Ellermann Florist Guide to the World’s Best Royal Gardens
Royal gardens are among the most striking expressions of power, artistry, and cultural identity. Throughout history, monarchs have used gardens as symbols of authority, as sanctuaries of retreat, and as stages for diplomacy. What was once restricted to kings, queens, and their closest courts has in many cases become accessible to the public, allowing modern visitors to walk the same paths that once entertained princes, emperors, and foreign dignitaries.
The following Ellermann guide explores some of the world’s most remarkable royal gardens, spanning Europe, Asia, and beyond. Each garden tells a story not only of the dynasty that built it but also of the aesthetic ideals and horticultural knowledge of its time. Together, they provide a living archive of history through the arrangement of plants, water, and architecture.
United Kingdom
Kensington Palace Gardens, London
Kensington Palace has long been associated with the British royal family, particularly as the childhood home of Queen Victoria and later the residence of Diana, Princess of Wales. The gardens here represent a blend of English romantic landscaping and carefully tended formal areas. Among the highlights is the Sunken Garden, which was redesigned in memory of Princess Diana and has since become a space of quiet reflection and floral spectacle. Seasonal plantings, including extraordinary tulip and summer flower displays, create a constantly changing canvas throughout the year. For visitors seeking a moment of calm in central London, these gardens offer an oasis infused with royal history and personal stories.
Hampton Court Palace Gardens, Surrey
Hampton Court, once home to Henry VIII, boasts one of the most extraordinary examples of Tudor and Baroque garden design in England. The gardens extend over 60 acres and feature both wild parkland and rigorously ordered parterres. The Privy Garden, reconstructed to reflect the original 1702 design of William III, is an immaculate vision of symmetry and control. Another highlight is the Great Vine, which holds the record as the largest and oldest grapevine in the world, still producing fruit after more than 250 years. Families are especially drawn to Hampton Court’s famous maze, a 300-year-old puzzle of clipped hedges. These gardens combine beauty with history, bringing the grandeur of England’s royal past vividly to life.
France
Gardens of Versailles, Versailles
Few royal gardens in the world can rival the grandeur of Versailles. Designed in the seventeenth century by André Le Nôtre for Louis XIV, the so-called Sun King, these gardens were as much a political statement as a horticultural achievement. They extend over nearly 2,000 acres, with avenues radiating from the palace like the rays of the sun. Sculpted parterres, gilded fountains, reflecting pools, and precisely trimmed trees all reflect an obsession with order and the king’s absolute power over nature. Highlights include the Apollo Fountain, which symbolizes Louis XIV as the sun god, and the Grand Canal, a vast waterway that served as both a decorative feature and a venue for mock naval battles. Versailles remains the definitive model of the French formal garden, embodying symmetry, control, and magnificence on a scale that continues to astonish.
Château de Villandry, Loire Valley
While Versailles may embody royal power, Villandry represents refinement and symbolism. Built during the Renaissance, the château’s gardens are especially famous for their ornamental vegetable plots, laid out in precise geometric patterns that elevate the humble kitchen garden into an art form. The Love Gardens, composed of boxwood hedges shaped into hearts, arrows, and flames, add a layer of romantic symbolism to the landscape. Water gardens, terraces, and flowerbeds complement the vegetable parterres, creating a harmonious whole that blends utility with beauty. For those seeking a more intimate and poetic garden experience, Villandry offers a contrast to Versailles’ grandeur, demonstrating the quieter side of aristocratic garden design.
Austria
Schönbrunn Palace Gardens, Vienna
Schönbrunn was the summer residence of the Habsburg emperors, and its gardens are a quintessential example of Baroque landscape design. Extending across a vast area, they incorporate grand avenues, sculptural fountains, formal flowerbeds, and carefully designed vistas. The Gloriette, an elegant colonnaded structure perched on a hilltop, offers sweeping views back across the palace and city. The Neptune Fountain, with its dramatic sculptures of mythological figures, anchors the main axis. Beyond the formal gardens, there are wooded areas, a labyrinth, and even the world’s oldest zoo, which was originally built for the imperial family. The gardens of Schönbrunn, designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, encapsulate the Habsburgs’ ambition to rival the grandeur of Versailles while also serving as a place of leisure and spectacle.
Russia
Peterhof Gardens, St. Petersburg
Often referred to as the "Russian Versailles," the Peterhof gardens were commissioned by Peter the Great in the early eighteenth century as part of his vision to transform Russia into a European power. Stretching along the Gulf of Finland, the gardens are famous above all for their fountains. The Grand Cascade, with more than 60 fountains adorned with gilded statues, descends dramatically from the palace to the sea. The Samson Fountain, depicting the biblical hero prying open a lion’s jaws, was designed to symbolize Russia’s victory over Sweden. The Lower Gardens, with their network of canals and trick fountains, combine playful elements with imperial pomp. For visitors, Peterhof is not only an extraordinary display of hydraulic engineering but also a statement of imperial ambition.
Japan
Kyoto Imperial Palace Gardens, Kyoto
The gardens surrounding the Kyoto Imperial Palace exemplify Japanese landscape design at its most refined. Unlike the symmetry of European formal gardens, these are designed as strolling gardens, meant to be experienced gradually through movement. Paths wind past carp-filled ponds, across stone bridges, and under canopies of cherry blossoms and maples that change with the seasons. Every vista is composed with painterly care, creating scenes of harmony and balance. The gardens reflect the Japanese philosophy of integrating human design with natural beauty, offering a contemplative experience that is deeply tied to cultural and spiritual traditions. To walk here is to step into a living expression of Japanese aesthetics, where each season brings a new layer of meaning.
Thailand
Bang Pa-In Royal Palace Gardens, Ayutthaya
The summer palace of the Thai monarchy, Bang Pa-In reflects a fascinating fusion of cultural influences. First established in the seventeenth century, the complex fell into disuse before being revived in the nineteenth century by King Rama IV and King Rama V. The gardens today combine Thai pavilions with Chinese-style mansions and European-inspired landscaping. Ornamental lakes are spanned by elegant bridges, while open lawns and flowerbeds provide a formal backdrop for the eclectic architecture. For visitors, Bang Pa-In offers a chance to see how Thailand’s royal family embraced global influences while preserving local traditions, creating a garden landscape that is both cosmopolitan and uniquely Thai.
India
Mughal Gardens at Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi
Located at the residence of the President of India, the Mughal Gardens were originally designed during the British colonial period but draw heavily on the traditions of Mughal garden design. They are laid out in the charbagh style, a quadrilateral plan divided by water channels that symbolizes paradise in Islamic tradition. Geometric flowerbeds filled with roses, marigolds, and seasonal blooms create dazzling displays, while fountains and pergolas add to the sense of order and tranquility. Open to the public only during certain months of the year, these gardens represent a synthesis of Indian and European traditions, linking the Mughal emperors’ love of gardens with colonial and modern Indian history.
Morocco
Royal Gardens of Marrakech
The royal gardens of Marrakech, many of which remain private or partially accessible, are steeped in the traditions of Islamic and Moorish design. Characterized by enclosed courtyards, citrus groves, fragrant rose bushes, and fountains, these gardens serve as cool sanctuaries in a hot climate. The Agdal and Menara gardens, associated with the ruling dynasties of Marrakech, stretch over vast areas with orchards of olive and fruit trees nourished by ingenious irrigation systems. Their design emphasizes water as both a practical and symbolic element, reflecting abundance and divine blessing. Unlike the grand formality of European gardens, Moroccan royal gardens are inward-looking spaces, emphasizing privacy, contemplation, and harmony with nature.
Tips for Visiting Royal Gardens
Timing your visit: Spring is often the best season for flowering displays, while summer brings lush greenery and water features into full effect. Autumn can offer spectacular foliage, especially in Japanese and European gardens, while winter provides a quieter, less crowded atmosphere, allowing for more meditative walks.
Entry requirements: Some royal gardens remain active sites of government or private residences. Access may be seasonal, limited, or ticketed, so it is essential to research opening times in advance. Certain gardens, such as those at Rashtrapati Bhavan in India, are open only during specific weeks of the year.
Approach to exploration: Many of these gardens were designed for strolling rather than hasty sightseeing. Take your time to follow the paths, pause at vantage points, and allow the intended sequences of views to unfold. To rush through is to miss the subtleties of design that make each garden unique.
Royal gardens are more than places of beauty. They are cultural artifacts, political statements, and works of art in their own right. From the grand fountains of Peterhof to the contemplative ponds of Kyoto, from the sun-drenched courtyards of Marrakech to the flower-filled plots of Villandry, these landscapes speak across centuries. They remind us that rulers have always sought to shape not only the land they governed but also the very image of nature itself. Today, they stand open as spaces where history and artistry converge, offering modern visitors the chance to walk in the footsteps of royalty and to experience the world as kings and queens once did.
