Travel adventures with le jardinet

From wallabies to wombats and grevillea to gum trees – this tour has it all.

Australia and Tasmania are world-renowned for their outstanding natural beauty, delicious wines and unique wildlife and this 18-day tour promises to be the adventure of a lifetime as we explore the highlights of it all. Additionally, the tour has been carefully planned to encompass two spring garden festivals, affording guests the opportunity to visit a much wider range of garden styles, sizes, themes and designers.

Our journey will begin in Sydney with excursions including Botanic Gardens of Sydney, Firescreek Botanical Winery and a dinner cruise on the spectacular Sydney Harbor. As we journey on to the Blue Mountains we will stop at the Featherdale Wildlife Park, historical gardens and enjoy the panoramic views. There will be time to explore the Hartley Valley Garden Festival before continuing on to the Southern Highlands and then Canberra. Here we will visit larger country estates and smaller cottage gardens together with lunch and wine tasting at Centennial Vineyards, a cool climate winery. We will also have the opportunity to learn more about the Aboriginal peoples and their interpretation of the landscape through an indigenous tour. 

From Canberra we fly to Melbourne where we have been invited to visit two outstanding private gardens and meet their designers. Sam Cox, a sought-after landscape designer, has generously invited us to tour his personal garden Wattle Glen. With a remnant bushland backdrop, this extensive garden exemplifies how traditional natives, indigenous plants and considered design create a unified sense of place. From here we visit Stone Hill, a much published garden crafted by the highly acclaimed Michael McCoy. The Quarry Garden at Stone Hill is expected to be in its prime during our visit, and features tussock grass-like plants accented by an abundance of spring flowering bulbs set within a rocky terrain.

Other prestigious garden visits while in Melbourne include the Castlemaine and District Festival of Gardens, Heronswood Gardens and Nursery (home of the Digger’s Club), Cloudehill Gardens, Coombe Yarra Valley and the Chelsea Australian Garden at Olinda where designer Philip Johnson will personally lead our private tour. This garden won ‘Best in Show’ at the 2013 Chelsea Flower Show and was then recreated within the Dandenong Ranges Botanic Garden in 2023.

Finally, we fly to Tasmania to visit a wide variety of private gardens including Corinda House, Brickendon and the Woolmers Estate, a UNESCO world heritage site, while an excursion to the Trowunna Wildlife Sanctuary will get us up close and personal with wombats. We will also sample the farm-to-table scene for which Tasmania is known and enjoy a wine tasting at Frogmore Creek Wines.

With spectacular scenery, inspiring gardens, unique wildlife and delicious food and wines, there really is something for everyone.