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The central lawn of Union Terrace Gardens below new planting and the green domes of the city.
Aberdeen

Union Terrace Gardens

A Victorian garden in a green valley in the centre of Aberdeen, opened in 1878 and reopened after its restoration, with lawns, a footbridge and pavilions.

Welcome

Step off Union Street and the city falls away into a green valley.

Union Terrace Gardens lie in the hollow of the old Denburn, a sunken garden of lawns and trees in the very middle of Aberdeen, with granite terraces and domes rising all around.

The gardens opened in 1878 on the old bleaching greens, where the town's washing was once laid out to dry. Along one side the railway runs quietly through the foot of the valley, and above, the grand buildings of Union Terrace look down: His Majesty's Theatre, the library and the church with their green domes and spire.

After a long restoration the gardens reopened at the end of 2022, with their Victorian staircase and arcade arches mended, new planting and trees, a footbridge across the valley, lifts for easy access and three glass pavilions for cafés. The big lawn in the middle is a fine place to sit on a sunny day.

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The Daily for 1 November, from Scotland with love. A misty lane runs past slate-roofed cottages toward a wooded hillside.
Round the cornerTarragon on the TerraceA relaxed restaurant on Union Terrace in Aberdeen with views over Union Terrace Gardens, the sister of Tarragon in Rosemount.Under a mileSee itThe dining room of Tarragon on the Terrace, with velvet chairs, marble-topped tables and a leather banquette, and tall windows looking out to the trees of Union Terrace Gardens.
Before you go

A public garden in the city centre.

Where
Union Terrace, off Union Street.
Opened
1878.
Size
About two and a half acres.

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Where it is

In the centre of Aberdeen, in the valley between Union Terrace and Denburn Road, just north of Union Street.

Close byAberdeen.
  1. The glass pavilion of Common Sense Coffee House and Bar on the terrace above Union Terrace Gardens, with tables outside.Common Sense Coffee HouseUnder a mile as the crow flies
  2. The upstairs room at Wild Goose, all pale wood, with globe lights and trailing plants hanging from the ceiling, wooden tables and a counter at the far end.Wild GooseUnder a mile as the crow flies
  3. Pedestrian crosses between First and Stagecoach buses under festive light decorationsUnion StreetThe Granite Mile above.Under a mile 1 min by road
  4. Aberdeen Art GalleryAberdeen Art GalleryArt a short walk away.Under a mile 2 min by road
  5. Juniper shop front beside a stone church with a rose windowBelmont StreetCafés on the cobbles.Under a mile 2 min by road
Directions
The dining room of Tarragon on the Terrace, with velvet chairs, marble-topped tables and a leather banquette, and tall windows looking out to the trees of Union Terrace Gardens.RestaurantsTarragon on the TerraceA step away
Kultura's front on Belmont Street, its wooden sign reading Filipino Restaurant & Bar above open doors in a granite wall, with potted bay trees by the step.RestaurantsKulturaA step away
The long bar at Casa del Fuego under a red wall and a neon sign reading Viva la Fiesta, with high stools and tables on a patterned tiled floor.BarsCasa del FuegoA step away
The bar at Glenhouse, lit in amber under a wall of bottles, with red leather stools and a round marble table.RestaurantsGlenhouseA step away
The granite front of Cup on Little Belmont Street, with hanging baskets and window boxes of flowers.CafeCup Tea SalonA step away
A bowl of beef pho at Mai's Vietnamese Kitchen, with sliced beef, a beef ball, spring onions and herbs in clear broth, the restaurant's name on the bowl.RestaurantsMai's Vietnamese KitchenA step away
A bowl of avocado, roasted tomatoes, red cabbage, artichoke and mange tout at BioCafe, seen from above.CafeBioCafe0.2 miles
The Bread Maker's coffee house on Rosemount Viaduct on a sunny day, with a dark awning, tables on the pavement and a chalkboard by the door.CafeThe Bread Maker0.2 miles
Granite façade of Aberdeen's Central Library, with "Public Library" carved above its arched entranceAttractionsAberdeen Central Library0.2 miles

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