Alta Vista Botanical Gardens

A lovely botanical experience for the whole family. Numerous pathways leading one around specialty gardens, mature trees, flowers, native and non-native plants and trees. There are ponds, numerously benches and tables to relax or picnic on, rock walls, sculptures, wind chimes, and much more. Bring your canine buddy and exercise yourselves around this beautiful area. Restrooms are available. Creative children's areas for fun times and memories. Plenty of free parking.

This place was really great! We went on a quiet Thursday and there were only a couple other people around. It was peaceful, quiet, and beautiful. We enjoyed all the many themed gardens and awesome plants. We also saw road runners and lizards. Fun!

One of my favorite places in the area. Great for dates, kids, exersize, connection to nature. This garden is large and a amazing vibe, nice alternative to the larger botanical garden in San Diego as this feels more private and secluded due to its layout. They also have a large "kid area" with fun interactive instruments built into the park. Definitely come support this sweet garden.

Good garden for children, and adults -lots of short walking trails some of which have some gradients that can be challenging to senior citizens. Kudos to volunteers who keep up the Garden.

Beautiful and quiet!? We went on a Thursday during the last opening hour. So many things for the kids to see and do.

Truly a hidden jewel in Vista run and maintained by a great group of people. Only $5 for adults and $3 for kids under 12.

I/we only happened to find it because my daughter is in town from Bend, OR and she was looking up things to do while they're here.

We're all born here in San Diego and my daughter lived in Vista for a few years.

Stop by as I think you'll enjoy it like we did.

We wanted to go on a hike but with 2 kids under 7 that can be hard. This place was a perfect alternative to a random trailhead since we are not familiar with the area. There was lots for them to see and interact with in the kids area. We found some amazing look out points that were safe for the little ones. The Prehistoric path was definitely a high point.

A beautiful place to walk around with the family. There is a children's section and it's even dog friendly!

Such a wonderful little garden. I like it much better than San Diego botanical garden. So much to see here and so much for kids to do. And I love those herb smell! I wish I live closer so I can visit more often. This place is must see!

Accessibility: there are disabled parking spots actually inside this park (see photos). Besides this, there are tons of other, non-disabled parking spots directly inside the entrance of the park, and right outside the park. Most of the park is on hilly, dirt ground, not great for wheelchairs or anyone who has a difficult time walking.

Experience: I paid five dollars per person to enter (I wish it was per car but I guess that's how they keep the park running). I came on a Sunday and there were other people there but not that many. I actually never crossed by anyone closely on any trails. It is definitely a beautiful park with great views of Vista, but I recommend coming later in the day, maybe two hours before sunset, so there is more shade from the trees. During the middle of the day it gets super hot and there isn't as much shade when the sun is directly overhead. There are drinking fountains with water in a few places around the park which is super cool, and they have bathrooms (porta potties) and trash and recycle bins all over. Very cool place, very relaxing.

This is a nice place to go and have a long walk. The admission is $5. You can bring your food and have a picnic since there are many areas to do so. Nice for the hole family, have a wedding or a photo shoot session.

Pleasant surprise! Quaint place to spend quality time with family. No frills, small, simple, clean fun. Took my father here, he was visiting from Alabama and he loves plants and flowers; he was amazed and we all had a grand time.

What a lovely (relatively hidden) jewel! Leashed dogs are allowed. Nice flat paths that are flat enough for wheelchairs, some off shoot paths that made me wish I was wearing regular shoes rather than flip-flops, so I could explore them.
Picnic tables, patios, little viewpoints, fabulous view out to the ocean from at least one spot, nice grassy sections, individual little themed garden areas, some of the metal animal sculptures like they have out in Borrego Springs. And we didn't get through anywhere close to half of it. Totally delightful though.

I wish I didn't live 30 miles away from it; I would gladly pay the $45 annual individual membership for free entry rather than the $5 per visit, though it's well worth five bucks. If you are at all close by, go check it out. It's worth the trip for me but I probably won't get up there more than a few times a year

The most amazing garden I have ever been lucky enough to find. I cannot stress enough how much I want this garden to stay around and succeed, but also how I want them to stay unknown so I can keep their spectacular beauty, tranquility, and events to myself. This place is one of SoCals best kept secrets.

I hidden gem, with delightful artwork and fascinating examples of remarkable plants. The children's area is worth the effort all by itself.

We enjoyed walking the trails and viewing the plants along with the artwork here. There were plenty of areas for rest placed throughout the gardens for myself as I walk with a cane and get tired quickly.

When we first walked into the gardens, I thought it was only the 3 small areas in the front. Luckily there was another group of kids there who were begging their mom to go to “the other sections” which lead us to explore the rest of the grounds. The gardens ended up being huge and we spent a way more time there than I thought we would. My son’s favorite parts were watching the turtles swim around the ponds and playing in the music garden. I was amazed at the human sundial experiment. It totally worked!

1270 Vale Terrace Dr, Vista, CA 92084
Pay the entry fee on your honor at the front gate: $5 per adult, $3 per child ages 3-12
Current hours are 8am-4: 30pm on weekdays and 10am-4: 30 on weekends
We parked by the playgrounds and walked up the steep hill on Jim Porter Parkway but there is are two additional parking areas by the gardens entrance
? Some of the trails are paved for easy wheelchair and stroller access but most trails are dirt. Some areas were rough but for the most part, our BOB stroller did just fine.

Beautiful family friendly garden! We came here on a Sunday looking for a local activities before going back home. It's a bit off the beaten path but well with the trip. They have a cool interactive kids garden with a tunnel, hurdles, human sundial, musical play area, and much more. In addition they have a large variety of plants from various regions including a California garden. A nice family diversion.

This place is awesome! Really great for kids and adults alike. All the gardens are very accessible, fun things to see everywhere and parking is great. We became members and don’t regret it at all. Our family comes here about once a month and really love this place and the board members sponsor fun, educational events for the kids on a regular basis. Love this place!

What a great place for a quick walk, lunch, yoga or just take in fresh air. The botanical garden is peaceful and clean.