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Glenwhan Botanic Garden from the top of the slope: flowering shrubs and rhododendrons round the lochans, with Luce Bay and the Mull of Galloway on the horizon.
Dumfries and Galloway

Glenwhan Botanic Garden

A botanic garden and arboretum on the hillside above Dunragit, east of Stranraer.

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Welcome

Glenwhan has a lovely story behind it.

In 1971 Tessa Knott Sinclair and her husband, Bill, bought a stretch of Galloway moorland over the telephone, sight unseen, and found bog, bracken and gorse. From the late 1970s she set about making a garden of it, and in 2023 it joined Scotland's national Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes. Paths and seats wind round two small lochans, through rhododendrons, azaleas and tender plants from the southern hemisphere, with sculptures to find as you go. From 300 feet up, the views run over Luce Bay to the Mull of Galloway, and on a clear day to the Isle of Man. There's a numbered tree trail and a moorland walk too, and in the season the tearoom serves home-made soups and baking.

A short drive awayFig and OliveA bright cafe on George Street in Stranraer, with brunch, hot dishes, fresh cakes and a welcome for dogs and children.17 min by roadSee itFig & Olive shopfront with turquoise trim on a quiet street corner
Before you go

From October to March, pay at the honesty box at the entrance or online.

Getting there
A mile north of the A75 at Dunragit: follow the brown signs.
Open
Every day of the year, 10am to 5pm.
Price
Adults £10, concessions £8, a family with up to three children £24, under-10s free.
Tearoom
From 1 April, 10am to 5pm, last orders 4.30pm: home-made soups and baking, with vegetarian and vegan dishes. It closes for the winter on 10 October 2026.
Dogs
Welcome on a lead, in the garden and the tearoom.
Access
The garden is on a hillside and partly accessible by wheelchair, with benches throughout. A gentle ramp leads from the car park to the tearoom.
Phone
07768 002288

Opening hours

Their website
Monday
10am–5pm
Tuesday
10am–5pm
Wednesday
10am–5pm
Thursday
10am–5pm
Friday
10am–5pm
Saturday
10am–5pm
Sunday
10am–5pm

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Where it is

Above Dunragit, seven miles east of Stranraer, DG9 8PH.

Close byStranraer, Portpatrick and the Rhins of Galloway.
  1. Castle of St JohnCastle of St JohnA tower house in the middle of Stranraer that has been nearly everything.7 miles 16 min by road
  2. Stranraer MuseumStranraer MuseumThe museum of Wigtownshire in Stranraer's Old Town Hall of 1776, free to visit, with refurbished displays and children's trails.7 miles 17 min by road
  3. Small wooden hut atop layered coastal cliffs above the seaRhins of GallowayThe peninsula at Scotland's south-west tip, circled by an 83-mile waymarked coast path from Stranraer to the Mull of Galloway and back.9 miles 22 min by road
  4. PortpatrickPortpatrickA painted harbour on the Rhins, and mile nought of the Southern Upland Way.12 miles 25 min by road
  5. Dunskey CastleDunskey CastleA roofless tower on the cliff edge, half an hour along the path from Portpatrick.13 miles 29 min by road
  6. Palm trees and colourful flowerbeds line a gravel path in a coastal gardenLogan Botanic GardenTree ferns and cabbage palms on the Rhins, kept alive by the Gulf Stream.13 miles 28 min by road
  7. Waves rolling onto a curved sandy beach beneath grassy cliffsKillantringan Lighthouse and BayA white lighthouse of 1900 on the cliffs north of Portpatrick, above a sandy bay.15 miles 32 min by road
Directions
The canal at Castle Kennedy Gardens in summer, lined with cordylines, with flowering trees in red on the bank and a path alongside.AttractionsCastle Kennedy Gardens3.0 miles
The boating lake at Agnew Park under a blue sky, a little island of palm trees on the right and green hills across the water beyond.AttractionsAgnew Park6.2 miles
Fig & Olive shopfront with turquoise trim on a quiet street cornerCafeFig and Olive7.1 miles
Kirkmadrine's small stone church on its rise among the fields, the red sandstone porch at its west end where the early Christian stones stand behind glass, old gravestones in the grass beside it.AttractionsKirkmadrine Stones7.8 miles
The boardwalk at Aldouran Wetland Garden running out over the reedy pond towards the wooden bird hide among the trees.WalksAldouran Wetland Garden and Glen9.0 miles
From above, Dunskey House, the castle, its grey gables and chimneys, fields and woods running to the sea behind.PortpatrickThe Velvet UppergroundSleeps 4 · 9.5 miles
The Agnew Monument, a square castellated stone tower, on the green top of the Tor of Craigoch under a deep blue sky, a walker climbing through the long summer grass towards it.WalksAgnew Monument9.7 miles
The Crown Hotel's white frontage on North Crescent in Portpatrick, its name over the door, window boxes of flowers and picnic tables out front under furled blue umbrellas.RestaurantsThe Crown Hotel, Portpatrick9.9 miles
The restaurant at The Waterfront in Portpatrick, its tables laid under a pine-boarded ceiling with roof lights, and windows on the far wall.RestaurantsThe Waterfront, Portpatrick9.9 miles

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The Daily for 24 October, from Scotland with love. a stone arch bridge crossing a rushing gorge below a moss-covered cliffside building, autumn trees on both banks

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Stay nearby

Places to stay near the garden, and when each is next free.

Rose Blair Lodge in the sun, a gabled cottage with a wooden door in a porch, trees behind and a table on the terrace.Rose Blair Lodge
  • Sleeps 2
  • In Portpatrick
  • 9 miles from Glenwhan
Free 31 Oct – 3 NovHeritage Coachman Lodge's pale blue door in the cobbled stable courtyard, a table and a wooden bench in the sun outside.Heritage Coachman Lodge
  • Sleeps 4
  • In Portpatrick
  • 9 miles from Glenwhan
Free 30 Oct – 2 NovFern Forest House, a grey stone house with ivy on its gable and a pale blue door, under a blue sky.Fern Forest House
  • Sleeps 6
  • In Portpatrick
  • 9 miles from Glenwhan
Check datesFawn's Velvet Lodge in the sun, a stone cottage with a pale blue door, daisies on the lawn in front.Fawn's Velvet Lodge
  • Sleeps 4
  • In Portpatrick
  • 9 miles from Glenwhan
Free 29 Oct – 1 NovPlaces to stayEvery stay in Dumfries and GallowayAll our places to stay nearby, to search by date and by who is coming.See them all
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