Garden Tourism Festival Delhi – Welcome The Spring
The first annual Garden Tourism Festival was organized in the last century in 1988, to celebrate the arrival of colorful spring in Delhi. The first event was organized In the open area in front of Lady Sriram College in South Delhi. After that, the festival was moved to many places before finally settling at the current location the Garden of 5 Senses near Saket in a village called Said-ul-Ajaib.
I have been visiting the Garden Tourism Festival for many years and last visited in 2020 just before the COVID-19 shutdown. So this year was a special visit as I was planning to buy many plants, especially from the Vendors who come from Kalimpong and bring exotic succulents, beautiful ferns, and many other plants that are not easily available in Delhi NCR.
If you visited the Garden Tourism Festival and Did not clicked pictures did you even visit it ? ( some some similar profound quote )
While buying new plants is a reason to visit the festival, I also like to check out the various displays by individuals as well as various government bodies like NDMC and corporations that participate in the competition section of the show. Some of the competition sections where one can participate are
- Potted flowers
- Cactii & Succulent section
- Bonsai
- Home grown vegetables
- Ferns
- Hanging Plants etc.
Dahlias at the Garden Tourism Festival- Fun fact: Dahlia tubers are edible. Can you name any other edible flowers ?
One of the highlights of the Garden Tourism Festival is the floral topiaries in the shape of various animals ranging from the National Bird of India – Peacock to ship of the desert the Camel and many others. These floral topiaries are a big attraction among visitors from kids to grownups alike and you may have to stand in a queue to get your turn to be photographed with them.
Finally the Tulip Mania has reached Delhi
Jungle may more naacha kisney dekha ?
Some of the flowers that I could recognise and clicke were:
- Dahlias
- Salvias
- Topiaries made of our desi Marigold ( this is the same famous flower on which the movie featuring Dev Paten and Dame Judi Dench – The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel was named and is featured in the song Sasural Gainda Phoo )
- Tulips ( yes Tulips grow in Delhi Winters )
The Camel & The Exotic Marigold Hotel I mean flowers 🙂
As I mentioned one of the main attractions of the festival is the sales stalls of exotic plants that feature not only local nurseries but also growers and sellers from far-off places like Kalimpong in West Bengal that bring rare plants to be sold. Yours truly bought some cacti like Notocactus leninghausii though now transferred to Parodia ( I swear I have not made it up ), the living stone Lithops, Caladium Bulbs, Rosemary plant, and a few more that I will share on my Instagram as they bloom.
I bought some Lithops, the oxalis came free and just tagged along
While the sale section is on for 3 days and is now over, the festival is typically on for 3 weeks but better check the site of Delhi Tourism Department for more information. Though you may have to struggle a bit as the site is not updated regularly.
How to reach the Garden Tourism Festival at Said-ul-Ajaib ?
The best way to reach the Garden Tourism Festival is by the super efficient Delhi Metro. The Saket Station is on the Yellow Gurgaon to Rohini Yellow Line and you can take a local auto to reach the venue. You can also reach there by your own vehich as ample parking is available but the grounds are poorly maintained and there are high chances that your car will get damaged or scratched in the parking as people park hapazardly in the litter strewn open area.
Have you heard of the crazy prices Tulips commanded during the Dutch Tulip mania ?
You can follow this Google Map for directions to the Garden Tourism Festival.
No m atter what the competetion the Onion always gets the First Prize
Here I will like to add that even when the festival is not on the Garden of 5 senses is a nice place to visit specially in the winters as it has a lot of greenery, flowers and well maintained small lawns to sit and relax. There is also some food stalls that offer the Delhi staples like Chowmein, Samosa, Chole Bhature, Chat etc.
Q: Who was the politician chided by PM Modi about Gobi Grown in Gamlas for taking tax break ?
It was good to meet Mr. Prashant Sharma who runs Childrensearth.org a non profit that is working on various environmental impact projects.
What else is worth visiting nearby:
Though I would suggest you keep atleast 4 hours to peacefully enjoy the Garden Tourism festival, click pictures, do some plant shopping etc. If you want you can visit the nearby Qutub Minar and Mehrauli Archaeological Park & Jamali Kamali etc. In case you are one of those Mall Rats kind of person there are a few big malls in Saket and you can visit them, though if you are visiting the Garden Tourism Festival it would be safe to assume that malls are not your fist choice as a place to visit on a beautiful spring day. Do tell me your views in the comments section 🙂
Can you name these indoor plants ? One of them is named after the home of Mandrake The Magician
Tickets to the Garden Tourism Festival:
Like everything GORMINT the ticket prices for the Garden of 5 senses are also a complicated affair with different ticket prices for weekdays, children, senior citizens , people with camera, people who plan to shoot prewedding photos,
people with Rahu in there 9th house of there horoscope etc. Ok I exaggerate but you get the gist. Check this image below to understand the ticket price better.
Can you solve the entry ticket puzzle ?
Overall I would suggest if you enjoy outdoors and gardening the Garden Tourism Festival is a must visit with your family and enjoy a day out in Delhi befor the desert heat takes over and forces you to stay indoors.
Happy Travels 🙂
