Open: All year daily 10am - 6pm. Closed from Dec 20th to Jan 2nd.
Admission: Free. Charge for car parking. Small charge to enter green house.
Contact: 01983 855397 - Website
Location: See on Map

Ventnor Botanic Garden was formerly the Royal National Hospital for Diseases of the Chest. Founded in 1868 by the inspiration of Dr Arthur Hill Hassall, physician and naturalist, it grew within a decade to be an important institution.

For 80 years it was a major factor in the life of Ventnor however, with the discovery of antibiotics for tuberculosis the hospital quickly became redundant and soon deteriorated beyond economic repair. It was finally demolished in 1969.

There is a visitor centre which opened it's doors in 2000. Within the centre visitors will find two exhibition areas, a seminar room and a reference library.Upon entering the visitor centre, the first of the exhibition spaces presents an exciting interactive display called 'The Green Plant - The incredible life of plants', a look at the evolution of plants and the inextricable link that we have with them.

There is also a cafe and gift shop at the visitor centre, and a children's play area and a picnic site which all add to the attractions of the garden.

{vsig}botanic{/vsig}