Bellingrath Gardens and Home is a 65-acre botanical garden and historic house museum in Theodore, Alabama, about 30 minutes southwest of Mobile. This guide covers current opening hours, ticket prices, transport and parking, accessibility, and practical tips for a first-time visit.
This guide was updated in August 2026.
Quick facts
| Opening hours | General admission: 8am–5pm daily |
| Adult ticket price | $16.50 (Gardens only) / $25.50 (Gardens & Home) |
| Address | 12401 Bellingrath Gardens Road, Theodore, AL 36582 |
| Nearest transport | No public transit; free on-site parking is the main option |
| Typical visit length | About two to three hours; add extra time for a guided Home tour |
Bellingrath Gardens and Home opening hours
General admission runs 8am to 5pm daily. The last tickets for a Home tour are sold at 3:30pm, and the last Garden tickets are sold at 4pm, during the regular season.
The Gardens close on New Year’s Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Seasonal evening events run at different hours: the Gulf Coast Chinese Lantern Festival (spring) and Magic Christmas in Lights (20 November–9 January, 5pm–9pm) both extend hours beyond regular daytime admission, but neither is currently running as of this guide’s August 2026 update.
Bellingrath Gardens and Home ticket prices
Gardens-only admission costs $16.50 for adults and $10.50 for youth aged 5 to 12; children 4 and under and current members enter free. A combined Gardens & Home ticket, which adds a guided tour of the historic Bellingrath Home, costs $25.50 for adults and $17.50 for youth.
Opening hours and ticket prices were checked on the official website and last updated in August 2026. Active-duty military personnel and their immediate families receive a 25% discount on Mondays with valid government ID, for general admission only.
How to get to Bellingrath Gardens and Home
There is no public transit service to Bellingrath Gardens and Home, so most visitors drive. From Mobile, it is about a 30-minute drive southwest; from New Orleans, it is about 2 hours east along I-10.
Drivers from New Orleans should take Exit 13 (Theodore Dawes Road) off I-10, turn right onto US Highway 90, then left onto Bellingrath Road, and travel south for 6 miles before turning left onto Bellingrath Gardens Road.
Parking at Bellingrath Gardens and Home
Free on-site parking is available during normal operating hours. Individual vehicles follow signs to the main lot, buses, motorcoaches and campers have designated spaces beside the Entrance Building, and accessible parking is available at the front of the lot near the entrance.
How long to spend at Bellingrath Gardens and Home
Most visitors spend around two to three hours exploring the 65-acre Gardens. Visitors adding a guided tour of the Bellingrath Home should allow extra time, since the last Home tour tickets are sold at 3:30pm during the regular season.
Accessibility at Bellingrath Gardens and Home
The Gardens are wheelchair and stroller accessible via a network of paved paths, though the Asian-American Garden has only partial access and the historic Bellingrath Home is not accessible to wheelchairs or strollers. A complimentary shuttle runs from the parking lot to the main entrance for visitors who need it.
Manual wheelchairs can be rented for $6 and scooters for $20 at admissions, on a first-come, first-served basis. Service animals are welcome throughout the property, as defined by the ADA.
Inside Bellingrath Gardens and Home
The Rose Garden, built in 1936, displays more than 1,000 rose plants in a formal layout that founder Walter Bellingrath designed as a tribute to his Rotary Club membership. The Conservatory, dating to 1935, houses tropical plants inside a historic greenhouse.
The Bellingrath Home, a 15-room house built in 1935 for Walter and Bessie Bellingrath, has been open as a museum since 1956 and remains furnished entirely with the antiques Bessie Bellingrath collected. Guided tours are ticketed separately from general Garden admission.
The Rockery, a stone-lined stairwell and water feature leading down to Mirror Lake, and the Grotto, a stone-clad structure by the Fowl River, are among the estate’s most distinctive garden features, both inspired by historic European gardens the Bellingraths visited in 1927.
The Dwight Harrigan/ExxonMobil Bayou Boardwalk, opened in 1996, leads through the tidal North Bayou ecosystem, while the Delchamps Boehm Gallery houses one of the largest collections of Edward Marshall Boehm porcelain sculpture in the United States.
Practical visitor tips
| Tip | Detail |
|---|---|
| Timing | The last Home tour tickets are sold at 3:30pm and the last Garden tickets at 4pm during the regular season, so arrive with enough time. |
| What to bring | Sunscreen, a refillable water bottle, a hat, sunglasses and comfortable shoes are all recommended for the outdoor walking. |
| What to leave at home | Pets and therapy animals (other than service dogs), picnicking items, and weapons or firearms are all prohibited. |
| Layout | The Gardens cover 65 acres with more than 30 distinct features, so allow time to walk the full loop from the Entrance Building to the Bayou Boardwalk and back. |
| On-site logistics | The Magnolia Café has a hydration station for refilling water bottles, and the Gift Shop and Garden Center sit near the exit. |
Frequently asked questions about Bellingrath Gardens and Home
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Is Bellingrath Gardens and Home suitable for children? | Yes. Children aged 4 and under enter free, and the paved paths and open lawns suit family visits. |
| Do you need to book tickets in advance for Bellingrath Gardens and Home? | No, tickets can be bought on arrival, though booking online in advance is also possible. |
| Are pets allowed at Bellingrath Gardens and Home? | No, only service dogs are permitted; other pets and therapy animals are not allowed. |
| Is the Bellingrath Home wheelchair accessible? | No. The historic Home is not accessible to wheelchairs or strollers, unlike most of the Gardens. |
| Is Bellingrath Gardens and Home open on Christmas Day? | No. The Gardens are closed on New Year’s Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. |
Things to do near Bellingrath Gardens and Home
The Mobile Botanical Gardens, about 30 minutes away in Mobile, offer 100 acres of azaleas, camellias and longleaf pine forest. The USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park lets visitors tour a WWII-era battleship and submarine on Mobile Bay.
Fort Condé and the History Museum of Mobile, both in downtown Mobile, cover the city’s colonial and civic history. GulfQuest National Maritime Museum of the Gulf of Mexico, on the Mobile riverfront, focuses on the region’s maritime industry.
Dauphin Island, a barrier island roughly 45 minutes south, offers public beaches and a bird sanctuary popular with day-trippers from Mobile.
What to visit tomorrow
Longue Vue House and Gardens, in New Orleans, is about 2 hours’ drive and pairs a historic estate house with 8 acres of formal gardens, closely echoing Bellingrath’s own layout.
The New Orleans Botanical Garden, in City Park, New Orleans, is a similar distance and includes Art Deco sculpture gardens alongside its plant collections.
The Crosby Arboretum, in Picayune, Mississippi, is about an hour and a half’s drive and showcases native Gulf Coast plant habitats across more than 100 acres.
Eden Gardens State Park, in Point Washington, Florida, is around an hour and a half to two hours’ drive and combines a historic mansion with live oak-shaded gardens.
James P. Morgan Memorial Park and Botanical Gardens, on Pensacola Beach, Florida, is about 2 hours’ drive and offers a quieter, smaller garden walk away from the beach crowds.
More Alabama travel
Other Alabama travel guides on Planet Whitley include:
- Discover the birthplace of American Carnival at the Mobile Carnival Museum.
- Plan your visit to the McWane Science Museum in Birmingham, Alabama.
- Planning a road trip from Memphis to Birmingham, Alabama.
- Visitor guide to DeSoto Falls near Mentone, Alabama.
- Where to stop on the Memphis to Montgomery drive.
