Great Gardens of Britain and Ireland
About.com Rating
The Bottom Line
Insight Guides are the premier picture guides and this one is no exception. It is a good book for armchair travelers who enjoy gardens as well as for someone planning to travel to Britain and Ireland. It is full of great photos and useful information.
Pros
Cons
Description
Guide Review - Great Gardens of Britain and Ireland
I enjoy a stroll through gardens when I travel. This book made me wish I were on my way to Britain to visit some gardens. The photographs are beautiful and I enjoyed looking through it. If I were going to use the book, I would probably read it before going, then make notes of the gardens I planned to visit as it is heavy to carry around. One thing that makes it easy to use is that in addition to finding the garden in the section for the region you are visiting, you can look for gardens by type or by what's blooming in what season by using the convenient information inside the front and back covers.
So if you want to see particular flowers or a particular style of garden, you can use this information to plan your trip. The garden description has all the practical information you need. Opening days are especially important because although many gardens are open yearlong, some only open a few days a year for special events. When available, there are also local recommended accommodations and pubs. Although they give admission prices, they recommend you check the Gardens Guide website (see link below) as prices often change. The only fault I found is that some historical information seems to be inaccurate. For example, the Royal Botanic Gardens of Kew says it is the world's first botanic garden, dating from 1678. However, the front section says the Oxford Botanical Garden is the oldest in Britain, founded in 1621. And the oldest in Europe is in Padua, dating from 1545!
The Bottom Line
Insight Guides are the premier picture guides and this one is no exception. It is a good book for armchair travelers who enjoy gardens as well as for someone planning to travel to Britain and Ireland. It is full of great photos and useful information.
Pros
- Beautiful Color Photographs of Gardens
- Location Finder Categorizes Gardens by Garden type
- Good Reference Sections and Practical Information
Cons
- Heavy to Carry Around
Description
- The book features more than 320 gardens of the British Isles open to the public, many with photos.
- Gardens in England organized by region and Scotland, Wales, and Ireland grouped by country.
- Information for each includes a brief description, location, hours, facilities, and history.
- References include Garden Design History, Glossary, Garden Calendar, and Location Finder.
Guide Review - Great Gardens of Britain and Ireland
I enjoy a stroll through gardens when I travel. This book made me wish I were on my way to Britain to visit some gardens. The photographs are beautiful and I enjoyed looking through it. If I were going to use the book, I would probably read it before going, then make notes of the gardens I planned to visit as it is heavy to carry around. One thing that makes it easy to use is that in addition to finding the garden in the section for the region you are visiting, you can look for gardens by type or by what's blooming in what season by using the convenient information inside the front and back covers.
So if you want to see particular flowers or a particular style of garden, you can use this information to plan your trip. The garden description has all the practical information you need. Opening days are especially important because although many gardens are open yearlong, some only open a few days a year for special events. When available, there are also local recommended accommodations and pubs. Although they give admission prices, they recommend you check the Gardens Guide website (see link below) as prices often change. The only fault I found is that some historical information seems to be inaccurate. For example, the Royal Botanic Gardens of Kew says it is the world's first botanic garden, dating from 1678. However, the front section says the Oxford Botanical Garden is the oldest in Britain, founded in 1621. And the oldest in Europe is in Padua, dating from 1545!
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