/ to learn more about their upcoming events and hours. Fun place to visit! read more

I take my daughter here almost every Monday for Read and Seed. They are read a story and then do a little craft or project that coincides. The staff memebers are so friendly and great with the children. We always have fun. My daughter loves coming home to show her dad and brother what she made. The cost is $3 for the child and adults are free. Read and Seed is for ages 2-4 but they have programs for all age levels. I would definately recommend checking this out! read more

A very unique feature of Fort Collins. The programs are great, I wish the entire place was designed similarly to the children's garden which, in my opinion, has a lot of great outdoor art. The non-children area seems more like a farm than a botanic garden, most things in it are edible vegetables not flowers. Definitely worth seeing. read more

We went specifically to see the Butterfly House at the Gardens. The time slots are very short, especially for young, curious eyes. The allotted time is 15 minutes, the rules were clearly stated and followed by my children and the others in our group. One of the children was holding a rolly polly about 2/3 of the way through our walk around the House and the volunteer got extremely upset, asked the child to put it down (which they did immediately) and told us our tour was over and we needed to leave the House. We spent $27 on admission (one adult and two very well-behaved children) for 12 minutes in the Butterfly House. I was appalled at how the volunteer responded with my children, who were curious and engaged, not harming any creatures at all. They followed the rules and we felt kicked out after 12 minutes and not able to see the last 1/3 of the House. First off, it felt small and short, with only a few varieties of butterflies. We were not shown the caterpillars, the variety of butterflies, or anything else that the website advertises. Second, the volunteer was so worried about the children's behavior, she was not informative or inviting, clearly not suited to work with children. I was extremely disappointed in how the volunteer reacted and cut our tour short, especially for the price of admission! Not worth the 12 minutes and the $27. Make the trip to Denver for the Butterfly Pavillion. read more

Oh what a fun place to stop & stretch your legs. Like others are saying the children's area is not to be missed. Wish I had the grandkids with us. read more