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A couple weeks ago Rebekah and I had a girls day out in Hot Springs! We went to Garvan Woodland Gardens (GWG) for the day, grabbed lunch at On The Border, got the most amazing cupcakes at Fat Bottomed Girls, and then did some shopping!
I have to admit that it has been a few years since I went to Garvan Woodland Gardens and then it was only for a wedding. GWG is a 210-acre botanical garden located near Hot Springs Arkansas. GWG is situated on a woodland peninsula with 4.5 miles of shoreline on Lake Hamilton. I love the lakes around Hot Springs, they are so beautiful!!
This post is really photo heavy and I do not apologize for that because I loved photographing the gardens!! So here we go…
…welcome to Garvan Woodland Gardens!
One of the things I love is that you can take your leashed pets to GWG and there are even pet fountains throughout the gardens set in the ground with a constant source of cool, fresh, flowing water.
One of the first sights we saw was the Bridge of the Full Moon. The Japanese Gardens were closed but we found a trail that came around from behind the bridge and got some beautiful shots! This is a popular location for bridal pictures.
After that bridge we walked a little further and saw the Floating Cloud Bridge. It had a very native american vibe…
…and right around the corner from that we found the most gorgeous pond and waterfall that ran right into the lake.
From the waterfall we went through a few flowering gardens and then found our way to the Canopy Bridge!
After walking through a lot of gorgeous foliage we found our way to the Perry Wildflower Meadow and the Perry Wildflower Overlook. While I may complain a lot about Arkansas not having a ton of fun shopping or restaurants you will never hear me complain about a lack of natural beauty. It’s so so so pretty!!!
As we wound our way back down the trail we found a friend at the Garvan Pavilion!
Did I mention that GWG has a peacock??? So fun and so pretty!!
After we were finished touring the gardens we made our way to the Anthony Chapel. Anthony Chapel is a nearly six-story tall structure with glass walls and multiple sky lights that provide a gorgeous view of Lake Hamilton. Anthony Chapel is host to more than 150 wedding a year and is simply stunning to see in person.
Gorgeous, right??
So that was our tour of Garvan Woodland Gardens! If you are in central Arkansas I would highly suggest visiting the gardens, you will love it!
Have you been to Garvan Woodland Gardens??
Those have to be some of the mos beautiful grounds I’ve ever seen. I love the flowering trees and all the water! So gorgeous.
Thanks for sharing about your visit! Come back soon! ~ Sherre Freeman, GWG Marketing Director
Those ground are amazing. I love the waterfalls and the plants, and I absolutely ADORE that they have a peacock!
Oh my goodness, that looks like such a fun trip! I want to go to some hot springs.
That is absolutely beautiful! I’ve never even heard of this place and I can’t wait to see it. Let me take a vacation that way I am definitely going to stop here.
What a beautiful place to spend the day. It’s nice sometimes to get outside and explore our local surroundings or take a day trip to see someplace new.
The gardens are absolutely beautiful! I love taking my camera places like that. I can stay busy taking pictures of the tiniest things for hours! Those are no trips for the man-child or the kids though. They get frustrated waiting on me. LOL
I’ve never wanted to get married in a church; I’ve always wanted to have an outdoor ceremony among nature. That church is the definition of a perfect medium! I’m SO visiting this place one of these days. It looks amazing!
That chapel is so pretty and the gardens themselves are gorgeous. I just love that photo of the bridge!
That chapel looks like a beautiful place to hold a wedding. The whole place looks gorgeous. When I get out to Arkansas, I will make it a point to visit here.
The flowers are so pretty and how cool that you got to be that close to the peacock! Looks like you had a great girl day!
I love all the photos. I might have to venture to the botanical gardens in Fort Worth next weekend. The flowers should be blooming after all the recent rain.
The chapel is magnificent.
I want to visit the hot springs too. I bet relaxing in the pool would feel amazing.
Thank you for sharing your photos.
That’s such a beautiful place to go to, my favorite would be the chapel. It’s really majestic and very serene and peaceful, a place where you can reflect and pray without hassle! I wouldn’t mind spending an afternoon in such a place!
Such a wonderful, amazing and breathtaking place to visit. I wanted to visit and stay in this kind of place soon!
That is a awesome place to take a stroll through! Gorgeous! You have me wanting to come there and enjoy the serenity of place!
What an amazing destination to visit. There are several local gardens near where I live and they are absolutely breathtaking in the Spring!
These pictures are stunning. I love nature and really got a kick out of the pet fountain. What a clever idea.
I have heard so much about this place. Those pictures are fantastic! I love the old church. I think I saw that in a Duggar episode when Ben proposed to Jessa.
That looks like such an awesome place to visit! I love all the pictures you shared. I would love to see that someday.
Wow, these are some amazing photos. I must go here sometime and check it out. I absolutely love the photo of the peacock. That’s so pretty.
Stunning place! I’d love to visit some day and have a nice picnic!
This would be a beautiful place to spend the day. I love being in nature. Waterfalls are my favorite.
Hurrah for a girl day. This looks like the perfect place to unplug for a bit.
Sounds like a great place to go.
Everything looks so beautiful, I wish there was one around here. I’ll just have to add it to my bucket list to see one day because I always enjoy finding new botanical gardens to visit.
What a beautiful place to spend the day. I wouldn’t ever want to leave!
Beautiful place! This is indeed a perfect place for a wedding ceremony. I love the chapel’s very unique design. This would be a lovely place to unwind and spend a day with nature.
Gorgeous! I actually was shown this place by a friend who wanted to get married there, i have never seen it in person or beyond the photos online they offer. I didn’t realize how beautiful he grounds were along with the actual structure.
Beautiful pictures – I love them! Thanks for sharing!!
I love going to the hot springs!! Swimming in them just makes all the muscles in my body relax. This place looks terrific!
What an incredible looking place to visit. That scenery! So much nature! You would have to drag me away, for sure.