New York Botanical Gardens - on the Cheap!

We went to The New York Botanical Gardens yesterday and got in for free!  Some libraries do have passes to the Gardens, though most of the libraries offering this are out of Westchester County.  Check with your employer as many companies that give to the Gardens have free passes or discounts for employees.  Also, some banks give free passes to customers and sometimes you just have to ask, like we did.

The Gardens are beautiful right now and we took the tram service for the first time and didn't realize there is so much more to the park than I had ever seen before!  Its worth a visit.  Lunch was a bit pricey at the cafe but at least the food was very good.  I didn't realize that after the register in the cafe, there is free water, which I would rather have than pay for bottled water.  At least I know that for the future.

The NY Botanical Gardens is only a 30 - 60 minute drive, depending on where you are in Fairfield County.  If this is somewhere you would like to visit often, great inspiration for any gardener, it might be worth it to sign up for the $125 Family Membership ($80 for Individual).  This price is for an upgraded membership that is 100% tax deductible and includes invites to member only programs and member only previews to new exhibitions and events.  The Family Membership is good for 2 adults and up to 5  children under the age of 18.  It comes with 8 parking passes, 4 complimentary tickets for friends and discounts at the Garden Shop.

For information on the Gardens, go to: http://www.nybg.org

For a list of upcoming events, go to: http://www.nybg.org/visit/exhibitions.php  I highly recommend the Japanese Garden event that celebrates the bloom of the Chrysanthemums (mums).  Went to this event last year with a member for members only pre-show and it was fantastic.  We sat outside and watched Taiko drumming and had some great Japanese food.