Nature & Gardens in Long Island, NY
There are 5 nature & gardens in and around Long Island. Each card below shows what it costs, when it opens and which ages it suits.
Sorted by distance from the middle of Long Island, nearest first. Those are straight-line miles, so every drive is longer than the number on the card.
A Charles II-style mansion set within 200 acres of formal gardens, woodlands, ponds, and lakes on Long Island. Families can explore the house and grounds, which…
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A 42-acre arboretum on Long Island's North Shore, set within the former gardens of horticulturist Frank Bailey. Families can walk marked trails through curated…
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Darien Nature Center is a nonprofit environmental education organization located inside Cherry Lawn Park in Darien, CT, offering hands-on nature programs, animal…
A botanical center in Cos Cob offering plant-focused education and nature connection for families and the wider community. Visitors can explore the grounds, attend…
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New Canaan Nature Center is a nonprofit environmental education organization set on 40 acres in New Canaan, CT, offering trails, gardens, a greenhouse, and a live…
Stamford Museum & Nature Center is a museum and nature center in Stamford, Connecticut that offers families opportunities to explore exhibits and outdoor spaces…
A 93-acre arboretum in Stamford with forests and gardens open to the public every day from dawn to dusk at no charge. Families can walk the grounds to see trees…
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Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens is a 93-acre public garden and nature preserve in Stamford, Connecticut, featuring 13 distinct gardens, forested trails, and…
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Woodcock Nature Center is a nonprofit environmental education organization in Wilton, CT, offering trails, a playground, and animal enclosures for families to…
Queens Botanical Garden is an urban garden in Flushing where visitors explore themed plantings and outdoor spaces. Families can walk through the gardens, which…
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Ansonia Nature Center is a city-owned nature park in Ansonia, Connecticut, spread across 156 wooded acres with two and a half miles of trails, a pond, streams, and…
The New York Botanical Garden is a 250-acre living museum in the Bronx featuring thousands of plants, art exhibitions, and educational spaces. Families can walk…
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A public garden in the northwest Bronx overlooking the Hudson River, with flower beds, an alpine house, and greenhouses alongside a cultural center. Families can…
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A 52-acre botanical garden in Brooklyn where families walk through different planted landscapes and take part in nature-focused programs and seasonal events…
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Where a card says no price or no hours listed, the venue does not publish it. We would rather leave the gap than fill it with a guess. Prices come from each venue's own website, and we publish one only when the figure appears on the page we took it from. Tell us if we are missing one you know.
Which one, by age
Two children three years apart do not have to be a compromise. The age line on every card shows what that venue serves.
Ansonia Nature Center
Best here for under 2, 39 miles out, listed ages 0–12 and free admission.
Stamford Museum & Nature Center
Best here for two to five, 32 miles out, listed ages 3–12 and admission $15.
Bartlett Arboretum and Gardens
Best here for six to nine, 32 miles out, listed ages 3–12 and free admission.
Lasdon Park, Arboretum, and Veterans Memorial
Best here for ten and up, 46 miles out, listed ages 3–16 and free admission.
Free nature & gardens in Long Island
5 places on this page get you in free. That makes a short trip easy to justify on a day when nobody is sure how long they will last.
Bartlett Arboretum and Gardens
Free to get in, 32 miles out and listed ages 3–12.
Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens
Free to get in and 32 miles out.
Ansonia Nature Center
Free to get in, 39 miles out and listed ages 0–12.
Bridge Gardens
Free to get in and 44 miles out.
Lasdon Park, Arboretum, and Veterans Memorial
Free to get in, 46 miles out and listed ages 3–16.
By town
Most of these are not in Long Island proper, and the town is usually what decides whether a place is worth the trip.
Nature & Gardens in Stamford
3 of them: Stamford Museum & Nature Center, Bartlett Arboretum and Gardens and Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens, the closest 32 miles from the middle of Long Island and 3 with a published admission price.
Nature & Gardens in Bronx
2 of them: The New York Botanical Garden and Wave Hill, the closest 39 miles from the middle of Long Island and 2 with a published admission price.
Planning a visit
These run from 24 to 46 miles out from the middle of Long Island. Hours move with the season and with school holidays, so check the listing before you set off. If you run one of the places on this page, you can claim it for free and keep its hours and prices right.
Before you go
Grip socks. Almost every venue requires them for children and several require them for adults. Most sell them at the door for a few dollars. Bringing your own is cheaper and means you are not buying a fourth pair.
Check whether adults pay. It runs from free to full price and it changes the cost of a visit by a lot when there are two of you.
Weekday mornings are the toddler rush. If you want space, aim for after two on a school day. Weekend mornings are the busiest hours of the week almost everywhere.
Ninety minutes is the realistic ceiling for most children under five. There is rarely a gradual wind down. Leaving with time left on the clock is not wasted money, it is a better afternoon.
Call ahead in school holidays. Several of these venues run camps and private events that close open play with no notice on the website.
Looking somewhere else in the metro? Browse every kid-friendly place in Long Island.
Other things to do in Long Island
Nature & Gardens in nearby cities
Common questions about nature & gardens in Long Island
How many nature & gardens are there in Long Island?
We list 5 nature & gardens within 47 miles of Long Island, NY. Every one is a published listing with an address we checked.
Which nature & gardens in Long Island publish their prices?
9 of the 5 here do, and each price was checked word for word against the venue's own page before we published it. The rest do not publish one, so their card says no price listed rather than carrying a guess.
Are any nature & gardens in Long Island free?
Yes. 5 places get you in free: Bartlett Arboretum and Gardens, Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens, Ansonia Nature Center, Bridge Gardens and Lasdon Park, Arboretum, and Veterans Memorial.
Which nature & gardens in Long Island suit a toddler?
8 of them list an age range starting at two or under. Check the age line on each card, because a place that suits a six-year-old does not always suit a two-year-old.
How did Mini Navigators choose these nature & gardens?
We list every one we have within 47 miles of the center of Long Island. Each is a published place with an address we geocoded and checked, and the business can claim its listing to keep the hours and prices current.
Do adults have to pay?
It varies more than you would expect, from free to full price, and it changes the cost of a visit by a lot when there are two of you. The price on each card is what it costs to get a child in. Where a venue publishes an adult price it is on the listing, and where it does not we have left it out rather than assume.
Do I need to book ahead?
Usually not for open play, but several venues cap capacity at weekends and during school holidays, and some close open play entirely for private events. Where a venue has its own booking page, the listing links straight to it.
What should I bring?
Grip socks, a water bottle, a change of clothes for anyone under four, and a plan for leaving before the meltdown rather than after it.
What else is there to do with kids in Long Island?
Long Island has 8 categories of kid-friendly places on Mini Navigators, from playgrounds and museums to splash pads and zoos. The Long Island hub lists all of them.
Listings last checked August 21, 2026.