The Ancient Egyptian Garden at the Hamilton Gardens.
The Ancient Egyptian Garden at the Hamilton Gardens.
The Hamilton Gardens have just been recognised as one of the world’s top tourist attractions as international travel platform Tripadvisor crowned it one of several 2023 Travelers’ Choice Best of the Best award winners.
The awards honour travellers’ favourite tourism attractions based on Tripadvisor reviews collected over a 12-month period.
On Tripadvisor, the Hamilton Gardens rank in the top 1 per cent of listings worldwide as well as in the top three attractions in New Zealand alongside Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa and Rotorua’s Redwoods.
At the time of writing, the gardens received 3526 reviews with 98 per cent of them rating them as excellent or very good.
Hamilton mayor Paula Southgate says she is delighted about the most recent international accolade for Hamilton’s “amazing treasure”.
“Most of us who have been the Hamilton Gardens will not be surprised. This accolade is an incredible honour, and it confirms that as Hamiltonians, we should rightfully be proud of this exceptional venue.”
Some of the growing number of themed gardens at Hamilton Gardens.
Hamilton Gardens director Lucy Ryan attributes the award win to an ongoing team effort.
“Winning this award has been made possible by each member of the Hamilton Gardens team, from the smiling faces at our information centre to the wonderful gardeners who are out there, rain or shine.
“Being named the Best of the Best confirms that our decades of work to create a world-class experience here in Hamilton Kirikiriroa continues to be enthusiastically received, beloved both by locals and tourists.”
Hamilton & Waikato Tourism chief executive Nicola Greenwell adds: “Fewer than 1% of Tripadvisor’s 8 million listings are awarded Best of the Best, so it signifies the highest level of excellence in travel.
Hamilton Gardens director Lucy Ryan.
“Hamilton Gardens is a huge asset for the region, as its beautiful gardens and unique concept attract people to visit again and again.”
The award win comes a week after the council formally finalised the decision to introduce the controversial $20 entry fee for the gardens for over 16-year-old out-of-town visitors.
This means that from February next year, in line with the opening of the new visitor entry precinct, non-Hamiltonians will have to pay to visit the 18 Enclosed Gardens at Hamilton Gardens.
At the full council meeting on June 29, councillors Kesh Naidoo-Rauf and Geoff Taylor put forward an unsuccessful amendment that included a reduced entry fee of $10 dollars for residents of the Waipa and Waikato Districts additionally to the $20 for non-Hamiltonians over 16 years.
The Italian Renaissance Garden at the enclosed Hamilton Gardens. Photo / Hamilton City Council
Naidoo-Rauf, Taylor and Southgate, as well as councillors Emma Pike, Melaina Huaki and Anna Casey-Cox voted in favour of the amendment with deputy mayor Angela O’Leary and councillors Andrew Bydder, Louise Hutt, Maxine van Oosten, Ryan Hamilton, Sarah Thomson, Moko Tauariki and Mark Donovan against it.
The Hamilton Gardens is a living museum of gardens from ancient Egypt to the 21st century that attracts more than 1.1 million visitors a year. It is located next to the Waikato River and taken care of by Hamilton City Council with the same vision since the 1980s: Telling the story of 4000 years of human history.
Tripadvisor is an international travel guidance platform where visitors can leave reviews for restaurants, accommodations and tourist attractions to help others planning to visit. To date, people left more than 1 billion reviews for nearly 8 million businesses.
