A few steps from the zoo, the Liberec Botanical Garden packs a remarkable amount into a small plot. Its tradition goes back to the 1870s, when a local society of nature-lovers laid out the first garden; the present complex of linked glasshouse pavilions dates from the 1990s and is one of the most modern in the country.
You walk a one-way route from pavilion to pavilion — humid tropics, dry desert, a house of prehistoric-looking ferns and cycads — which makes it an ideal hour when the weather turns.
What to see and do: Liberec Botanical Garden
Walk the pavilions
The glasshouses are arranged in a ring, each with its own climate and theme: tropical plants of the Old and New Worlds, Australian flora, cacti and succulents, and ancient plant groups.
Orchids and carnivorous plants
These are the garden’s specialities. The collections of orchids and of insect-eating plants are among the most extensive in the Czech Republic.
Giant water lilies
In the warm pool pavilion, giant Victoria water lilies spread their plate-like leaves in summer — the classic photograph of the garden.
Aquariums
A run of freshwater and marine tanks is built into the route, a hit with children who have had enough of leaves.
Outdoor beds
In the growing season the outdoor area has an alpine rock garden, rhododendrons and a collection of old bonsai. In winter the pavilions alone justify the ticket.
How to get to Liberec Botanical Garden
- Take the tram towards Lidové sady and get off at the botanical garden / zoo stops; the entrance is on Purkyňova street.
- From the zoo entrance it is about five minutes on foot.
- From the centre it is a 25-minute walk along Masarykova avenue.
Insider tips
- Allow an hour to an hour and a half.
- The pavilions are warm and humid: wear layers you can take off, and give your camera lens a minute to stop fogging.
- Open all year, which makes it one of the best wet-weather sights in the city.
- Pair it with the zoo next door; ask about joint tickets.
Tours that fit: Liberec Botanical Garden
These GetYourGuide experiences pair well with Liberec Botanical Garden:
Private walking tour from €82 per group Liberec / Reichenberg Guided Tour in English or Czech
The only bookable guided walk in the city itself, and a well-reviewed one. A local guide takes your group through the historic centre of Liberec — the town the German-speaking world knew as Reichenberg — in English or Czech. Because the price is per group rather than per person, it is excellent value for families and friends travelling together.
- The historic centre with a local guide
- Offered in English or Czech
- One price for the whole group, up to 20 people
Small-group evening trip from €365 per group Prague: Ještěd Sunset Tour – Scenic Views & Small Group
An evening escape from Prague to the mountain above Liberec, timed so that you stand under Karel Hubáček’s tower as the sun goes down over North Bohemia. It is a new listing with no reviews yet, so book it with free cancellation — but nothing else on GetYourGuide is built around Ještěd itself.
- Sunset from the 1,012 m summit of Ještěd
- Small group with pickup in Prague
- Priced per group of up to six
