Exbury Gardens
Exbury Gardens is one of the most celebrated woodland gardens in England, spread across some 200 acres on the eastern edge of the New Forest in Hampshire. Created and owned by the Rothschild family, it is above all famous for its extraordinary collection of rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias, and magnolias, which together produce one of the most spectacular floral displays in the British Isles each spring. The gardens are considered a world-class horticultural achievement and attract visitors from across the globe, particularly between March and June when the colour is at its most intense. Beyond the spring spectacle, the gardens offer beauty throughout the year, with impressive autumn colour and a serene winter landscape that rewards those who seek it out in quieter months.
The gardens were created by Lionel Nathan de Rothschild, who purchased the Exbury Estate in 1919 and spent the following decades transforming what was largely woodland into his vision of a supreme natural garden. Rothschild was not merely a wealthy enthusiast but a genuinely serious horticulturalist who employed over 150 gardeners at the garden's peak, and who funded and participated in plant-hunting expeditions to the Himalayas and China to source new rhododendron species. He is particularly celebrated for his work hybridising rhododendrons, developing many named varieties that are still grown worldwide today. After his death in 1942 the estate was requisitioned by the Royal Navy during the Second World War, when parts of the garden suffered considerable damage, before being painstakingly restored by subsequent generations of the family. His son Edmund de Rothschild was instrumental in reopening the gardens to the public and continuing the horticultural mission, and the estate remains in the ownership of the Rothschild family to this day.
Arriving at Exbury Gardens, the visitor is immediately struck by the sense of scale and lushness. Wide gravel paths lead through tunnels of towering rhododendrons, some of which have grown to truly tree-like proportions over more than a century. In late April and early May the experience is genuinely overwhelming — every shade of pink, red, white, purple, and yellow is represented across hundreds of cultivars, many of them original Rothschild hybrids bearing names reflecting the family's history. The air carries a light sweetness, and the overall atmosphere is one of extraordinary managed abundance. Even outside the spring peak, the gardens feel calm and generous, with woodland paths, ponds, a rock garden, and a cascade offering variety and quiet discovery.
The estate sits at the south-eastern fringe of the New Forest National Park, on the western shore of the Beaulieu River as it flows south toward the Solent. The wider landscape is one of ancient forest, saltmarsh, and quiet estuary — an area of outstanding natural beauty that feels remarkably remote given its proximity to Southampton. The nearby village of Beaulieu, just a few miles to the north, is home to the famous National Motor Museum and Palace House, and the ruins of Beaulieu Abbey. Buckler's Hard, a historic shipbuilding village on the Beaulieu River, is also very close by. The Solent shore and the quiet lanes and commons of the New Forest are all within easy reach, making Exbury an excellent base for a fuller exploration of this corner of Hampshire.
The gardens are open to the public from late winter through autumn, typically from mid-February to early November, though opening dates vary by year and visitors are advised to check the official website for current information. The spring months — particularly April and May — are the most popular and the most visually dramatic. Summer brings quieter pleasures, including the rock garden and the well-maintained formal areas. Autumn sees the trees and shrubs take on fiery colour. A miniature steam railway runs through part of the estate, particularly delighting families and younger visitors. There is a well-regarded plant centre on site selling many of the garden's own hybrids and propagated stock, along with a tearoom and restaurant. Dogs are welcome in parts of the garden on leads. Parking is available on site. The nearest train station is Beaulieu Road on the Bournemouth line, though the gardens are most easily reached by car, as public transport connections are limited in this rural area.
A lesser-known aspect of Exbury's history is the extent to which the Royal Navy's wartime use of the estate shaped what visitors see today. During the Second World War, the Beaulieu River was used to prepare landing craft ahead of the D-Day landings, and the Exbury estate was home to HMS Mastodon, a shore establishment that coordinated part of this effort. Hundreds of naval personnel were stationed here, and their presence inevitably affected the gardens considerably. That the gardens were restored to their current extraordinary standard in the postwar decades is a testament to the sustained commitment and financial investment of the Rothschild family across several generations. The Exbury rhododendron hybrids that Lionel developed have been distributed to gardens worldwide, meaning that his legacy extends far beyond the 200 acres of his Hampshire estate — a fact that gives visits to Exbury a quietly historic dimension alongside its undeniable sensory pleasures.