Careys Secret Garden
Careys Secret Garden
5
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
About
Behind a 150 year old wall, situated just outside of Wareham, Dorset, sits 3.5 acres in the midst of transformation. Left untouched for more than 40 years, this garden is flourishing once again. Boundaries are marked by edible hedgerows. Trees have been planted that fruit the best of British, as well as roses, flowers and a vegetable and herb garden. Careys Secret Garden is approx. 5 minutes drive from Wareham Train Station, detailed directions will be sent to you with your booking confirmation. All visits need to be pre-booked online. Beyond a productive and beautiful garden, Careys is a space to grow skills and inspiration through unique events. From seed sowing to scented gardening, mushroom foraging to moth identification, bird song to creative clay, and permaculture to propagation. Please visit the Events page on the website to see what’s coming up.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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  • stjean11
    Dorset, United Kingdom766 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Summer Garden part & Salt Pig buffet
    Summer Garden Party & Buffet. Very tasty food from Salt Pig and plenty of it. Frankie Miles was a very good guitar player & singer, songs from Ed Sheeran, George Ezra (Budapest) Elton John. The weather could have been better but the umbrellas and large canopy keep us all nice and dry. Wonderful relaxing evening thanks to everyone who put work into arranging the evening.
    Visited June 2023
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 1 July 2023
  • Caron F
    Swansea, United Kingdom16 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Nice for a few hours
    What a lovely garden. Spent a few hours just wandering around looking at the plants. Easy walk around the garden. Steep from car park but disabled access is available. Enjoyed coffee and cake nice and homemade. Good morning out. Glad of sunshine with a couple of downpours but just sheltered under the trees. Can even purchase the produce! My daughter loved the "secret" and the clues when tickets booked even though she is 17
    Visited August 2023
    Travelled with family
    Written 1 September 2023
  • Vicky P
    1 contribution
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A wonderful afternoon exploring Carey's secret garden
    My husband and I had a wonderful time exploring this enchanting garden with our 3 year old this afternoon. There's wooden stepping stones, tree stumps, a sensory path, a mud kitchen, a camp fire area (not lit) and a rainbow roof bandstand to let the kids imagination take charge. There's interesting information about the different areas of the garden and why they are important, as well as gorgeous flowers to enjoy. The bird song made it feel really tranquil and overall there is just a lovely atmosphere here. We love spotting wildlife and there was plenty of that today.
    Wow, thank you so much for your wonderful review of the Secret Garden. We're delighted to read how much you enjoyed your visit and we hope to welcome you again. Many thanks, from all the team.
    Written 29 December 2023
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
    Visited September 2023
    Travelled with family
    Written 30 September 2023
  • Eleni F
    3 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Migration Festival at Careys secret gardens
    On 29th of January I attended the Migration Festival ‘’Meet and Greet’’ with Bibby Stockholm Barge Residents at Carey’s secret gardens. Careys Secret Gardens it is a beautiful garden, a place of serenity and it could be seen as a peace keeping hub as it contributes significantly into bringing together people from different backgrounds, providing space for important conversations to happen regarding human rights and other nowadays challenges that affect the human life such as leave in peace with the environment and through sustainable ways protect it. At Careys secret Gardens the Berlin wall exhibit immediately travels you back in history where walls have been used to divide, something that very much corresponds to present. An example of walls and division is the Israel’s West Bank wall which separates Palestine from Israel. Walls create division and wars and inhuman consequences, violation of human rights, people being in the sad position to escape their countries because their lives are in danger. The Migration Festival gave me the opportunity to meet the Residents of the badge and hear their stories. It was lovely to see how grateful residents feel because they have been welcomed and supported in many ways like given clothes and food from Careys and the Organization of Portland Friendship Group but most importantly as a Resident described they found ‘’Heart’’, warmth and a place that their concerns and voices are heard. Indeed, in the Meet and greet we all heard and witnessed the challenges that the Residents of the Stockholm barge facing in a daily basis. Careys Gardens and the Portland Global Friendship Group should be praised as they bring communities together through peaceful conversations and acts of kindness and their example should be followed. Carey's secret gardens, Thank you and I will be back soon x
    Visited January 2024
    Travelled solo
    Written 14 February 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

5.0
5.0 of 5 bubbles13 reviews
Excellent
12
Very good
1
Average
0
Poor
0
Terrible
0

Eleni F
3 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2024 • Solo
On 29th of January I attended the Migration Festival ‘’Meet and Greet’’ with Bibby Stockholm Barge Residents at Carey’s secret gardens.
Careys Secret Gardens it is a beautiful garden, a place of serenity and it could be seen as a peace keeping hub as it contributes significantly into bringing together people from different backgrounds, providing space for important conversations to happen regarding human rights and other nowadays challenges that affect the human life such as leave in peace with the environment and through sustainable ways protect it.
At Careys secret Gardens the Berlin wall exhibit immediately travels you back in history where walls have been used to divide, something that very much corresponds to present. An example of walls and division is the Israel’s West Bank wall which separates Palestine from Israel.
Walls create division and wars and inhuman consequences, violation of human rights, people being in the sad position to escape their countries because their lives are in danger.
The Migration Festival gave me the opportunity to meet the Residents of the badge and hear their stories. It was lovely to see how grateful residents feel because they have been welcomed and supported in many ways like given clothes and food from Careys and the Organization of Portland Friendship Group but most importantly as a Resident described they found ‘’Heart’’, warmth and a place that their concerns and voices are heard. Indeed, in the Meet and greet we all heard and witnessed the challenges that the Residents of the Stockholm barge facing in a daily basis.
Careys Gardens and the Portland Global Friendship Group should be praised as they bring communities together through peaceful conversations and acts of kindness and their example should be followed.

Carey's secret gardens, Thank you and I will be back soon x
Written 14 February 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Vicky P
1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2023 • Family
My husband and I had a wonderful time exploring this enchanting garden with our 3 year old this afternoon. There's wooden stepping stones, tree stumps, a sensory path, a mud kitchen, a camp fire area (not lit) and a rainbow roof bandstand to let the kids imagination take charge. There's interesting information about the different areas of the garden and why they are important, as well as gorgeous flowers to enjoy. The bird song made it feel really tranquil and overall there is just a lovely atmosphere here. We love spotting wildlife and there was plenty of that today.
Written 30 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Wow, thank you so much for your wonderful review of the Secret Garden. We're delighted to read how much you enjoyed your visit and we hope to welcome you again. Many thanks, from all the team.
Written 29 December 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Peter
Bournemouth, UK31 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2023 • Couples
This is a wonderful hidden gem of a place. Quiet, relaxing with beautiful gardens and a nice cafe in a heritage walled garden
Written 3 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you so much for your review of Careys. We're so pleased to read your comments and we hope to welcome you again soon.
Written 29 December 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Caron F
Swansea, UK16 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2023 • Family
What a lovely garden. Spent a few hours just wandering around looking at the plants. Easy walk around the garden. Steep from car park but disabled access is available.
Enjoyed coffee and cake nice and homemade.
Good morning out. Glad of sunshine with a couple of downpours but just sheltered under the trees.
Can even purchase the produce!
My daughter loved the "secret" and the clues when tickets booked even though she is 17
Written 1 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

stjean11
Dorset, UK766 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2023 • Couples
Summer Garden Party & Buffet.
Very tasty food from Salt Pig and plenty of it.
Frankie Miles was a very good guitar player & singer, songs from Ed Sheeran, George Ezra (Budapest) Elton John.
The weather could have been better but the umbrellas and large canopy keep us all nice and dry.
Wonderful relaxing evening thanks to everyone who put work into arranging the evening.
Written 1 July 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

stjean11
Dorset, UK766 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2022 • Couples
Wonderful walled Garden
Attended a making clay kiln animals event
Such a beautiful relaxing location.
Lovely little coffee shop.
All the staff were incredibly friendly & gardening staff shared great tips for looking after citrous trees.
A special thank you Debbie who run the event we both both learnt a lot and had a good laugh as well.
Written 16 September 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you so much! It was such a pleasure to welcome you and the clay animals you created were wonderful! We will pass your comments on to Debbie who will be so pleased to hear your feedback. We hope you'll come and visit us again in the near future.
Written 21 September 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Richard E
8 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2022 • Couples
This is an interesting glimpse into 18 century walled gardens. The new owners are working hard to recreate the former glory and have replanted many shrubs, roses and vegetables. A friendly reception and later we bought soft drinks and cakes. The gardens were very dry ( arid) from recent extreme temperatures. This place will be grown up in another 2/3 years but at this time quite honestly there is little worth seeing. There are some fragrant roses but also many vegetables allowed to seed and this looks poor.This is a work in progress and we will revisit in the future to follow its progress.
Written 21 July 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for your review Richard. We recognise the garden is still very much in it's infancy. We only began this project in 2019 and been open to the public for just over a year. We have achieved a lot in such a short space of time, and had a decent growth and survival rate for our plants this year (despite being the driest summer since records began). The team are working hard with techniques being implemented to improve water retention; mulching, contour beds and ground cover planting as a few examples. We are now donating a lot of our extra produce to a local school and food charity. We really hope you'll come back and visit us again to see how the garden has developed.
Written 21 September 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Carey
3 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2022 • Couples
What an absolutely gorgeous find, the moment we went through the gates we felt utterly at peace. Walking around the garden was an absolute delight for all the senses. Wonderful staff member Tink informed us of the discovery of the garden, it's plans for the future and it's ethos, the enthusiastic manner which she displayed for the garden and the shear beauty of the place captured us so much so we returned 2 weeks later to the forest bathing morning, would recommend this class to anybody, after all who doesn't benefit from slowing down and letting nature do it's thing. Also would like to shout out to lovely Kate from the Salt Pig who made us the most fabulous coffee and took the time to make us very welcome.
Written 13 June 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you so much for your kind words and wonderful review, it really means so much to the team to read such fabulous feedback. It's been lovely to welcome you to the garden, and we hope we'll be seeing you again soon. Many thanks again.
Written 15 June 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

PlinkyPlonkyDonkey
Oxford3 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2021 • Friends
Such a special place, tranquil yet at the same time buzzing with life. The owners are doing incredible things rewilding and regenerating this land, and all the team are so passionate and welcoming. Can’t recommend it enough - absolutely worth a visit.
Written 7 June 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you so much for visiting us and for your wonderful feedback. It really means a lot to our team to read your kind comments, we hope you'll come back and visit us again.
Written 11 June 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Andy W
Bournemouth, UK15 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2022 • Friends
Sometimes you just want a great garden experience, rather than a stately home with rolling acres of grass.

Careys is a revived walled garden, already productive in its 3rd year of restoration and destined to look better still. It's very apparent that there's a plan here, and a joyous, affirmative one at that.

Be warned that the car park is small and a little way from the garden, and that you have to pre-book. That adds to the sense of specialness and privilege when you get there. Your entry allows you to stay all day if you wish but it's not a burger stand/ plastic giraffe kind of place - nothing wrong with that, but it's all about the plants, the flowers and the ecology here. There's just enough of a nod to comfort to make you welcome, but this is a place where the colour and vibe are natural rather than fairground attributes. Heartily recommended.
Written 5 June 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you so much for taking the time to write us such a wonderful, detailed review. We're delighted to read you had a great experience with us, and that our goals and ethos behind the project are so well received and recognised. We hope you'll come back and visit us again soon.
Written 11 June 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

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Careys Secret Garden - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

Frequently Asked Questions about Careys Secret Garden

Careys Secret Garden is open:
  • Wed - Sat 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM