2025 guide to visiting Santa Barbara’s botanic wonder, Lotusland
Thinking about visiting Lotusland? Learn how admission works, some important considerations, and how it compares to other SoCal botanic gardens.
Nestled deep in Montecito near Santa Barbara, California, Lotusland is a must-see for plant enthusiasts and nature lovers. This 37-acre botanic wonder boasts a fascinating history, a large plant collection, and an impressive garden arrangement.
Thinking about visiting soon? Here’s everything you need to know before booking that reservation (based on personal experience!).
The history behind Ganna Walska Lotusland
Lotusland was the vision of Madame Ganna Walska, a Polish opera singer and humanitarian. She bought the property in 1941. Over the next 43 years, she transformed it into a magnificent display of exotic plants and unique garden designs. Today, it’s a lasting legacy visitors enjoy from all over the world.
Photo by: Lotusland
What is Lotusland?
Lotusland is a non-profit botanic garden home to more than 3,000 plant species from around the world. With 20 distinct gardens, each showcasing a different theme or plant collection, visitors immerse themselves in the beauty and diversity of the botanical world.
Photo by: David Potter
For example, in the Cactus Garden, you’ll find a uniquely dense jungle of towering columnar cacti that you can walk through.
The serene Japanese Garden features a tranquil pond, carefully pruned trees, and a traditional tea house. This garden evokes a sense of harmony and balance, inviting visitors to pause and reflect amidst the beauty of nature.
Photo by: David Potter
In the Cycad Garden, you’ll see one of the world’s most comprehensive collections of these ancient plants. These have existed since the Jurassic Period! With their striking, palm-like leaves and prehistoric appearance, cycads captivate both plant enthusiasts and curious visitors.
The whimsical Topiary Garden has trimmed shrubs and trees in various imaginative shapes and designs. From spiraling hedges to animal-shaped topiaries, this garden shows the artistry and creativity possible with living plants.
These are just a few examples of the diverse gardens in Lotusland.
Admission cost
Compared to other botanic gardens, single-visit Lotusland tickets are on the higher side*:
Adults: $60
Youth ages 3-17: $25
Child ages two and under: Free
Docent-led tours: $15 (purchased as an add-on to the entry ticket)
If you live nearby and see yourself visiting more than three times, it may be worth looking into an annual membership.
*Rates are subject to change. The listed ones above reflect accurate rates at the time of writing in March 2025.
How admission works
Because Lotusland is in a residential neighborhood, you must reserve a date and time before showing up.
To ensure a smooth and remarkable experience, follow these steps:
Book early: Spots can fill up weeks in advance, so reserve your preferred date and time as soon as possible. The garden is open from mid-February to mid-November.
Choose your tour type: Lotusland offers self-guided tours and docent-led tours. Each time slot accommodates 30 people for self-guided tours and 30 people for docent-led tours. Self-guided tours allow you to explore at your own pace, while docent-led tours provide an in-depth experience where you’ll learn more about the plants and the garden’s history.
Plan for the time limit: Unlike other botanic gardens, Lotusland has a strict 2-hour time limit for all visitors. If you choose the tour, you won’t have time to explore the garden freely.
Arrange for transportation: Parking is free for one car per reservation. Extra cars are subject to a $25 fee based on availability.
Refund policy and some important considerations
Lotusland allows cancellations and rescheduling up to 48 hours before your scheduled visit. But it doesn’t refund last-minute cancellations due to unforeseen weather changes — the garden operates rain or shine.
Tip: Traveling from out of town? Leave early to plan for traffic. Arrive 15 minutes early to enter before it closes the gate to late arrivals.
When is the best time to visit Lotusland?
To have the best Lotusland experience, visit during clear, sunny weather. Santa Barbara can experience unexpected rainfall, particularly during winter.
I went with my family in early March. At the time of reserving our slots, there was no forecasted rain. To our surprise, it ended up pouring so hard during the two hours we were there. Needless to say, it put a huge damper on our visit.
Tip: Choose a time of year when rain is less likely. You want to make the most of the $60 admission cost and soak in all the garden’s beauty (rather than be soaked)!
Photo by: David Potter
How Lotusland compares with other Southern California botanic gardens
Curious how Lotusland stacks up against other popular botanic gardens in Southern California? I was, too.
Here are some quick comparisons:
Lotusland vs. Huntington Gardens
Both are stunning and have themed gardens. But Lotusland offers a more intimate experience with unique and densely planted gardens. Huntington Gardens in Pasadena is larger with a broader range of gardens, art collections, and architecture.
SoCal-native cacti and euphorbia enthusiast and photographer, David Potter shared, “I could spend well over two hours at most of the individual gardens at The Huntington. The desert garden has an iconic section of decades-old golden barrel cacti with mammillarias and columnar cacti, and large specimen plants [such as] dioscorea elephantipes and boojum trees.”
Huntington’s cost of entry for adults is $25 to $29 depending on the time of year. Kids ages 4-11 get in for $13 no matter the time of year, and children under age four get in for free.
Photo by: David Potter
Lotusland vs. Moorten Botanical Garden
Moorten Botanical Garden in South Palm Springs is a small family-owned garden that takes 20 to 30 minutes to walk through. As a Palm Springs resident, Potter explained, “It’s a no-brainer visit if you’re passing through the Coachella Valley to see its famous cactarium.”
The best part? It only costs $5 to enter — and you get to see desert tortoises!
In contrast, Lotusland provides a much more diverse and immersive experience with its wide variety of plant collections and imaginative garden designs.
Lotusland vs. San Diego Botanic Garden
While Lotusland is known for its densely packed gardens and artistic design, San Diego Botanic Garden in Encinitas is larger and showcases a mix of native and exotic plants.
Plant enthusiasts, including Potter, appreciate its specialized gardens: “To me, SD Botanic Garden is most notable for its Dragon Tree Grove and impressively-sized trees from Australia [such as] the bottle tree. The Bamboo Garden is also quite expansive compared to other gardens.”
San Diego Botanic Garden charges only $18 per adult and $10 per youth ages 3-17 for general admission. Little ones under three years old get in for free.
Photo by: David Potter
Is Lotusland worth the money?
At $60 per adult ticket, Lotusland is significantly more expensive than other botanic gardens in Southern California. But it’s a beautiful garden worth seeing at least once, especially if you’re visiting Santa Barbara. The key is to plan your visit, double-check the weather forecast, and choose a time of year when rain is less likely to fall unexpectedly.
During our visit in March, we were hit with a sudden, massive downpour that lasted the entire two hours. This was frustrating because the forecast didn’t show any chance of rain when we made the reservation. Two days before, the forecast showed a low chance of rain but we didn’t expect it to pour as hard as it did. Our shoes got soaked within 30 minutes of arrival and my plant-enthusiast fiancé couldn’t take the photos he’d hoped to capture.
Due to this unfortunate experience, we felt Lotusland wasn't worth the steep total admission cost of $120. Had the weather been free of rain, we would’ve really enjoyed this garden.
What visitors are saying
Lotusland has earned a stellar reputation among visitors, with 475 reviews on Tripadvisor rounding out to an impressive 4.5-star rating. The garden is also ranked as the #1 attraction out of 12 things to do in Montecito.
As with any attraction, the garden has received positive and negative reviews from guests.
For example, MCK visited in September 2018. They gave Lotusland a 4-star review because they enjoyed touring with a docent, despite the steep admission cost:
“Absolutely gorgeous, breathtaking, though pricey, but my friend and I thought it was worth the cost. 37 acres, 21 gardens (though one of my desired gardens to see was closed for renovation: Japanese Garden), and I was informed the day I bought my tickets, so I did have an option not to go. We went on the tour. Our Docent's passionate knowledge about Ganna Walska herself, the gardens, and the history was presented to our group of 10. Honestly, if I lived in SB or near SB I would join the membership, so I could go at different times of the season to see all the different vegetation changes.
The Saturday we went in mid-Sept, the weather was beautiful, not too hot and no rain or clouds. A lot of the tour is shaded, but there are some areas where it can get hot and there is no shade. Wear comfortable shoes, there is a lot of walking.”
While most visitors have wonderful experiences at Lotusland, some have expressed concerns or disappointment.
For example, a visitor going by the name “ihatescorpions” from Arizona visited in May 2023. They gave Lotusland a 2-star review because of their subpar tour experience and the garden’s lack of flexibility:
“The property is beautiful but we regretted booking the tour. Our docent had a very soft quiet voice making it difficult to hear. We did not go to the topiary garden and when we asked if we would be going, the docent replied, "Oh, did we miss that? I'm sorry". We asked if we could leave the tour and go view it ourselves and we were told that we must stay with the group and be escorted to the exit by the docent. It is too bad that they do not allow at least 30 minutes for self-exploration when you book the tour. $50 is too much to charge for a tour that does not include all the gardens.”
Photo by: David Potter
Should you visit Lotusland?
For plant enthusiasts and seasoned horticulturalists, the $60 adult ticket price may be worth it for a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Santa Barbara locals might consider an annual membership, which pays for itself after three visits. After that, it’s only $30 per visit.
If you’re like me and not particularly passionate about plants and simply want a nice garden to stroll through, you may not appreciate all that Lotusland has to offer at a steep price. In this case, more affordable options such as Huntington Gardens or San Diego Botanic Garden may be better.
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Note: This story was originally published on https://wavecomber.com/everything-you-need-to-know-before-visiting-lotusland/.