The Brooklyn Botanic Garden is offering pay-as-you-wish admission on weekdays to all visitors beginning January 16 through February 28, 2023.
After Sunday, January 15, full price ticket purchases will still be necessary on weekends (at $18/each), but you can enjoy the wintry grounds for whatever cost you’d like from Tuesday through Friday (they’re closed Mondays), 10a.m. until 4:30p.m.! Here’s the exact breakdown for the winter:
HOURS
Through January 15
- Tuesday–Sunday: 10a.m. – 3:30p.m. (last entry 3p.m.)
- Closed Mondays
- Lightscape runs on select evenings through January 8, 2023 (more info here)
January 16–February 28
- Tuesday–Sunday: 10a.m.–4:30p.m. (last entry 4p.m.)
- Admission is pay-what-you-wish Tuesday–Friday
- Closed Mondays (but open Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Presidents’ Day)
Specialty gardens, including the Conservatory, Discovery Garden, Rose Garden, and portions of the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden and Native Flora Garden begin to close 30 minutes before closing time. Also, Cherry Esplanade and various other areas are inaccessible during the run of Lightscape.
They also have free community tickets available every day, up to 20 percent of their total capacity for the day, for individuals facing financial hardship. You can reserve them on their website here.
While you may not think there would be much to see during the winter, you’re mistaken! After snowfall the garden’s pruned evergreen trees and the lantern on Turtle Island look gorgeous blanketed in snow, and a pair of hawks, cardinals, and sometimes koi can be seen hunting and foraging for seeds.
Or, simply take yourself on a tour to discover what plant life is thriving at this time of year, including witch-hazel and hellebore flowers, crabapples, hollies, and more!
Pay-as-you-wish winter admission at Brooklyn Botanic Garden will run through the end of February.
Also published on Medium.