Sometimes, you just need to stop and appreciate all of Mother Nature’s most beautiful creations. You know, literally, stop and smell the roses. And if you’re going to indulge in that moment of zen, you might as well do it in the statistically most beautiful flower garden in the world. 

Over the summer, Titan Travel, a worldwide tour company, dug deep into the data to uncover the world’s most beautiful gardens. To find out which ones rank at the top, the team looked at Tripadvisor data to see which gardens are worthy of your time. After looking at all the reviews and rankings, it named the Ruth Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek, California, the best spot. 

“Ruth Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek is Tripadvisor’s highest-rated flower garden, with 62 percent of 5-star ‘beautiful’ reviews,” the company shared in its findings with Travel + Leisure. “With over 7,400 Instagram posts and a Tripadvisor average review score of 4.5/5, this garden should be at the top of your bucket list.” 

As Titan Travel noted, the garden is home to more than 2,000 species of cactus, succulents, trees, and shrubs native to places like Mexico, Chile, South Africa, Australia, and, of course, California. It is spread across 3.5 acres and guests are welcome to roam on their own. However, those looking to learn a thing or two are also welcome to join the garden’s frequent classes, workshops, and events so they can improve their green thumb skills, too. The garden is open to guests every Tuesday to Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

As for other must-see gardens, Titan Travel found that the Limahuli Garden and Preserve in Kauai ranked as Tripadvisor’s second highest-rated flower garden, with 33 percent of 5-star “beautiful” reviews.

“Over 48,000 Google searches in the past year indicate strong interest from visitors,” the findings added. “Over 1,000 enticing Instagram posts and an average Tripadvisor review score of 4.5/5 show just why these gardens do need to be at the top of your bucket list to visit this summer.” 

Rounding out the top three is Pukekura Park in New Plymouth, New Zealand, with 30 percent of 5-star “beautiful” reviews. “Over 10,000 Instagram posts show off the splendor of the ‘jewel in New Plymouth’s crown’, which is free to enter for all,” Titan Travel said. “Having seen 92,000 Google searches in the past year, the park is one that many are looking forward to visiting in 2024.” 

There’s also good news for those who want to hit up all the most beautiful flower gardens in the world. As Titan Travel found, six of the world’s prettiest flower gardens have free admission. It added, “In Europe, you can head to the Volksgarten and Mirabell Palace in Austria or check out the Arctic-Alpine Botanic Garden in Norway. What’s more, Pukekura Park in New Zealand, the Singapore Botanic Gardens, and the Botanical Garden of Medellín in Colombia are all cost-free to enter.”