Discover an oasis in the heart of the city at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney.

There’s something for everyone these school holidays with fabulous programs on offer for children of all ages, including the Dandy Lions session for little ones under 5, Garden Grubs for children aged 6 – 12 years and the Garden Night-Life adventure for families.

Check out the great programs below on offer this Winter at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney:

Dandy Lions

Dates: Every Thursday, 10.30 – 12.00pm

Ages: Children up to 5 years (must be supervised by their parents or carers)

Cost: $17 per session for non-members

Where: Rathborne Lodge, The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, Mrs Macquaries Road Sydney

Dandy Lions offers a delightful morning of gardening, craft, singing and play for young children and their carers. Each week the program explores a new garden related theme, with specifically designed activities for children under the age of five, including nature based art and craft, storytelling, songs, music, dance, garden discovery walks and playtime.

To book your little one into the Dandy Lions program, click here.

Mossy Monsters

Dates: 8 – 12 July & 15 – 19 July, 10.30 – 12.00pm OR 12.30 – 2.00pm

Ages: 7 – 12 years

Cost: $20.50 

Where: The Calyx, The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, Mrs Macquaries Road Sydney

A fabulous school holiday program, children will find out how carnivorous ‘monster’ plants eat insects during a tour of The Calyx, learn how plants and animals live together in the rainforest and search the Botanic Gardens rainforest for mossy monsters.

Children will even get to take their own cool Mossy Monsters home.

Click here for more information about the Mossy Monsters program. 

Garden Grubs

Dates: 9, 11 and 12 July, 9am – 3.30pm (Standard Day), 8am – 5.30pm (Long Day)

Ages: 6 – 12 years

Cost: $85.00 (standard day) and $115.00 (long day) per child for non-members

Where: The Moore Room, The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney

Garden Grubs is an all-day, fun-filled program where kids will spend the day exploring the garden and connecting with nature.

Tuesday 9 July 2019 – CELEBRATE NAIDOC WEEK

Children will meet and greet an Aboriginal Educator and listen to dreaming stories and music plus take a guided tour of the native garden and learn about different uses of plants. Kids will make damper, sample native jam, create their own Aboriginal craft and calico bag design, play games, take part in animal yoga and so much more!

Thursday 11 July – CHRISTMAS IN JULY 

Christmas in July comes to the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney. Kids will have good old fashioned fun in the Winter Sun and great outdoors while they make a Christmas tree and ornaments, enjoy art, craft and games, play in the cryptogram house, explore the garden and sing Christmas carols.

Friday 12 July 2019 – BUGS & BEASTIES

A great program for kids that are keen to get messy and creative with clay, kids will look for bugs and beasties while exploring the garden. They’ll meet a garden expert, plant daisy seeds to take home to grow and relax with animal yoga and meditation. A fabulous day for kids with games, outdoor play and so much more.

Click here to book your child into the Garden Grubs program. 

Kids Aboriginal Art Program

Dates: 15 – 18 July, 10am and 12.30pm

Ages: All ages

Cost: $20.50 per child for non-members

Where: Learning Centre, The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, Mrs Macquaries Road Sydney

Children can join the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney’s Aboriginal educators for some fun and hands-on creativity as they produce their own unique Aboriginal art using a range of materials.

For more information about the Kids Aboriginal Art Program, click here.

Squirrel Glider Survivor – Outdoor Garden Theatre

Dates: 15 and 16 July, 10.30 – 11.30am OR 12.30 – 1.30pm

Ages: Recommended for children 4 – 8 years (all children must be accompanied by a ticket holding adult)

Cost: $14.50 per person

Where: Lion Gate Lodge Garden, The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, Mrs Macquaries Road Sydney

Follow the tale of a little Squirrel Glider called Peita who faces the challenge of surviving a night in the forest.  Children will meet many characters, both friendly and not so friendly, that live in or near the “tree house of terror”.

This is a fun interactive show that has lots of audience participation and gets all ages thinking about what they can all do to help these creatures who live in the canopy before it’s too late.

Find out more about the Squirrel Glider Survivor – Outdoor Garden Theatre.

Garden Night-Life For Families

Dates: 19 July and 16 August, at sunset

Ages: Adults and children aged over 5 years if accompanied by an adult

Cost: $39.00 per person for non-members

Where: Lion Gate Lodge Garden, The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, Mrs Macquaries Road Sydney

Experience the Garden and its fascinating night-life on this family adventure by torch-light. The Garden is a city oasis waiting to be explored!

Families will wander the garden pathways and visit biodiversity ‘hotspots’ such as the ponds to look for nocturnal animals – some who fly in for the night, others who are long-term residents. Use your senses and some tech-gadgets used by scientists to help us locate animals. You may see Golden Orb spiders, Brush-tailed Possums, Microbats, Flying Foxes, Tawny Frogmouths … or if you’re really lucky we might even see the Garden’s elusive Powerful Owl, Australia’s largest nocturnal avian predator.

Book tickets to the Garden Night-Life For Families program here.