Looking for things to do in Malaga during the weekend? I recommend to visit the stunning botanical gardens in the outskirts of Malaga - La Concepción Jardín Botánico-Historico de Málaga. I always wanted to visit it and one weekend when my mother was here from Estonia, we decided to go and explore. The 23-hectare botanical garden dates back to 1855 and offers stunning tropical & subtropical flora from 5 continents! It’s not that big, but it’s pretty impressive & lovely for an afternoon walk followed by a glass of wine in their little cafe in the entrance. It's also available for weddings by the way - what a stunning and unique place to get married, and it's not that expensive!
History
The garden was created by the Marquis and Marchioness of the House of Loring, Jorge Loring Oyarzabal and Amalia Heredia Livermore, both of whom were born to well-known businessmen who came to the city to make their fortunes. The idea for the garden originally came to them after they had visited a series of palaces, villas, parks, estates, and botanical gardens during their honeymoon in Europe seven years earlier. To bring it to life, they hired a French gardener, Jacinto Chamoussent, whose skilled selection and acclimatisation of exotic plants was subsequently rewarded with numerous prizes.
La Concepcion quickly became known throughout Europe, though not for its beautiful, exuberant garden but rather the magnificent collection of archaeological remains to be found at the Loring Museum, a Doric-style pavilion built in 1859 on a Roman mosaic originally discovered in the village of Cartama. In 1911, La Concepcion was sold to a husband and wife from Bilbao, Rafael Echevarria and Amalia Echevarrieta, who expanded the garden, adding new features such as the Nymph's Stream, the Palm Tree Avenue and the famous viewpoint which overlooks the city. In 1943, La Concepcion was officially declared a Garden of Historical and Artistic Interest, and today it is also recognised as a Place of Cultural Interest. In 1990, the estate was purchased by Malaga City Council for 600 million pesetas (€3,606,073). Once the necessary infrastructure and adaptation work had been carried out, it was opened to the public in 1994 with two main aims: to conserve and embellish the Historical Garden itself and to turn the rest of the botanical garden into a space whose collections of plants could be used for scientific and educational purposes.
Opening times:
From 1st April to 30th September: 9:30-19:30
From 1st October to 31st March: 9:30-16:30
24th & 31st December: 9:30-15:00
Closed on Mondays, 25th December & 1st January
Visitors may remain in the garden for up to an hour and a half after closing time.
Address: Camino del Jardin Botanico, nº 3 - 29014 Malaga
Information and ticket office: +34 951926180
Ticket price: €5.20
Children under 6 years old: Free
Admission is free on Sundays between 1st October & 31st March, and from 15:30 onwards between 1st April & 30th September. Three types of visit are available, lasting between and hour and a quarter and four hours.
More info:
